My i20 crossed the 5 digit mark last month. It has been a wonderful experience so far. I have enjoyed each and every mile clocked in it.
The present odo reading is almost 12000. There is not even a single rattle from any part of the car. The dreadful steering rattle has not surfaced till now. Hope it does not makes an appearance in future.
The 1.4 CRDi engine is super refined. Most of them still finds it hard to beleive that its a diesel engine. Very minor vibrations can be felt at speeds below 20 kmph but once it crosses this mark, its very silent. Hyundai has done a commendable job in keeping the NVH levels low.
Have done around 3-4 long journeys and the steering does feels nervous at greater speeds. But one will get used to it after 1 or 2 long trips. The presence of the 6th gear is a blessing on highways. It can be engaged at speeds of around 75 kmph and keeps the rpm levels low at higher speeds which boots the FE. Only once I have touched 145 kmph on an empty stretch in NICE road and but now I never cross 80 kmph as any speeds greater than it is suicidal in India.
I could not test the real effectiveness of the AC as the weather in Bangalore is always pleasant. But it does takes some time during very hot noons to cool the cabin. The real pain starts when AC is switched on with 5 adults in the car. The pulling power of the car goes for a toss. Sometimes it just refuses to climb at uphills. Other i20 CRDi owners need to comment on this.
The dash looks as new as it looked when it came out of the showroom. All the buttons and knobs still feel very fresh. They are rock solid and none of prints on the them have faded. You can compare this photo with the photo I had posted earlier in this thread which was taken just after purchasing the car.
My co-passengers have never complained of any space issue at the rear seat (with 3 adults). The only complaint from them is that the rear windows are positioned little higher which reduces the outside visibility. The ingress and egress is a bit difficult for old folks at the rear as I have seen my grandparents struggle a bit to get in and out of the car.
I have stopped worrying about the amount of luggages as the 295 litres boot easily accomodates the huge baggages of long trips and consumes all the bags of weekend shopping.
Fuel Efficiency:
My daily travel to office is 40 km one-way which includes 3 km of pathetic road filled with craters, 6 km of good road with 7 speed breakers and moderate traffic, 5 km of 6-lane highway, 11 km of narrow road which is in excellent condition with lots of bends and very light traffic, 11 km of state highway with occasional speed breakers and light traffic, 4 km of bumper to buper traffic. Occasional weekend drives with heavy traffic. I am constantly getting 21 kmpl with these driving conditions right from the time of purchasing the car. If I skip the weekend city drives, then its around 22-23 kmpl. The FE figures are calculated using tank full method and I am extremely satisfied with these figures. It never increased or decreased after the services. I'm able to acheive these FE figures by following smooth driving practices on the road. This driving style always keeps me and other road users to stay calm and peaceful on the road.
Other points observed:
1. The responsiveness of the engine is not as great as Swift diesel.
2. Need to shift to 1st gear to negotiate most of the speed breakers. But things have improved a bit after the second service where I am able to negotiate some of the speed breakers which I encounter daily in 2nd gear.
3. Full marks for the brakes (no ABS). Had to perform panic braking 2-3 times and the car stopped immediately without any deviation.
4. The car feels little bouncy at lower speeds in bad stretches.
5. A loud thud is heard near the front left tyre whenever I negotiate slightly bigger potholes at little higher speeds. Checked with SA and got the reply that its common in i20. But one gets irritated by hearing that sound and feels as though some part has got detached from the car.
6. Maintaing a black car is the most difficult task. Even a small peck of dust gets highlighted. Thanks to the Jopasu car duster which has made my life easy. A slight dusting at end of the day is enough to keep the car dust free.
7. Mud flaps are useless. The dirt on the road gets sprayed all over the doors.
8. Floor mats are pathetic. A big hole has appeared on the driver floor mat. Need to change the entire set. The floor mats of our OMNI lasted for 9 years!
9. I was not able to adjust one of the driver side AC vent near the music system. It was promptly replaced during the 2nd service even though I had forgotten to mention about it to SA.
Missing features:
1. ABS: They could have provided ABS in the Sportz variant instead of ACC. Even though ACC is a very convinient option, they shouldn't have compromised on safety aspects. The BS 3 version of Magna variant too was coming with ABS.
2. Fog Lamps: There is not even an option to fit them. Entire bumper needs to be changed.
3. Illumination around USB and i-pod slots. Its like a treasure hunt searching for these slots in the dark. A front map lamp would have solved the issue.
4. Number pad for dialing through bluetooth.
Upgrades planned:
1. Spoiler: OEM spoiler costs around 5K plus painting charges which I feel is very expensive. Need to check aftermarket spoilers which can be got at a decent price.
2. Front Arm rest
3. I was very much interested in Pete's tuning box but its not available for the 6-speed version.
Services:
The first service was free. I don't think they have done anything other than cleaning the car.
The total cost of second service was Rs 2506 which included the following:
1. Mag Wheel Weights
2. Wind Screen Washer
3. Tyreseal
4. Filter Cartridge
5. Filter - Air Cleaner
6. Oil Filter
7. Wheel Balancing and Alignment
The service centre staff are very courteous, soft-spoken and they listen to the customres with patience. They readily agree for any date I ask them for the service appointment. The only irritating thing is that with every service, I get some free scratches on alloys.
I haven't spent on anything other than the fuel and second service bills. Infact a stone had hit my car's underbody and the fuel tank and engine oil sump were replaced but the repair costs were covered by the insurance. I had detailed about this incident in a seperate thread in Street Experiences section.
I am completely satisfied with this diesel rocket and my thirst for clocking more miles in it has increased.
Request to Mods: Can you please edit the title of the thread to
12000 km update. Thanks.