The curious case of the ‘converted’ Cretas! People buying lower variants & then adding extra goodies

[captain.torque]

It won’t be an understatement to say that a major chunk of my monthly broadband data limit is exhausted on YouTube watching videos, reviews and vlogs on cars from India as well as around the globe.

The videos of latest car accessories, in particular, interest me a lot and lately, I have noticed that there is literally a deluge of videos showcasing all kinds of aftermarket accessories for the Hyundai Creta.

The point to be noted here is that all these accessories are from the top end variants but available at a fraction of the OEM price. So, you’re effectively saving at least a couple of lakhs if you go for the E or E plus variant of the Creta and get these accessories fitted from outside.

Before I go further, let’s have a look at a small list of such aftermarket accessories:

1. Auto folding side-view mirrors
2. Auto dimming IRVM
3. Auto climate control
4. Reverse HD camera
5. Roof rails
6. Steering mounted controls
7. Snug fit touchscreen head unit
8. Front DRL with fog lamps
9. Front projector lamps headlight
10. Sunglass holder with map lights

Attached below is one of the many videos of Cretas sporting these accessories. In this particular clip, the guy has got auto climate control installed in his car.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sB5-RehNweI

In my neighbourhood, there are a total of six Cretas and barring one, the rest are E or E plus variants “converted” (as their owners like to call them) to top end variants. In fact, the videos on YouTube too boast about “converting” a base Creta to top for dirt cheap prices.

Now, let me clarify that I am fully aware that the fitting of these items will involve cutting or splicing of wires which is not recommended at all as it not only voids the manufacturer warranty but also poses a fire hazard.

But let’s not digress, this sole purpose of this post is to find out why the accessories shop owners have taken such a serious liking to the Creta.

The Elite i20, Brezza, Swift etc. sell more than the Creta every month, but the accessories available for them are constrained to fancy LED/HID lights, seat covers or fancy mats.

Case in point, back when I purchased my Brezza in 2016, I wanted to get the IRVM installed from the showroom but the Maruti guys did not have the wiring harness in the stock and that remained the case for close to six months until I gave up the idea.

In the meantime, I had scouted for the item in Karol Bagh market but couldn’t find anything and here we have people getting auto climate control fitted in their Cretas from outside.

One I could think of was that the Creta is quite popular in China (ix 25) and some big shot Chinese businessman may have got hold of the OEM accessories and got their first copies made in one of his sweatshops in Shenzhen or Guangzhou which were then exported.

That may or may not be the case, but shouldn’t Hyundai be worried about this trend? After all, the fat profits come from the higher variants, right?

Knowing the Indian consumer’s mindset of wanting maximum bang for the buck, majority of car buyers often opt for the mid variant of a car but in Creta’s case, I think people would be tempted to go for the base version as they can always get it “converted”.

Would love to get enlightened on this!

[sharktale]

I guess the only solution is the price difference between the two variants of the Creta (most radical difference is in the Petrol variants). Petrol E/E Plus ex-showroom comes around 10.5L, whereas the next available variant has a whopping 2L+ difference over the E/Eplus. Most would not want to shell so much more for creature comforts he/she can do away with.

The same policy can be seen in the pricing of the Toyota Yaris IMHO. 1L+ difference in the variants for often laughable features.

[sagarpadaki]

The main reason is the popularity of IX25 in China. This has led to a good market of aftermarket and OEM like spares and accessories. Aliexpress has huge options for IX25,Verna and Solaris which are very popular out there

[GrammarNazi]

Wonder why we should be concerned about Hyundai's worries.

Originally Posted by captain.torque

That may or may not be the case, but shouldn’t Hyundai be worried about this trend? After all, the fat profits come from the higher variants, right?

Fat profits may come from the top variants (18L+ OTR Bangalore), but the lowest variants (~11L OTR) seem to be their cash-cows that establishes a product among a wide range of buyers.

People like me appreciate a vehicle for its mechanical integrity more than anything else. Although the Engine is different, the suspension will remain the same & so will the products other utilitarian aspects. And when it comes to after market accessories, I would find it rather relieving if I had options to choose if I wanted some feature like ACC in the future!

This also helps hold-up resale value of the car, as the basic E variant will not look too bare-bones when one wants to sell it & the buyer will have huge options to prep-it-up to taste. Easy modifications and easier upkeep is a major advantage of buying a successful mass market car.

Compare this to say Nexon, which although is a very competent product, owners would not have the flexibility that a successful mass market product that is sold world-wide has. Hence, if say the music system is not a standard sized 2-Din unit, it'll will leave owners with very very limited options in future.

My 2c.

