[Hayek]

Wonderful detailed review of a car, which like its sibling, the Seltos, offers a whole lot of features at a mass market price.

When I look at the feature differences between the Creta and the Seltos, I would pick a Panoramic sun roof and Auto Hold any day over the 360 degree reverse camera and Blind Spot camera which the Seltos has. However, the fundamental problem with the Creta is that it is as polarising (to use a polite word - what ran through my head initially was ugly) as the original Santro was back in 1998.

The front is horrible, the rear is equally bad. I didn’t like the Venue when it launched, but managed to start to like its rear and tolerate the front. But despite having seen several Cretas, I can’t get there. Let’s see how this shapes up over the next few months. But even if one gets used to it initially, I doubt this will age very well. Fortunately, the interior styling is far more conservative (even if the steering wheel is still somewhat polarising).

The Seltos is in my shortlist for my next car scheduled for early 2021. At this point, the Creta isn’t there. Of course, a lot will depend on how these cars drive.

[Mr.Boss]

What's the point in comparing apple with oranges?
All other cars with Kerb weight and only Duster with GVW. If Kerb weight was not a part of official brochure, let's not represent a wrong power to weight ratio at least. Or a rough estimation by removing 5 passenger mass (350kg approx) should reveal some realistic numbers.

IIRC Duster is the segment leader when it comes to power to weight ratio with the new 1.3 engine. Figure should be close to 120 BHP/ton

[Vedant Gupta]

Great review, one that was long awaited!

I am personally not very offended by the way the new Creta looks, especially in darker shades.

It is feature loaded and has a decent spread of safety features among the variants.
After having made detailed comparisons of the Creta and the Seltos, I think it is all about what one wants more, the Creta is definitely more comfort oriented with the slightly softer suspension, better seats, etc.
The Seltos is a sporty package with great handling.

As far as the budget goes,
If you cannot get the top spec versions, I would suggest the Creta SX over the Seltos HTX because of additional safety features.

If you are going for the top-spec versions, the Seltos GTX+ is superbly loaded, even the GTX gets the whole safety kit.

An important point to note would be that Kia has removed the GTX DCT configuration from its lineup, so anyone wanting a DCT, but not wanting a top-spec has to look at the Creta now.

I think in the end, it is all about the heart vs the mind. A test drive of both the cars will make things clearer although I don't think you can go wrong with either car.

[Sebring]

The noise could be because of the JK Tyres. Big mistake, Hyundai! I took a test ride today and was blown away by the solid diesel engine and smooth automatic transmission. But yes the hard tyres don't match up. When it was launched I did detest its looks, but am finding it favourable now. The crisp HD screen is eons ahead of the competition, and Pana-Sunroof was just wow. Almost everything inside, spoke quality

Originally Posted by csnanjappa

So continuing from other thread, after test driving new Creta I felt the ride quality to be very poor(Both DCT & Diesel AT). Noises from concrete roads, potholes and humps filtered very much into the cabin and felt less comfortable than my current i10 automatic

[Teqhead]

Originally Posted by AMG1

A very detailed and lovely review.
I just love the new Creta's exterior design. The rear three quarters has a nice squatting look.

IMO, this Creta is towards the top of the list for best designed cars. It has a personality of its own which sadly majority of the cars today lack. Heck, I feel Seltos' front and rear were designed by different teams. I personally like only extroverted car designs and loathe VW group type conservatism.

Creta's looks are so hot that it is making me ignore all the Hector's pluses.
Attaching pictures from a fellow BHPian's Ownership review of his Creta.

His SUV in Silver is sheer beauty! Heck its my wallpapper, replacing the earlier BMW X6M

Thanks a lot AMG1 for nice comments on my beauty..she blushed. I will say you have the rarest of views on the design of new creta. Actually while purchasing the car I was convinced by the interiors, drivability and the ‘hyundai’ badge (plus the panaromic sunroof, paddle shifters and NVH levels), I was apprehensive of outside looks but after some time I started to feel good about it as I got more compliments on the looks than criticism. And as they say the looks grow over you, it certainly did, actually the pics donot do justice to the looks.

