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-   -   Hyundai Verna CRDI - 100,000 Kms and Beyond (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/long-term-ownership-reviews/133557-hyundai-verna-crdi-100-000-kms-beyond.html)

It has been quite a while since I was planning to write the long term ownership report for my Verna. While going through the ownership threads here, I was awestruck by the details covered as well as the wealth of information in each one of them. Hats off to the enthusiasm, passion and support shown by my friends here - which in fact - was the trigger for a lazy man like me to write a report.

Maruti Zen VX was my first car, and after keeping her for close to 6 years, I wanted to upgrade to a diesel Sedan in the <10L category. Since there were not many choices then, the decision was taken rather quickly, and we zeroed in on Verna. Had considered Fiesta as well, but our primary requirements were responsiveness and ASS, where Hyundai outscored Ford.

30/Jan/2007 6:15 PM - Took delivery of the car and was a proud owner of a diesel sedan. It was the base model without ABS. I opted for the base model since the ABS version had a waiting period of approximately 3 months and I simply didn't want to wait that long. Little did I know then, that we will cherish her as the fourth member of the family - in fact - my second baby.

It is now 6.5 years, and I must say that she has lived upto our expectations and has served us really well without a single complaint till now. Straightaway moving to the major ownership details

Total OTR price - ~7.75 Lakhs
Discounts - Corporate discount of 10K and some exchange bonus of another 10K

What I Like: Enough has been written about the engine power and the "kick" we get while flooring the pedal. Apart from the immense power under the hood, listing down some other small factors that I personally like
- Driving comfort (especially during long drives) and excellent overall performance
- Reliability and Hyundai After sales service
- No niggling problems till today, absolute peace of mind
- Braking (even without ABS, excellent braking)

What I hate:
- The gear ratios, which makes the driving difficult within city (in second and third gears)
- The design of boot (dont like the looks)
- Weak headlamps and fog lamps(may be badly focussed also. The stock headlights were worse than even some autos plying in the city. In spite of the upgrade to Philips Rally 90/100 and light focusing, the night drives still remain a worry)

Engine : The Engine of this rocket CRDI is beyond words, churning out power like anything. It is an absolute breeze to drive it in highways, but due to the 2nd and 3rd gear ratios, I feel it is not a very good car in slow moving traffic. Having said that, I like the gear slots and the way it engages with a light push. It is a total powerhouse, you just have to get the feel of getting pushed to your seats when revved. Even die hard critics among my friends, like the power delivery, be in any gear.

Ride and Handling: Enough has been said about the handling when we take her into the 3-digits territory. I have taken her till 170 kmph (in 4-lane highway in Tamil Nadu), with 5 people on board, and only after we crossed 140 did I feel the boat-like swaying. But that was with stock tires, now I've upgraded the shoes and the car appears much more planted. Ride quality is decent as long as we keep the speeds below the 120 kmph range. Since I drive mainly in Kerala highways, I dont usually take her beyond 100. All bumps and minor undulations are absorbed without a fuss. The stock tire size 175/70 R14 is too skinny for this engine and chassis though. So, I went for 185/65 profile tires as the first replacement and further upgraded to 195/60 Michelin 5 months back.

Interiors: Interior space is very good. Seats are comfortable and driving position is awesome. Lots of cup holder's and cubby holes present. Even when I take her for non-stop long drives lasting 12-14 hours, I hardly feel any body stress or back pain, thanks to the great seating position.
The back row can seat 3 adults comfortably (of medium size, though). Even in long distances, I've not had any complaint from the back row passengers of any discomfort or back pain.

Exterior Modifications :
Tyres - Michelin XM2 (195/60 R14). Running on third set of tyres. First set of stock tyres lasted 47,000 kms, second set of Bridgestone Potenza (185/65 R14) lasted 53,000 kms.
Headlights - Philips Rally 90/100 - in use for the last 5 years. Had tried out HID Bulbs for around 6 months, but the unit went kaput.
Horn - Bosch Vibrasonic

Interior Modifications :
Stereo - Pioneer Dual-DIN (FH-P8000BT)
Speakers - Pioneer 6" oval speakers at the back

Service Intervals and periodic maintenance
Absolutely no issues till now. I use to visit the service center for periodic checkups other than the 10K service (generally just before a long trip)
Periodic Service, engine oil and filter replacements - every 10K kms
Wheel alignment and balancing - every 5K kms
Wheel rotation - every 10K kms
Engine oil - started using Mobil Delvac mineral oil from 80K onwards. Noticed a marked improvement in the engine smoothness

Mileage
- Mileage (15 km/l within city, 20-21 km/l in Highways) with A/C
- My driving includes a 50-50 mix of City and Highway drives

Fuel
Regular Pump Diesel. Used to fill up from IOC pump near my house, but of late started observing black smoke when flooring the pedal. Took her to the service guy, he gave a thumbs up after overall check-up and asked not to fill fuel from "local" fuel stations. So, now started filling fuel from a BP company owned fuel station, and the black smoke has reduced a bit. I'm still not sure whether it is the quality of the fuel or cleaning the air filter that has done the trick.

Issues and Replacements :
-----------------------------------
Front Glass - developed a crack when a stone from an opposie lorry hit the glass. I was enroute to Thrichy in 2008, and replaced the glass after the trip. Cost me around 8K. Didn't claim insurance since I've 50% NCB, and didnt want to lose that
Front Stabilizer bar - link assembly
Timing Chain - replaced at 80K kms as part of periodic maintenance. Cost of replacement came around 19K, including labor costs.

