It’s been a little over a year since the Hyundai Stargazer made its world debut. Hyundai’s first subcompact MPV aimed at the ASEAN market was introduced on July 15, 2022, and reached the Philippines in November that same year.
The Stargazer has been a steady seller for the brand, and we’ve taken it for a spin a few times already. That’s why it’s a bit of a surprise that Hyundai is already giving it a few updates after a year in production. Normally, it takes about three years before an all-new model gets a refresh, but it looks like the South Korean automaker would rather do it now.
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So, what are the updates to the Stargazer? Well, Hyundai took the term minor model change literally by doing two small adjustments to the popular small seven seater. At the front, the Stargazer gets a redesigned touchscreen and instrument housing. It’s no longer finished in matte gray and is now painted gloss black. Hyundai also changed the angle of the screen and made the screen panel thinner for increased visibility.
As for the rear, Hyundai says it improved the rear blower to speed up cabin cooldown on hot days. The brand says it added a dual-blower system, so expect more air to reach the third row area. The rest of the car carries over unchanged.
That said, there is a new variant for the Indonesian market. Dubbed the Essential, it gains rear USB ports, a redesigned head unit, and a tire pressure monitoring system. It’s basically a value model that adds features from the top-spec version. It doesn’t seem likely that this model will make it to the Philippines.
However, what’s more likely are the minor improvements appearing in the Philippine-spec model. After all, the Stargazers sold in the country are sourced from Indonesia, so there’s a good chance we’ll be getting these updates down the line.