[Parth46]

Originally Posted by captain.torque

The Elite i20, Brezza, Swift etc. sell more than the Creta every month, but the accessories available for them are constrained to fancy LED/HID lights, seat covers or fancy mats.

I feel it stems from the "SUV, bro!!" mindset of the average Creta buyer, plus the huge popularity of the IX25 in China.

[ashis89]

For someone looking at the Creta and at the budget simultaneously, the E+ makes a lot of sense. The next version S is good 2L more expensive while still carrying the 1.4L engine (in Diesel). Most of the additional features of the S can be added aftermarket for a third of the price. And the good part is you can choose what you want/need and pay for those only. So it is not surprising that we get to see a high percentage of E/E+ variants on the roads.

Request to owners of E/E+ variants who have made such modifications. Can you please share your experience so far, the prices and where the changes were done.

Originally Posted by GrammarNazi

People like me appreciate a vehicle for its mechanical integrity more than anything else. Although the Engine is different, the suspension will remain the same & so will the products other utilitarian aspects. And when it comes to after market accessories, I would find it rather relieving if I had options to choose if I wanted some feature like ACC in the future!

+1 to that.

[naveen.raju]

People looking for cosmetic/convenience upgrades can get the base variant and spec it to match the SX(O) variant (I did get few items from Ali Express for the Creta and Ecosport). Except for the extra airbags and instrument cluster, everything can be bought from the local accessories guy for a fraction of a price.

For instance, when I got the car there was a 6L difference in price between the base and top variant. That's a lot of money when you consider the feature list. Spend 1-2L and your car will look like the top variant. Also, the owner will have the flexibility to choose what he wants which you don't get when you purchase the top variant.

Anyhow, I would still prefer the top variant that's from the factory rather than getting it from the local shop. If I don't have the money, I would downgrade and get the next best car that's fully loaded.

[PapaBravo]

I think 'Aesthetically Converted' would be a better term. Regular Indian buyer does not see the difference in the engine capacity 1.4 vs 1.6 as an incentive to pay more money. Apart from the engine, things like Airbags & ESP are also not on their list. So buying lower variant and plonking money to get the car aesthetically converted makes more sense to them.

[ani_meher]

I think the 1.4 diesel E and E+ are tremendously value for money. The 1.4L engine getting lower insurance premiums, and below the 10L ex-showroom price getting lower road tax works in their favor. If this engine came with an automatic transmission, I would be driving the Creta now . The increased insurance premium just because of being 100cc above the 1.5L limit is one of the limiting factors for 1.6L engines.

Good to see that those with Creta basic versions have the option of slowly upgrading the car's features.

[RaSing]

Being a owner of a Top End Ciaz ZDI+ and a 1.4 E+ DSL Creta, I would say the reasons to buy a E+ and convert it would be as below
(I am adding some reasons to what have already been mentioned in the previous posts. Just compiling them all here)

- I think its only in the case of Creta (or may be all Hyundai cars) as compared to other brands like Maruti that there were 11 variants in total of the same car to choose from- Makes the buyer totally confused as well compels him to think , how can he save money. Does he really want all those features ?
-The difference between lower variant and top variant was more than 6L whereas in Maruti it was not more than 2-2.5L on road.
-Even after paying 6 L, i was not getting all features that one expects, like a leather wrapped steering feel(as far as i remember) on the top variant with auto transmission
-As a indian buyer , i think its in back of our minds somewhere to extract maximum value from minimum possible money(just like the many examples of toothpaste being sqeezed and then cut by scissors to using the same cloth to wear and then use it in the kitchen).
-Also, most of the average buyers would give a social status of the car more importance than its comforts. So people think that 11L would give the same impression of a 16L car then why waste money. That Happiness ! when u see a top end and your mind says- You saved a lot of money :-)
- There would be many who would not have liked the material quality of Brezza, but have a limited budget.
-People who do not want to spend beyond 11-12L on a car but have limited choices or may be are only looking for an SUV.
-Also having driven both a top end Ciaz with all comforts and a Base Creta, i would say, it really didnt make a difference worth 6L


Talking about my personal experience of outside modification. I just got the roof rails, a side step(imported version) and Momo Alloys added. Rest, i did not make any electrical changes till date.

[atulsian]

In my case I was looking for an upgrade from a 12 year old Wagon R (still with me). Of the cars I looked and test drove, I found Creta 1.4 to be VFM. As earlier mentioned by our members, it saves on road tax, insurance and also provides decent mileage in city traffic (14-15 in bumper to bumper traffic).

List of extra goodies added ;

1) Touch display - Sony XAV 100 with reverse camera.
2) Race Dynamics dual channel box.

