[bluevolt]

Originally Posted by C300

A TD of ANHC earlier this year left me utterly disappointed. The drive is not confidence inspiring especially at higher speeds.

That is only due to undersized tyre which Honda provided as OEM with car otherwise the car is capable of doing very high speeds.

175 cross section tyre is too small for a car which has 118 horses under the hood.

[jinojohnt]

Originally Posted by phenomonstar

After a rigorous 2 hour test drive, over the sea link as well as long stretches of Mumbai's pot hole infested roads, I had only one thing to say ; I WANT THIS BEAST!

Did you test drive the Fiat Linea? Would love to hear your comparison with the Optra in terms of ride/handling and steering accuracy.

[oxyzen]

I can understand that anyone who has driven Fiat, Ford, Skoda and Merc will never feel at home in a Hyundai. Most people tend to overlook the Handling part. Some don’t even understand what the hell it is. Others claim it only comes into effect only at high speeds. But I think handling comes into play from even 30kmph. Try negotiating a series of curves on a WagonR at 30kmph & you will know what exactly I am saying.
I have been in a similar situation like yours. After having driven Zen & Palio throughout, driving the Beat was not one of the sacred moments of my life. (Thanks to the fact it is mainly chauffer driven and used for local market runs). And then the Vento made me recollect what exactly I was missing. In a car everything can be compromised, including power & torque. But never Handling. Never!
I appriciate your dicision of getting rid of the car ASAP but I am not sure if you will handling of Optra in the same level of Skoda/VW/Fiat/Ford. I have driven it a few times. Although the handling is no way as bad as Verna I can no way comment it as great. IMO it is pretty mediocre. (No argument again Optra owners). Optra is a good car neverthe less. With oodles of space and a good engine, it can still be a nice bargain.
But since you have driven a lot of good handling cars. lets hear it from you. Yow do you rate the Optra in handling when pitted against Vento/Linea/Fiesta.

[noopster]

Thank you for honestly sharing your experience. Did you not read the T-BHP review before booking the car? While others have spoken about the fact that you didn't do a TD as the basic reason, I would stop short of that since my own TD (of the Vento) was disappointingly short and did not allow me the chance to check high-speed handling etc. However, GTO's official review was so exhaustive that I felt I knew this car in and out before even sitting down in it!

You should have read Zappo's excellent Fluidic Verna review before you went ahead. The boaty handling issue is a known one with Hyundai (I had a previous generation Accent so have experienced it firsthand). It would have saved you a lot of trouble and certainly some money.

I laud your courage in selling the car- not many of us would do that! Happy that you have found something that you seem to love. Without that emotional connect, a car ownership can be a terrible experience. All the best!

[amitoj]

Hehe. The name "Fluidic" itself should have given you a hint that the handling is going to be a bit "watery"

Anyway, still, i don't think its that bad a car. All those bells and whistles would be nice to play with when you are stuck in a traffic jam.

[phenomonstar]

Originally Posted by Guna

Wonder what are these features that Verna sports which Mercs and BMWs don't have. May be it was just an exaggerated expression?
Almost all reviews (even previews) highlighted the issue with the Verna's handling characteristics. Going through some of them would have really helped you to avoid the trouble you had.

@ Guna.....

Unfortunately, till recently I wasnt an active participant on Team BHP. From whatever little feedback I did get from different sources, there were issue about driving dynamics, but foolishly at the time, I didnt think it would be a major issue for me.
I wasnt exaggerating on the features front . The integrated rear view camera in the mirror, is absent in both C class and the 3 series, the push button start is absent from the Mercs. Although, as a whole the fluidic is not comparable in the same bracket as these cars, for about 1/3 rd of the cost it was fun to have these toys inbuilt.

[arjab]

Hyundai's in India were never known for their handling prowess anyways.

Ever since the day Hyundai started selling vehicles in our country it was more on the feature-laden-value-for-money-loaded-to-the-gills, peg rather than dynamic brilliance of the automobile.
And over the years HMIL has mastered this art - and this is what 90% of the market (the non - petrolheads) want.
For the miniscule 10%?? (maybe even less) petrolheads, even if they did not buy HMIL vehicles for their sloppy handling it does not matter to the company.

I remember having driven the old-jag-look-alike-Sonata in a spirited fashion once and that too in the hills! The chassis felt as if it had the rigidity of a three-day-old-masala-dosa!! I was never so dissapointed after driving a car.

Amongst all the HMIL models, till date, I think the Accent VIVA was one of the slightly better sorted out vehicle.

[phenomonstar]

Originally Posted by charthom

Mate,

Welcome to Team BHP. Sorry to hear your story. Many people have different things to say but I totally identify with you and am really sad that you had to buy and sell it so soon.

I had considered paying 1 lakh advance much before the official launch but the good Samaritans Hyundai guys advised me to wait for a proper test drive before booking! Well, I did not like the car-hence had to go else where.