ODO Reading as of May 2013 is 1,09,500 Kms. I have taken her through 2 lane and 4-lane highways, forests and almost non-existent roads. Anywhere you take her, she has stayed calm and reliable, just the way I would like her to be.

The clutch is going strong without any issues till now. That may be the next big replacement, may be within the next 10 -15K kms. Till now, no regrets, it has been an excellent experience with Hyundai, I'm thoroughly enjoying the drive. It is now more than 6 years with her, and more choices and better options are out there in the market. Planning to keep her for at least one more year, and then start thinking of replacement, if at all needed.

Cheers
Vivek

That's a beautiful car on duty!!! Why am I saying this? I just picked one yesterday:D

Happy motoring

Absolutely!! It is a breeze to drive around, I just love it. Mine has now touched 1.15 Lakhs kilometers. Apart from the periodic maintenance, there has not been any major issues so far.
Also, the stock clutch lasted for 1.09 Lakh kilometers. Changed it 4 months back (costed ~18K including labor).

Congrats. Did you sell the Baleno?

The diesel mill is surely a hoot to drive. And at that time the competition offered performance 2 grades below the Hyundai. 1lac+ is surely a huge distance in 7 years.
The car still looks nice in white. Please post some recent interior pics as well.

Couldn't keep both. I got a rare car- a Verna crdi AT:D

Sure Utopian. Was going through my photos, but don't have any interior snaps of the car. Will take some snaps this week and upload them.

Congrats WhiteKnight !

Hi Vivek,

Good to read about your trouble free experience.

Why was the timing chain replaced at 80k kms ? Did you observe any abnormal noise ?

Yes. There were squealing noises during running (the noise was very prominent during cold starts). I had started hearing that sound once I crossed 70-75K.. checked with the service center guys and they said it is coming from the timing chain, but the car will keep going for another 5-10K kms. Since I had a long drive coming up around that time, decided to change it before it led to further issues.

A timing chain will not squeal. Neither a timing belt will.

It must be the serpentine belt.

Last week, I faced an issue of temporary power loss after sudden acceleration. The car came to a halt after sudden acceleration to overtake another vehicle - it was not just responding to pressing the throttle, similar to when it is slotted in Neutral gear. Immediately after coming to a complete halt, I tried restarting it again and luckily the engine came to life - and thereafter no issues at all. Details are in this post http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/techni...ml#post3251298

A bit of background though - Last month, I had taken it for a check-up since there was shudder while pressing and releasing the accelerator. The service guys had identified issues with clutch switch and neutral switch, and recommended to replace them. Yesterday, went to the service center to replace them - the clutch switch is replaced. But the neutral switch which was couriered is for the new Verna only - so will have to wait for another week to get it done.

When I told the SA about the power loss incident, he is of the opinion that the vehicle can misbehave if there is a problem with Neutral switch. Anyway, after the clutch switch replacement, the shudder has decreased a bit. Will update next week once the Neutral switch is also replaced.

-Vivek

Update on 1,15,000 Km
------------------------

For the last 2-3 months, the car was giving a lot of vibration noise from the front. The vibration was mainly occurring in low RPMs, irrespective of the gear, and went away as soon as it picked up speed (the RPM above 1500). Had pointed this issue to the SA during the periodic service at 1.1 Lakh. When I got the car back after service, the SA said the sound is coming from the gear box, since it is heard only in low RPMs and goes away with speed :) I was sure that was not the reason, since it was coming from the front right only. Since I was busy that day, thought of dealing this later.

Last week, I had to replace a couple of switches and so took the car to the nearby HASS. Spoke with the main mechanic about the issue and we did a test drive. He immediately said there could be some loose parts that may be causing the vibration. The issue indeed was because of loose screws, fog lamps and bumper - the screws were tightened, and the sound is now no more. Checked and confirmed there are no issues with the suspension. There are still some minor vibrations coming from the dashboard - need to get them corrected as well when I get time.

Also replaced the Clutch switch and Neutral switch this week. Drove the car for almost 250 kms after that, and didn't face any issues. Major observations after changing the switches
- the shudder at the moment when I release the accelerator and depress the clutch is now gone (it was due to the faulty neutral switch it seems)
- the temporary power loss after quick acceleration is also now gone, it seems.

Summary of replacements @1.15 Lakh
-----------------------------------------

1. Clutch Switch replacement (400/-)
2. Neutral Switch replacement (1200/-)
3. Oil and Oil filter (2000/-) - normally replace it once every 5K kms
4. Tightened the nuts/bolts inside bumper to rectify the vibrations

A photo of her taking a break during my Thenmala drive last week

Hi Vivek,

Nice to see your car going strong even after 115k. Mine is a 2009 make CRDI SX completed 65K last month.

For the dashboard vibration issue, try touching upper portion of dashboard at the time of vibration noise. If the noise vanishes; its just a clip behind the music player which needs to be fixed.

Regards,
Sudeep

Thanks Sudeep. 65K in less than 4 years is really good running !!
Regarding the dashboard vibration, will try that out tomorrow and let you know.

Thanks
-Vivek

Guys my Verna Crdi SX has crossed 1 lakh kilometers just now. Otherthan the clutch feeling a little heavy, there is no other issues.
Do i need to replace anything now ? What will the costs for 1lakh kilometer overhaul..