Owner Feedback – Verna Fluidic 1.6 Diesel

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The Hyundai Verna is one good looking car and its design is a wonderful evolution of the older, now retired Verna. This is a short post with feedback from my friend Jegedeesh about his Verna (based on some specific questions I asked him relating to his ownership experience).

Here are some photos of Jegedeesh, his son and his car 🙂

Now for the Q&A:

How is the ownership/driving/service experience so far and how long have you had it (how many km covered)?
I have done 6800 kms so far and the driving experience is top class … the driving, gears are really smooth and especially the drive in the city is really smooth, butter smooth infact.

Hyundai has plentiful service outlets and i must admit that i did like my Kun Hyundai showrooms better .. they are more helpful and do a better job, but there is no complaint with the Gurgaon one .. they were professional.

You might want to understand here that i have my car on a Company Lease, so i do not spend any money on maintenance, but i did see the bill and it was just for replacing the Engine Oil + Filter (1500 INR).

What is the mileage it gives you so far (and any services & costs so far – is it on par with your expectation at time of purchase?)
I get a mileage of 15/litre (mine is a 1.6 L Diesel) in city, i do not thrash the car, run it steadily between 70-90 kms and the best mileage i have got is 18.5 on a highway (not really the best motorway, but sufficiently long roads, between Gurgaon & Amristar), running @ 100+ kms. The mileage is purely dependent on individual driving style, but you can safely say that i am quite satisfied with my car’s mileage.

Any good points/features that stand out?

The car is loaded with wonderful features – Reverse Camera + Auto-adjusting rear mirror (goes dull on Headlight hitting the mirror) + Steering Tilt + Bluetooth integration with Mobile (Speaker + Mic integrated), integrated call + management of music. Space (inside the car + storage), brilliant interiors.

Any irritants or negatives that stand out?
Steering can be a bit wafty @ high speeds (especially if you are used to Hydraulic ones), car does get hit in humps or pot hole roads – at low speeds. I would have loved also better tires than the stock ones. The stereo is also a bit flat, the speakers are not great and the car doesn’t play DVD.

What are the accessories you added on and what do you feel are must haves for someone buying this vehicle?
I have added no accessories, just kept the car as it is 🙂

Would you recommend this car to anyone and why ?
I have been driving a Hyundai for 7 years now (a Santro Xing previously and now this one) and they produce very nice cars and this car has a great engine, brilliant mileage and also good space. The car has the look & feel of a premium car with all features etc. I think it is a reliable car with good resell value.

Thanks a lot Jegedeesh for your valuable inputs – am sure it will help others looking at this beautiful machine as an option to own.

Automatic Cars in India costing less than 16Lakhs (Updated 2012, March)

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Ford Fiesta Powershift

I finally updated the list of automatic cars currently available in India today after close to a year.

Now the list has  12 vehicles with the Dzire, Rapid and Fiesta petrols being added newly. Verna details are updated with the new Fluidic which comes both in petrol and diesel. Civic , Cruze and Corolla have been moved out as they do not come under 16L.

Here is the complete list of automatic vehicles costing under 16 lakhs (on road-Chennai):

  1. Reva Maini (CVT)(Electric)
  2. Maruti Suzuki A-Star VXI AT(4 speed)(Petrol)
  3. Hyundai I10 1.2 Kappa Sportz (4 speed)(Petrol)
  4. Maruti Suzuki Dzire  1.2 (AT) (4 speed)(Petrol)
  5. Hyundai I20 1.4 Gamma – Sportz AT (4 speed)(Petrol)
  6. Hyundai Verna Fluidic 1.6 –  Petrol and Diesel Automatic (4 speed)
  7. Maruti Suzuki SX4 ZXI AT( 4 speed)(Petrol)
  8. Honda City(4 speed with paddle shift)(Petrol)
  9. Ford Fiesta  Powershift ( 6 speed, Dual Clutch)(Petrol)
  10. Skoda Rapid AT (6 Speed)(Petrol)
  11. Volkswagen Vento Highline 1.6 (6 speed)(Petrol)
  12. Scorpio VLX AT(6 speed)  (Diesel)

Only the Verna comes with a petrol and a diesel automatic.  Most of the vehicles on the list are petrols and it seems very obvious that Indian Manufacturers expect the automatics to be primarily used for shorter distances where the diesel advantage of mileage is not required. The Ford fiesta alone stands out as a petrol with 6 speeds, dual clutch system and very decent ride and handling.

Also the automatic versions typically higher in price than their equivalent manual siblings. Add a diesel engine to the mix and the pricing may very well come from one segment higher. So usually the automatic comes only with a petrol.

The post I had shared in 2011 March about Automatic transmission vehicles is here with the original list and some myths about automatics. With the traffic one has to face in Indian cities – the automatic will become a definite must have for some reduced stress.

Some vehicles being talked about that may come out later this year with Automatic Transmissions are the Nissan Sunny and the Tata Aria. The Reva NXR that has been talked about for years will also have a CVT – whenever it gets launched.

Wishlist:

Now that Maruti has the 4 speed auto on the DZire – when can we see it on the Swift ?

How about an automatic Figo and Ecosport ?

Automatic Jazz / Brio anyone ?

Automatic Fabia / Polo ?

Tata is conspicuous by its absence in this list – they need to get something done regarding this soon.

Abandoned Car – Pencil Drawing

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Spent a bit of time on this. Got the idea looking at a popular automotive forum avatar photo of Sonu who sent me the larger version. Thanks again Sonu for the help.

Here is the original:

I took the following photos during various stages of the drawing:

 

 

I had initially wanted to make it a watercolor but I decided to stop here before I ruined this further :-).

Mahindra XUV 500 Vs Predator

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The Mahindra XUV 500 was launched yesterday and details of pricing and variants shared today. The pricing seems to be spot on and the buzz on the net indicates Mahindra has done their homework on the pricing very well.

However there is one issue – the front jawline doesnt remind me of a Cheetah – its more of  The Predator.

Here is an image I mashed together – do you see the resemblance ?

Renault Koleos – Spied In Chennai

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Saw this Renault Koleos in heavy traffic on Anna Salai (Mount Road) near the Saidapet bus stop around 5:30 PM wearing very minimal camo – just some cover of tape on the badges at the rear. This confirms reports of its release being very near.

Was able to get only two photos (taken by my wife) as I was driving and there was too much traffic.

Overall it looked good and paint quality seemed nice. Has decent road presence. Was not able to see the front due to traffic. Hope it is priced well.

Standard Herald Sketch

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This color pencil sketch is dedicated to Mr. Shyam Krishnamachary (a.k.a StanHer on a certain forum). His passion and knowledge about all cars made by the Standard Motor Company is limitless and he is always ready and willing to help whenever possible with queries regarding cars (preferably Standards).

For those that don’t know him he is probably one of the first to have an almost complete collection of Standard Motors cars.  This is his latest (b)ride 🙂 a 1964 Standard Herald mk1:

Standard Herald
Standard Herald

Reference photo was nicked from here:


1964 Standard Herald CAN 1526