I am glad that you have at last bought the car that you deserve with that nice handling and ride. Please follow Poitive's thread and start yours soon.

All the best Mate-drive safe and have fun. Post your thread soon with loads of pictures.

Cheers,charthom.

PS: one question-why did you not consider the new Ford Fiesta?

@Charthom,

Many thanks for the welcome bro.

As Id mentioned in my orginial post, the black interiors of the New FOrd Fiesta was an absolute no -no.
Id have gladly paid extra if beige interior option was available in a high variant.
Even when we purchased our MB C250 in May, we went for white color as it offered beige interiors. My initial choice would have been silver, but it came only with black interiors.
What to do *shrug*

@Oxygen


The handling for the Optra, though cannot be compared to that of the Ford was more than satisfactory.... I wanted to get a proper feel for the car thats why I took a longish TD for about 2 hours.
I will get a better idea when I take the delivery in about a weeks time.

Will start a new thread then...

Originally Posted by Durango Dude

@Phenomonstar: I think you have ditched one Korean for the other, nothing else. Do you realize that Optra is a also a Daewoo Nubira? Or did you get carried away by the Chevy Bowtie? You do a drag on the Sea Link road at 130 kph, any car would be dangerous for such a stunt, including your Merc's.

@ Durango..


thanks for the concern about the high speed on sea link. But its a nice long stretch and in the right car, reaching upto 130 and slowing down is alright.
Chevy as a badge has not interested me till date, specially when Ive owned brands with a lot more snob value..
As Id mentioned in my post, I was initially skeptical about the car and its dated looks.
My decision to go for it is based purely on my experience during the 2 hour long TD. Even if it would have been named PREMIER PADMINI, Id have still have gone for it.

Originally Posted by download2live

Its your first post. Seems you joined a bit late.

And your biggest sin: No TD before booking.

But the good thing is that you are now with a very capable though underrated car.

The bad thing is that you let go of Ford Fusion. You won't be getting a capable replacement for it anytime soon. Rest assured.

Also its nice that you did not go for new Fiesta. Does not make sense at that price point. In fact the Ford Classic offer (though not sure if its still on) makes more sense.

The Ford Fusion for my requirement was the perfect car. Had it been in production today, I would have looked no further. Since, Id already used the Ford Fiesta for a good three years, I decided to overlook the classic at this time. I will update on my ownership experience of the Optra once I have taken delivery sometime next week.

Note from the Team-BHP Support Team: Please use the "edit" button if posting within 30 minutes of the first post, instead of creating another back-to-back post.

Also use "Multi Quote" option for quoting Multiple posts.

[NoRules]

Welcome to the Optra club, phenomonstar. It must have been a tough decision selling a brand new car but then it is your car and your choice.

I am sure you will love the drive in the Optra. I have clocked over 2000 kms already and can vouch for the Magnum. it gives you a planted drive, takes the bad roads easily and give it a highway, it will take over the road.

Please post your ownership experience soon. Which colour did you opt for?

[phenomonstar]

Originally Posted by Sheel

Very honest & unbiased impressions, thanks for sharing Good handling Cars spoil you & you tend to over-look acceleration & top-end for a Car's dynamic ability.

Did you test-drive a Cruz? How is the handling when compared with the Magnum?

Thanks

If I would be considering the cruz I would go for the top of the line auto transmission variant. This one costs 17,00,000 on road Mumbai. I am getting the Optra for 10,30,000.
But a major beef for me is the black interiors of the Cruz. Everything else takes a back seat.
Call it weird trait, but thats me. This is one of the main reasons I havent considered the New Fiesta either.
Anyway, I actually want a diesel sedan with auto transmission.
The price tag of the verna suited me just fine. As there really isnt any other option, I have decided to got manual transmission.
I plan to keep the optra for 36-40 months.
Hopefully by then there will be a worthy replacement in the market
Cheers

[Rudra Sen]

Originally Posted by phamilyman

You are exchanging a bad-handling car with an average-handling car? You cannot compare the Ford's handling with either of these two cars, really

Boss, you're one old enough member to comment like this!!

Bad-handling/good-handling is absolutely subjective and totally depending on owner's requirements.

Originally Posted by MotoKris

though the Fiesta 1.6 is a different beast to drive in!

And this is what I mean. To each his own.

Originally Posted by KPS

This is one of the best cars I have ever owned and handling has not been a major issue.

And this is what I mean too. To each his own.

[phenomonstar]

Originally Posted by NoRules

Welcome to the Optra club, phenomonstar. It must have been a tough decision selling a brand new car but then it is your car and your choice.

I am sure you will love the drive in the Optra. I have clocked over 2000 kms already and can vouch for the Magnum. it gives you a planted drive, takes the bad roads easily and give it a highway, it will take over the road.

Please post your ownership experience soon. Which colour did you opt for?