[SJM1214]

When I was in the market to buy my new car last year, I briefly considered to buy E+ 1.4 Creta and go for some aftermarket accessories. Fortunately, I decided against that and went for Brezza.

In Creta, the difference between a lower variant and the top variant is more than 6 lakhs. I think that is a major factor behind "The curious case of the Creta". In Ahmedabad, there are separate accessories shops which only cater Cretas.

Originally Posted by captain.torque

One I could think of was that the Creta is quite popular in China (ix 25) and some big shot Chinese businessman may have got hold of the OEM accessories and got their first copies made in one of his sweatshops in Shenzhen or Guangzhou which were then exported.

That is a really interesting observation.

[blackwasp]

Originally Posted by captain.torque

The videos of latest car accessories, in particular, interest me a lot and lately, I have noticed that there is literally a deluge of videos showcasing all kinds of aftermarket accessories for the Hyundai Creta.

The point to be noted here is that all these accessories are from the top end variants but available at a fraction of the OEM price. So, you’re effectively saving at least a couple of lakhs if you go for the E or E plus variant of the Creta and get these accessories fitted from outside.

One factor is the price difference between low and top models. With 5-6L difference, it's a big opportunity for adding most of the visual bits for a fraction of the cost.

Originally Posted by sagarpadaki

The main reason is the popularity of IX25 in China. This has led to a good market of aftermarket and OEM like spares and accessories. Aliexpress has huge options for IX25,Verna and Solaris which are very popular out there

Thanks for pointing it out. While most Creta modders won't order from Aliexpress, there are many shops who order parts from China in wholesale offering good rates leading to more sale.

I have noticed that even some of the dealers do this so sell their unsold lower variant inventory.

[recshenoy]

Originally Posted by RaSing

- There would be many who would not have liked the material quality of Brezza, but have a limited budget.
-People who do not want to spend beyond 11-12L on a car but have limited choices or may be are only looking for an SUV.

I guess Hyundai is targeting fence sitters (I am one among them) by attractively pricing the base versions of their bigger car offerings. Case in point is launch of 1.4L diesel Verna last week.

If someone is buying Brezza, S cross or Ciaz diesel they will anyways end up with age old 1.3 L diesel engine. So buying a 1.4 L diesel Hyundai at slight premium makes sense. I feel it is worth considering the base version of decently kitted Hyundai with good fit and finish. Hyundai has added useful features like rear AC vents , height adjustment option in E+ variants. I feel extra features you get in MSIL or Ford vehicles at this range are gimmicky add-ons like push start button start, auto head light, SHVS, auto folding mirrors etc. By spending another 50K, one can easily get some of these features and own a reasonably sized Creta than sub-4 meter Brezza , Eco Sport or Nexon.

I am looking for an upgrade from Ford Figo first generation to a comfortable ride quality vehicle up to 9.99L ex showroom. Eco Sport and Brezza rear space with 3 people seated is so bad that last time when I traveled, felt like I am in a crowded local train.

Eco Sport -- no rear space, spacious Ford to cramped ford, Spare wheel mounted side opening dickey is a pain
Brezza – Similar story and sub par interiors
S-cross – Close contender but with age old 1.3L engine
Ciaz – same old 1.3L engine, new one is bit flashy with chrome mustache
Nexon – A pillar and C pillar are too thick

I started reading about Creta 1.4 E+ going by reviews at least felt like a proper upgrade from Figo (for a sedated driver). I would have loved to get bare bone E version of 1.6L Creta but starting S version of 1.6L is 16L+ on road in Karnataka. That’s a good 4L difference over 1.4L engine which I feel is not worth. Called up 3 showrooms but none of them have 1.4L Creta for test drive.

OT: Suddenly Hyundai decides to confuse me more with launch of Verna 1.4L at 9.99L ex-showroom with goodies like Auto AC , reverse camera etc. In a weeks’ time MSIL decides to get back in to the competition with launch of Ertiga VDI at 9.56L

By the way here are some more videos related to Creta.

https://youtu.be/IKXT73vTZK8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5JdcqQnNl8

[JediKnight]

Originally Posted by captain.torque

...Knowing the Indian consumer’s mindset of wanting maximum bang for the buck, majority of car buyers often opt for the mid variant of a car but in Creta’s case, I think people would be tempted to go for the base version as they can always get it “converted”...

I read in one issue in Autocar few months back ( can't recollect the exact month ) that E+ variant is the highest selling variant of Creta. So i guess a lot of people are thinking like you. One advantage of buying a lower variant is lesser road tax. Especially in a place like Bangalore where if you are below 10 lakh the road tax outgo is substantially lower.