Hyundai i20 (1.2P, 1.4D & 1.4 AT) : Official Review

[SrikantDora]

Superb review GTO, truly deserves a 5 star. Having own an i20 for close to 2 & half years now, I still went through every sentence & it was a joy reading the review.

IMO i20 has always been the best hatch in B+ segment even it its over priced by couple of thousands. And this face lift has made i20 a better VFM car with the endless list of gadgets. While ownership reviews will confirm if Hyundai has improved the AC/Rattles but from the initial impression looks like they have fixed both the problems.

[SrikantDora]

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[MAS]

Excellent Review GTO. This review came as a pleasant surprise as i did not expect a Facelift to be reviewed and that too in such detail.

I did test drive the Asta CRDI as i am contemplating buying a diesel hatch. My 8 year old daughter loved the interiors and the premium look. I had test driven the car immediately after i drove the Beat TCDi. The i20 is better in every aspect, super-refined engine, much better interiors, etc, etc., except that it has lower ground clearance, still crashes into pot holes with a uncomfortable "thud & bang" and air conditioning was not as effective as the Beat. Though these two are not direct competitors, I am confused on deciding between the two.

[mayankjha1806]

Think of a Diesel car and pop comes two new threads on team bhp, one on Honda testing Diesel and another i20 excellent review. Thanks for this wonderful review and timely thread.

So if someone is thinking Diesel hatch, with space and power not as a primary requirement, only good cheap to own and service, easy to drive in city, which one would come on top

1. Figo
2. i20
3. Yet to be launched Honda Brio Diesel
4. Swift Diesel (Not considering, as i get an impression its expansive)
5. Ritz Diesel (I am confused with looks)
6. Liva (Not considering as interiors are not even decent)

[F150]

Originally Posted by GTO

What you won’t:
• Light, vague & sensitive steering at speed
• Highway dynamics are unfitting of a premium hatchback

Out on the open road where the other 1.3L MJD hatchbacks would be running out of breath at 130 - 140 kph, the i20 is still accelerating. At 150 kph, the Hyundai has stamina left to climb up the speedometer. Because of the power on tap, the i20 diesel feels like it can maintain 3 digit speeds all day, and even keep up with more expensive machinery.

The i20 is not meant to be a corner carver and it's best to adopt a conservative driving style with this car. Conversely, the enthusiast will be disappointed with the wallowy behaviour when road conditions are less than ideal. Cars like the Figo, Punto and Swift are far more accomplished dynamically.

Disappointing for an enthusiast. Powerful diesel engine but no handling prowess to match.

How comfortable were you doing those triple digit speeds ?

Making matters worse is the light steering that feels vague on the highway, and is extremely sensitive at speed. You could switch a lane on the expressway with minimal steering input. Also, through fast corners, the steering puts in deliberate resistance that is just too artificial in feel. Over a 100 kph, it's very important to keep a firm hand on the steering as it reacts much too quickly for comfort.

Is there is any difference in the steering feel or is it same across all the variants (1.2 P and 1.4(P&D) ?

The i20's seats are placed on the lower side, and the ease of walking into a tall boy hatchback is entirely absent. Instead, you have to "sit down" onto the seat.The elderly, especially, won't like the effort required to get on or off the back seat.

Are these as low as the verna, could you post a picture if you have showing the seat height at the rear ?
Some thing like this.

http://www.team-bhp.com/carpics/Hyun...i-verna-10.jpg

There is absolutely no dashboard reflection on the windscreen, thanks to the dark colour of the dashboard top.

Sensible decision, I drove a i10 once, it was a pain.

The effective air-conditioner (especially of the 1.4L diesel & petrol variants) was a pleasant surprise. However, I did notice that the 1.2L variant did take a longer time than the 1.4s to cool the rear cabin area.

There is no point hurrying up because, if you work the revvs, the 1.2L will neither be fast nor fuel-efficient. It’s just better to accept the limited performance on tap and drive with a light foot. The petrol is nowhere as impressive as the diesel.

Un-acceptable, aren't the 1.2L Petrols, the ones which bring volumes ? So the majority of the folks opting for i20 would have to make do with a mediocre engine [performance wise] and a weak A/C.

The floor hump isn't intrusive at all:

Exposed Nuts and bolts are not acceptable in a hatch in this price range.

Wider tyres & 15" rims could noticeably improve the dynamics. I'm not in agreement with the OEM size of 185/65 R14 (higher variants) or 175/70 R14 (Era & Magna variants). 195mm tyres on the stock 14" wheels, or an overall upgrade to 195/55 R15, is what I highly recommend keeping the diesel's power & torque figures in mind.

IMHO 185 is sufficient, 175 needs an upgrade.

For the enthusiasts, 195/60/R15 is the correct size ? instead of 55 ?

The turning radius of 5.2 meters is noticeably larger than that of the Swift (4.8 meters) and could lead to that many more 3-point turns within the city.

That is almost there with the new punto's turning radius (5.4m)

The 295L boot is extremely accommodating and amongst the best from the segment. Further, the boot has a practical layout.

I love this huge boot and one of best features I like about i20,which is obviously non existent in the swift.

Reverse camera display (on the inside mirror) works like a charm. The green (safe), yellow (caution) and red (stop) colour coding is perfectly calibrated:

Perfect, must have feature in our increasingly congested parking slots.

It also gets an electro-chromatic feature that automatically dims the mirror when it senses headlamp glare from the vehicle behind:

Fantastic, this is what is called feature rich.

Do the mid variants come with ABS and Airbags as standard like in the BRIO ?