@ No rules

Boss I have read your ownership review just yesterday.
Very well written. I am glad you 've had a good experience with the car thus far and hope it will continue to please you as long as you have it.
My views and decision on the car have been reaffirmed after reading your post.
I have opted for the Olympic White colour. The sales consultant highly recommended the Grey colour but for some reason, I have an aversion to dark shades.

I cannot wait to get mine. Next week seems to far away!!

Originally Posted by jinojohnt

Did you test drive the Fiat Linea? Would love to hear your comparison with the Optra in terms of ride/handling and steering accuracy.

@ Jinojohnt.....


I have driven my friend's Petrol Linea, the emotion pak version. It has very good handling. Although I found it to be under powered. I hear the T Jet version is good.
However, when it came to checking out the diesel version, I had a very bad NON experience.
The Fiat Showroom is only about a couple of KM from when I stay.
I called up their showroom to check if they had a diesel available for the TD.
The receptionist said the sales guy for Linea is not available , she took down my name and number and promised to get back to me. No one called the whole day.Next day, I went down to the showroom myself.But apparently the sales people didnt seem interested. I told them I wasnt interested in knowing the details on the car as I have already experienced them when driving my friend's car. I was only interested in taking a TD of the vehicle, and I needed to take it soon as I wanted to close this issue and make a choice ASAP. The sales guy said he didnt have the diesel variant and was trying to push me to take TD of the Petrol variant.
I thanked him for his time and asked him to get in touch when he had a diesel car for a test drive. This happened last saturday, and I still havent heard from them.....

I guess they not interested in making a sale.
Too late, in any case, as I have booked my Optra.

Note from the Team-BHP Support Team: Please use the "edit" button if posting within 30 minutes of the first post, instead of creating another back-to-back post.

Also use "Multi Quote" option for quoting Multiple posts.

[pawan_pullarwar]

Whoever are saying the Optra Magnum is a bad handler, I doubt if they have really taken a test ride. It has very decent handling and amazing power. Once you take test drive, it is very difficult to settle for another car in the same segment. You will not think of Linea because this car has tremendous pulling power where Linea lacks. The driving seat are very comfortable in Magnum compare to Linea. I had taken back to back test drive of both the car.

[phamilyman]

Originally Posted by Rudra Sen

Boss, you're one old enough member to comment like this!!

Bad-handling/good-handling is absolutely subjective and totally depending on owner's requirements.
And this is what I mean. To each his own.

Boss,

I responded within his frame, not the general public's!!

Originally Posted by [URL="http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/members/phenomonstar.html"

phenomonstar[/url]]I was a happy Ford fan, having used the Ford Fiesta 1.4 Duratorq ZXI for 3 years, followed by another 3 years in the Ford Fusion + variant.

As said by many, the Ford handling is superb.

And let's face it - not one non-Verna owner/fan has ever called Verna as a good handling car (esp in front of a Ford Fiesta). And for someone who puts 25k/year on his swift diesel, including blitzing through landslides at 30-40 kph when required - I'm sorry but I find the handling of both Verna and i20 pathetic - understeering in an almost disconnected way. With a capital P.

Optra is good enough but not as good as a swift or a *gasp* lancer/ linea / baleno. (In my limited driving experience). Ofc, as an overall package, I quite like the Optra as an all around vehicle (by far the plushest rear sofa in its class) and acceptable driving dynamics.

I've been long enough to call a spade a spade! And so can you call me on it - its a free world!

[GTO]

Sorry to say, and with due respect, your buying experience & eventual decision are full of errors.

Mistake No.1 : Buying the car without test-driving it yourself!

Mistake No.2 : You didn't read Team-BHP reviews.

Mistake No. 3 : After having owned European cars, and presumably gotten used to the handling & dynamics, you bought a car NOT known for its handling. Without a test drive.

Mistake No. 4 : And this one is the BIGGEST. You sold the car in a 1,000 clicks! Sure sounds like an impulsive decision to me, and a very poor one at that. Remember, the suspension of most globally sold cars is the easiest to sort out. Reason? Super after-market support. For 50,000 rupees (or less), you could have gotten yourself after-market dampers & springs that would have transformed the handling of your Verna. In fact, with a tyre upgrade + performance suspension, the handling & dynamics would have beaten / been on par with any C & C+ segment sedan. Again, I insist that the soft suspension is easy to fix...far easier than what some of the competitors suffer from (reliability, cramped interiors etc.).

A simple thread on Team-BHP (in the Modifications section) and you'd have gotten this solution. For only 50 grand. I don't know how much you lost on the Verna. Perhaps 1.xx lakhs odd? And you've gone out and bought a depreciation disaster like the Optra that will lose about 4 - 5 lakhs in resale in the first year.

Next time, open a thread on Team-BHP . We're happy to help.

Originally Posted by pawan_pullarwar

You will not think of Linea because this car has tremendous pulling power where Linea lacks.

Suggest you take a spin in the T-Jet, Pawan. It'll blow you away.