Verna CRDI (ABS) 30,000 Kms report on problems

[sag_kv]

Hi guys this is my review of my Verna CRDI (ABS) which we purchased in March 2007

First of all I would like to say that Verna is here to stay for a long time considering its fuel efficiency, power ,interiors and service backup of Hyundai.
A brief introduction:Falling in Love
Day one:

The day we took delivery of the vehicle was a great loving experience for me as I was the one to drive it first to my home which is around 30kms from the showroom.
The minute I was in the car the feeling was great the plush beige interiors , 2 tone colour and the instrument center console facing the driver as it were a racing breed.
next as I started the engine it started with a slight whim the turbocharger turning on liked the very sound of it,next as I stepped onto the pedal It started to move out pretty much in control and I dare not step hard as I still haven't got the feel of the car and brakes. The gears made me addictive as the slid into place just requiring to guide the gear knob and the gear would engage as if it is being pulled into its space.Once I the car was out of city limits I slowly started to step on the accelerator keeping in mind not to over rev above 3k, the turbo started to kick in at 1.8k rpm and the drag was great as if a flight was taking of especially in the 2nd and 3rd gears.
Next entered a road section which was damaged a bit and had to slow down and the car was literally wobbling its way through the poth holes ( Hyundai guys have to rework the suspension) not a pleasure to drive on bad roads especially if anybody is sitting in the back seat the ride quality comes down to less than to 50% tossing up and down and very difficult to control the car at high speeds.
Finally got home and did puja and slept away with a longing for tomorrow early morning walk to which we usually go by car.

Day Two

My elder brother woke up earlier than me and told me that he would be driving the car and went down to start the car by the time we get ready, I woke up a little late and my brother came back with a sad face and told me that the car hit the garage wall I thought he was joking , but it tuned out real,he slipped the car into first gear and released the clutch a little quicker and with only 10 cms within the wall everything happened rather quickly, Now it was my duty to go back to the service center immediately before anybody saw the car as it looked pretty bad the bonnet was pushed back and was not closing , the body strength is not as good as our previous accent which was sturdy. went to the service center where all the people were known to me as we were servicing our accent for 5 years and the tinkering person there was an expert as it was before 9 am the service manager was not there yet and He along with a mechanic I know held the bonnet on both sides and bent it back to original shape with unnoticeable damage that was a surprise and saved me bucks and much agony to my brother.

Then the driving experiences of the car were pretty happy with my car returning around 17-18 on highway and 14-15 in the city and the turbo making me to ask for more.

The ABS was a really new experience for me as I have never driven a vehicle with ABS before. The breaking was also making me even more addictive to the car as It would stop exactly the way i wanted without much breaking force like the turbo it would start just in a second after you step on the pedal.

The in cabin noise was very low in the beginning making me feel as if I were driving a petrol and at cruising speeds it was so silent a great improvement over the accent.

Hating it a few times

Problems I encountered during my 30k period

After 20k kms I started hearing increasing noises looked like tyre noise to me which started after a speed of 60 and stayed pretty much there even till high speeds and the same while decelerating upto 50kmph and below that it was negligible . As we travel mostly on long distance travels the sound was pretty irritating.when I took i to Hyundai they said the couldn't notice anything deaf I suppose or not so experienced ,the sound was increasing and i was growing impatient took it to the service center several times but they said it was nothing finally recently i got my 30k service done at Chennai in KUN I was showing it at KUN at my place in tirupathi. The person that came with me for the test drive found out the problem in a second and told that it was due to the tyres MRF pretty bad low quality ones Hyundai should try to stick on to bridgestone.He asked me change over once they wear out.Still have about half thread ,He spotted out a tyre which was very hard due to bad rubber quality and put it as spare.I was doing a regural air check up constantly every week and alignment once every 10k and balancing every 5k and 5 wheel rotation every 10k from the beginning.had two punctures and got them fixed by experts, so it the tyres for sure that are bad.the Hyundai guy also recommended a tyre pressure of 28 against the company recommended 30 or 33 to have better ride quality. after that the sound was down very much and heard it only at speeds above 100kmph.