Originally Posted by gulerianeeraj

Kudos to a extensively covered review. The wait was worth it. My takes on the vehicle so far
4. I had huge expectations considering the BOSE music system. But after taking TD I’m not overwhelmed as I’ve thought I would be. It is good but it ain’t as good as I’d thought considering the kind of quality BOSE brand oozes.

In my office parking there a Seltos, a Hector and my Creta so I could compare a lot of features of the cars and I would say Seltos and Creta both have Bose but somehow Creta’s music system is a notch better and I am surprised that the Hector’s infinity system is even a notch better than Creta’s. This could be due to different size of the car or tuning of the system.

Originally Posted by evoker

I see no reason to spend so much on an x1 or a Q3 when we can get cars like this at ~20 lakhs. Love the Creta in black. If I had 20 lakhs to spend on a car I'd spend it on this (4 more lakhs and I'd get a Harrier!).

Harrier ticked all boxes but NVH levels are a big let down.

Originally Posted by Sebring

The noise could be because of the JK Tyres. Big mistake, Hyundai!

I was surprised when I saw JKs on SX and Nexen on SX(O). Nexen tyres are way better in terms of minimising road noise. I can hear some noise only when I reach 90-100 kmph. Handling and braking is also much better. They should have given nexen on SX models too. I never heard of nexen tyres before so I searched about them and found out its a korean company and hyundai being a korean brand should use them in more of their models.

[AMG1]

Originally Posted by Teqhead

Thanks a lot AMG1 for nice comments on my beauty..she blushed. I will say you have the rarest of views on the design of new creta. Actually while purchasing the car I was convinced by the interiors, drivability and the ‘hyundai’ badge (plus the panaromic sunroof, paddle shifters and NVH levels), I was apprehensive of outside looks but after some time I started to feel good about it as I got more compliments on the looks than criticism. And as they say the looks grow over you, it certainly did, actually the pics donot do justice to the looks.

If she blushed, the pleasure is all mine You are right, Creta seeing in real life is vastly different in pictures. Its an incredible design best enjoyed in lighter colours and in the forest Green one.

I despise conservative boring vanilla designs & prefer cars that stand out. As it is all cars tends to look the same nowadays; BMW 3 Looks like Lexus IS looks like Honda City and on and on. Creta atleast is a breadth of fresh air.

[mayurhuria]

Wow!
Great review, a highly awaited one.

New gen Creta has "Hate and Love" aura. When I first saw it, like everyone else it was a shocker, but now that it has become a daily sight (thanks to Hyundai sales chart), it looks better and better each day and dare I say it looks mesmerising in black color.

A bold move with design from Hyundai but it's safe to say that they have done it right again.

[Mortis]

MODS : Could you please change the title of the thread to " Hyundai Creta 2020 Facelift" or something similar please ? It helps to differentiate this one with the old review thread.

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by Mortis

MODS: Could you please change the title of the thread to " Hyundai Creta 2020 Facelift" or something similar, please? It helps to differentiate this one with the old review thread.

That is the reason MODS have decided and changed the first generation review thread title as follows:

Review: Hyundai Creta (1st-gen)

This does differentiate and lets readers know that it is of the first generation. Also one can notice that the first generation review has been moved to Test drive & Initial review section. So all official reviews of the latest/current generation remain in the Official Review section.

[gururajrv]

Brilliant attention to detail in the write-up, exploring and recording all the features, which is next level!

I just can’t digest the ugly looks. Previous gen Creta was my favorite till now. Sure, it gets all the bells and whistles but I just cannot recall on how many times Seltos is mentioned in this whole thread Damn, now that’s what I call the effort - just look at how many times Seltos is mentioned despite it being a Creta review! I’m sorry Hyundai, I’m not talking much about you here, either! Creta is nice but Seltos has made a long lasting impression in its maiden run itself!