Finally,excellent review as always,you are the benchmark. Rated 5 Star

[prashant316]

Originally Posted by mayankjha1806

Think of a Diesel car and pop comes two new threads on team bhp, one on Honda testing Diesel and another i20 excellent review. Thanks for this wonderful review and timely thread.

So if someone is thinking Diesel hatch, with space and power not as a primary requirement, only good cheap to own and service, easy to drive in city, which one would come on top

1. Figo
2. i20
3. Yet to be launched Honda Brio Diesel
4. Swift Diesel (Not considering, as i get an impression its expansive)
5. Ritz Diesel (I am confused with looks)
6. Liva (Not considering as interiors are not even decent)

If you are looking for a cheap to own and east to drive, I would suggest Figo to be the top choice. i20 should be an expensive car to own as its spares and service have a reputation of being expensive.

May i also suggest you have a look at the Beat. But Figo still remains the top choice.

[jkdas]

Originally Posted by F150

Disappointing for an enthusiast. Powerful diesel engine but no handling prowess to match.

How comfortable were you doing those triple digit speeds ?


Un-acceptable, aren't the 1.2L Petrols, the ones which bring volumes ? So the majority of the folks opting for i20 would have to make do with a mediocre engine [performance wise] and a weak A/C.


Finally,excellent review as always,you are the benchmark. Rated 5 Star

I think GTO had commented about high speed ride quality when taking curves etc.

And same with AC; seems they have fixed the issue though I am not sure if the have dropped in a bigger unit from the diesel one.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by guyfrmblr

The presence of the 6th gear boosts the FE figures on highways.

Here is a great thread (6th Gear for a car ! Need, Criteria, Advantages & Disadvantages) on the pros & cons of the 6th gear.

Originally Posted by MAS

Excellent Review GTO. This review came as a pleasant surprise as i did not expect a Facelift to be reviewed and that too in such detail.

One reason was, we'd never officially reviewed the i20 before.

Originally Posted by F150

How comfortable were you doing those triple digit speeds ?

Okay in a straight line, not so around corners. You need to keep a firm hand on the steering and the rear just isn't as planted as I'd like at speed.

Is there is any difference in the steering feel or is it same across all the variants (1.2 P and 1.4(P&D) ?

All are D-E-A-D

For the enthusiasts, 195/60/R15 is the correct size ? instead of 55 ?

195/55 R15. I was corrected by a BHPian earlier on this review thread.

That is almost there with the new punto's turning radius (5.4m)

Which is equally a pain.

Originally Posted by prashant316

May i also suggest you have a look at the Beat.

Agreed. As a cheap diesel runabout, the Beat is hard to beat. Excellent ride quality, modern design inside out, acceptable quality and extremely fuel-efficient.

[kalpeshc]

I own the pre-facelift i20 petrol and always used to wonder about the vertical movement on undulating road surfaces at high speeds. I thought maybe decrease in tire pressure would help. I always kept the tire pressure at 31psi even on highways with a heavy load but still the undulations are a bit scary at times.

Also, when I was learning driving, I used to stall this car much more than the Ritz which I happened to drive during the same time.

Also, this car did run out of breath around 110/120 on almost straight highways (NH8) in MH/GJ. I used to wonder if something is wrong with the car as even at 3K RPM on 5th gear the speedo would be stuck at 115 max and would just not crawl upwards.

This review put to rest all my concerns. It's the damn car itself rather than me ! Thanks GTO

[haithereitsme]

Excellent review GTO !

I picked up my i20 this week and have to agree with you word to word on it being underpowered. But the equipment level has kept me happy !

[tharian]

The first Hyundai review that I was hooked to and didnt skip.

I do have some doubts though. I did not quite understand the 'smart pedal system'. GTO, if you could explain more, it would be great.

Also when you said the 1.2 is a city car more than a highway car because of the lack of power, how is it compared to the 1.2 Figo? I could relate to what you said about lack of power on highways since the Figo 1.2 feels just the same., and I wanted to know if it the same .

I recently drove a previous generation 1.2 i20 and compared to my Figo, it revv'd quite freely from standstill compared to the Figo which does only from 2500.

If I had the buying and the spending power, (although I am never a fan of Hyundai because of the 0 driver feedback), I would buy the CRDI and change the suspension and use the car for trips only, although I know the feedback would be very low still.

The features this car offers is serious show off stuff and in the looks department is a killer.

[Soccerfan]

Originally Posted by F150

That is almost there with the new punto's turning radius (5.4m)

new punto has turning radius of 5M

[GTO]

Originally Posted by tharian

I do have some doubts though. I did not quite understand the 'smart pedal system'. GTO, if you could explain more, it would be great.

Say, in an emergency braking situation, you press the brake *and* the accelerator (by mistake)...the accelerator pedal input will be completely ignored by the system. Apparently, research suggests that unintentional accelerator pedal input does take place from time to time.

how is it compared to the 1.2 Figo

The Figo 1.2 is also under-powered. However, it doesn't have a variant that costs 9 lakhs (like the i20). Hence, my suggestion that the Asta variants should have gotten the 1.4L mill.

[quadbike]

I am sorry but which i20 1.2 model costs over 9 lakhs. The one that almost touches 9 lakh is the top of the line diesel which is not underpowered at all. I TD the newer i20 petrol and diesel yesterday and the 1.2 feels even slower than my pre-facelift 1.2.

[wilful]

GTO - Fabulous review as expected.
The equipment levels offered are simply stunning! I quite liked the looks especially the front view.
Like you mentioned I think they would have done well to have launched a diesel automatic. But I guess, looking at the OTR 1.4 petrol AT price, this would be hovering around the 10 lac range - at which price, folks would hesitate to buy a hatch.
I really hope they have got the steering issue sorted out. Time will tell for sure.