The next problem was the engine rocking too much during start up and switch off and there was also a noise a tic-tac type of noise that was heard when the the clutch was applied or released when th gear was engaged and it too seemed due to the engine rocking.Started at 20k and like the tyre problem my local kun could not exactly say whether it was a engine bed problem or something else, in chennai at my 30k service it was confirmed as a bed problem ,they said out of the 3 bed bushes one has become weak and it would cost 10k and i was surprised to find out that it was not covered in warranty as it was a rubber part ,Bed weakening up so early too bad may be attributed to the high pickup of the w\vehicle and light body or even due to bad roads in my area. But anyhow I later found out that even city driven vehicles are turning out with the same problem seams to me that Hyundai is concentrating on making money from spares rather than quality as the tyres.

Finally to sum it up my overall experience with the car was great ,every time I step into the car the experience is exhilarating and the ABS is a must it has saved my family from quite a couple of accidents,
Minor issues like the suspension , tyres , engine bed have to be noticed by the company and once rectified I think there will be no car in its segment to beat this car overall.


Ok guys hope this review will help you and if somebody has similar issues the topic is open for discussion and suggestions are welcome

[undead]

stock tyres are mostly of low quality sag. On the next set of tyres try going for a wider tyre with Michelin or Yokohama or Bridgestone. It will surely change your ride quality. Check out the other bhpians post for Verna.
About the suspension : Yes, i drove a Verna VGT of my friend with ABS , and when i drove the car on bad roads it just tosses up , i have an ikon flair. so you know , i can see the difference for sure. But a better idea is to go for good tyres and little wider.

[rippergeo]

if the bushes cost 10k, why dont you see if you can find better bushes? turboindia/Pete has these powerflex bush thingys. why dont you PM him. he's also got some suspension upgrades for the verna. I'm waiting for my bank account to recover from my swift mods before I start on the verna.

the verna is a nice car except for the suspension, but it doesnt cause trouble unless you are doing over 140kmph.

[sag_kv]

Thank you for the info "undead" and "ripper" , i will surely do that once my tyres wear out and for the bushes "ripper" how much do you think the power flex things would cost and are they compatible with verna, i will also pm pete about this

[hellstar]

nice report there and some serious mileage you are doing pal less than a year and 30k KMS is serious running pal . Anyways nice to know that your car is doing fine . As for the tyre noise i am also facing similar issues. I also expect the engine to have bush related issues in the near future as i am able to relate to your symptoms.

[carlover98]

A colleague of mine bought a Verna CRDI with ABS. I drove the vehicle and could feel the "Laura Effect" at 2000 RPM. But when I shifted from 3rd gear to 4th I could feel some jerk. I dont know why.

Did anyone else feel the same issue in your Vernas?

Cheers!!

[diffsoft]

Excellent report sag_kv.

Would you based on your experience recommend keeping the presure at 28 PSI vs 32 recommended? Any impact on mileage / handling / ride quality?

Cheers

[hellstar]

Originally Posted by carlover98

A colleague of mine bought a Verna CRDI with ABS. I drove the vehicle and could feel the "Laura Effect" at 2000 RPM.

Cheers!!

Hey carlover what is this "Laura Effect " could you please elaborate ?

[vasudeva]

Have you ever tried writing directly to Hyundai through email on their website. For dealers, time spent on minor problems is money lost. Hyundai may have a different attitude. Try once.

[tsk1979]

Guys don't fill in air with pressure less than manufacturer recommended(you can see the recommendation sticker near drivers door of most cars).
Its very dangerous on highways and can lead to fatal blowouts.

[jaibir]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

Guys don't fill in air with pressure less than manufacturer recommended(you can see the recommendation sticker near drivers door of most cars).
Its very dangerous on highways and can lead to fatal blowouts.

I read on one of the other threads that up to 2psi divergence from recommended is ok. Is this true or should one stick to the recommended pressure only?

[phamilyman]

plus bherry ishtupid n00b koshun: too less air could lead to problems with tubeless tyres? could it not - or is it just my n00b mind?

[tsk1979]

Originally Posted by jaibir

I read on one of the other threads that up to 2psi divergence from recommended is ok. Is this true or should one stick to the recommended pressure only?

you should go 2PSI over recommended if doing high speed runs. Never go under.

[ram_hyundai]

yes i am also facing the same problem,probably due to the extra power the bushes are giving away soon,
another shock to me was when i was informed the wiper blade cost 1700 rs and it does not come with the wiper blade alone it comes as a set from mgf hyundai.
is it true.
ram

[BUSA]

Wouldnot bushes be covered under warranty? Since they are having premature wear its due to inferior quality?