Besides, is there an agreement between Kia & Hyundai to not add all features but to miss on tiny bits that seems like an intentional omission? Seltos doesn’t get paddle shifters but Creta gets it. Likewise, Seltos gets 360 degree camera but Creta doesn’t. I see some pattern here. These mere omissions would’ve saved some bucks for sure but is it justified?

Regards

RV

[Shreyans_Jain]

Originally Posted by Teqhead

In my office parking there a Seltos, a Hector and my Creta so I could compare a lot of features of the cars and I would say Seltos and Creta both have Bose but somehow Creta’s music system is a notch better and I am surprised that the Hector’s infinity system is even a notch better than Creta’s. This could be due to different size of the car or tuning of the system.

Indeed the Infinty audio system on the MG is the best in this segment, and perhaps a couple of segments above it as well. I felt the Creta/Seltos ICEs both lacked the absolute clarity that usually sets the premium audio setups apart. The bass also tends to get boomy. Nobody would consider it a Bose system if the branding was hidden.

The Harman system on the Harrier has far better clarity and soundstage. Provides a genuinely high quality experience for all kinds of tracks and low as well as high volumes. It is superb. Just that, the Hector is even better.

For reference sake, I am someone spoilt by the excellent 10 speaker JBL system on the Hexa. Overall sound quality in my book will be

Hector 10/10
Harrier 9/10. (I’ll rate Hexa 8.5 due to the sub’s flawed placement on the boot door and it’s tendency to rattle)
Creta/Seltos 7.5/10

[civic-dk]

Originally Posted by Shreyans_Jain

Indeed the Infinty audio system on the MG is the best in this segment, and perhaps a couple of segments above it as well. I felt the Creta/Seltos ICEs both lacked the absolute clarity that usually sets the premium audio setups apart. The bass also tends to get boomy. Nobody would consider it a Bose system if the branding was hidden.

Hector 10/10
Harrier 9/10. (I’ll rate Hexa 8.5 due to the sub’s flawed placement on the boot door and it’s tendency to rattle)
Creta/Seltos 7.5/10

Agree Shreyans. However, I have recently got damping done in my Seltos GTX Plus DCT and I can hear a clear improvement in sound quality with much tighter bass. Not sure how it would compare with Harrier's or Hector's sound quality though.

[Sebring]

Base is tightest on Bose. Its the clarity of vocals/instruments where they under-perform. I would compare damping to noise-cancellation only

Originally Posted by civic-dk

Agree Shreyans. However, I have recently got damping done in my Seltos GTX Plus DCT and I can hear a clear improvement in sound quality with much tighter bass. Not sure how it would compare with Harrier's or Hector's sound quality though.

[deepakdograbhp]

Originally Posted by ChiragM

An easy way out of this is to just use the auto-hold function (which the Seltos doesn’t get)

Thanks for such a detailed review Chirag

Just wondering, is it ok to use auto-hold in bumper-to-bumper traffic while car is in D mode? Generally it's not advisable to use brakes to avoid heating of brake-pads.

I'm particularly asking for IVT transmission as I'm planning to buy one.

[sarav100]

Originally Posted by Teqhead

I was surprised when I saw JKs on SX and Nexen on SX(O). Nexen tyres are way better in terms of minimising road noise. I can hear some noise only when I reach 90-100 kmph. Handling and braking is also much better. They should have given nexen on SX models too. I never heard of nexen tyres before so I searched about them and found out its a korean company and hyundai being a korean brand should use them in more of their models.

Yes, Nexen are indeed very good and way better than JK Royale that SX usually gets as well as better than Apollos that E/EX gets. That said, they are no way in the league of Yokohama/Michelin but I guess they are still the best choice in stock tyre options.

I specifically mentioned sales advisor to check tyre brand to be Nexon while delivery as it saved me from the expenses of tyre upgrade.