[RavenAvi]

Seeing as to how the competition has become safety-conscious in recent times, Hyundai India has also gone a step ahead and offered dual airbags as standard across it's Elite i20 & i20 Active ranges.

Also, the top Asta (O) trim now gets projectors with cornering function, 16-inch alloy wheels, and a 7-inch AVN system as standard. This makes it a bit more loaded to take on the immediate competition such as the Maruti-Suzuki Baleno and the Honda Jazz.

And, the Sportz (O) variant has been removed from the lineup, no doubt due to poor sales. This variant was priced quite close to the Asta variant and customers usually ended up opting for the higher trim when given a choice.

However, ABS continues to get a miss in the two lowest variants - Era & Magna.

The Hyundai i20 was the top seller in it's segment before being overtaken by the recently launched Maruti-Suzuki Baleno.

ACI

[AkMar]

Great to see manufacturers finally waking up and offering safety features across the range on many cars. Even though this move is clearly due to competition offering these features (not the manufacturer pro actively offering safety features), it is nevertheless a welcome move which will benefit customers.

However, didn't get this part.

Also, the top Asta (O) trim now gets projectors with cornering function, 16-inch alloy wheels, and a 7-inch AVN system as standard

If I am not mistaken, Asta (O) already had AVN & 16 inch alloys as standard. Only projectors with cornering function are an addition, isn't it?

[deetjohn]

Good updates. But ideally they should have matched Baleno with ABS and Airbags across variants.

And I hope Hyundai adds rear wash wipe also for the variants below Asta. Its a big miss for a premium established hatchback like i20.

I for one cannot digest hatchbacks without rear wiper. The good old Alto 1.1, Zen, Palio etc. with those old wipers looks so good even now.

[libranof1987]

Good on Hyundai to make dual airbags standard across all variants; they should have upped the game and provide ABS as well.

While this is a good move, I wonder if an extra airbag will make a serious difference in i20s competition with Baleno. For that matter, comparing i20 and Baleno on safety isn't a very drastic argument.

As for Hyundai's (O) packages; given the wide range of variants for each car they offer, there was bound to be cannibalization within those variants. If my opinion mattered, no safety feature should be offered as an (O).

[GTO]

God bless competition . Not only is this the 'Maruti Baleno' effect, but someone at Hyundai probably wanted to save the company agony in case the NCAP randomly picks a base variant for crash testing (as they have done earlier).

@ Hyundai: This might be a good time to undo the blunder and bring back 6 airbags on the i20's top variant!

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

However, ABS continues to get a miss in the two lowest variants - Era & Magna.

Hope this is corrected as well. Airbags help you after an accident, ABS helps you avoid one . From the manufacturer's POV, ABS is cheaper too. There's no reason to skip on it while offering airbags.

[arjab]

Originally Posted by RavenAvi

Also, the top Asta (O) trim now gets projectors with cornering function

Any idea whether these will be HID projectors or conventional halogen projectors a la Creta?

[RavenAvi]

Originally Posted by AkMar

If I am not mistaken, Asta (O) already had AVN & 16 inch alloys as standard. Only projectors with cornering function are an addition, isn't it?

Correct. I guess the sourced article is not a properly researched one.

This is the AVN unit.

Originally Posted by deetjohn

And I hope Hyundai adds rear wash wipe also for the variants below Asta. Its a big miss for a premium established hatchback like i20.

Costly miss, specially for those customers who drive through heavy rains and on dusty, muddy roads. Hopefully it gets rectified soon.

Still waiting on the official press release and an update to the i20 page on Hyundai India's website for the exact changes to the 2016 i20 range.

Originally Posted by GTO

@ Hyundai: This might be a good time to undo the blunder and bring back 6 airbags on the i20's top variant!

Great chance to get back to the top of the heap again, if they can do it.

Originally Posted by GTO

Hope this is corrected as well. Airbags help you after an accident, ABS helps you avoid one . From the manufacturer's POV, ABS is cheaper too. There's no reason to skip on it while offering airbags.

Indeed. If I am not mistaken, the Magna variant sells well too. They should have gone for ABS + dual airbags standard across the range, since the i20 has seen deletion of features in the near past.

Originally Posted by arjab

Any idea whether these will be HID projectors or conventional halogen projectors a la Creta?

If the more costlier Creta doesn't get it, I doubt if the i20 twins will get HID projectors. Bet they are the halogen type - but the illumination from them is quite good and there's no need of an upgrade, so this update is a very welcome move.

[Axe77]

This is surely the Baleno effect. I'm amazed that Hyundai that is otherwise proactive on features gets it so badly wrong in certain aspects. Adding airbags across the range is super. I agree with the comments above - should add ABS too.

I wish they'd provide airbags in the Grand i10 as well. And while we're at it, an A/T i20 variant at some point. Its unfathomable why they have A/Ts on Grand i10, Xcent, Verna and Creta BUT NOT on the i20 A/T.

[praveen_v]

And still no automatic variant . I am trying to narrow down on an automatic and was hoping that hyundai will try to launch one soon after baleno launch. It would be great if someone can throw light on the mysterious absence of automatic variant in Hyundai's premium hatch. There have been some reports of it coming soon since June 2015 but no official announcement so far.

Yes, the addition of airbags as standard is welcome but it is more reacting to the competition than being proactive as someone mentioned above.

[Karthik Chandra]

This is a welcome move , only expected, since Hyundai would not have wished to be left behind competition.

This also justifies the recent price hike announcement to the tune of 30K.

They should have offered 6 airbags and made the asta a complete package, probably in the (O) option with sunroof above asta

An efficient AT and a turbo petrol option will make the i20 a tougher challenge for competitors. The turbo petrol might follow once the boosterjet is announced.

[batterylow]

Originally Posted by GTO

From the manufacturer's POV, ABS is cheaper too. There's no reason to skip on it while offering airbags.

From my understanding of the NCAP ratings, passive safety devices give a better rating as compared to active safety , maybe this leads the car makers to provide airbags over ABS.

From the NCAP site (http://www.euroncap.com/en/about-eur...ion-explained/)

When a car has been nominated for testing, Euro NCAP asks the manufacturer for information about the best-selling variant and the fitment of safety equipment accross Europe. From this information the test variant is derived. In general, the test variant must have safety equipment fitted as standard.

If Magna were the highest selling variant it would be chosen for the test, therein the inclusion of airbags would give a better rating than ABS.

[PrideRed]

The same has been applied to the dying Verna 2016 edition as well!.
relaunched as well, though I am not quite sure if it really was pulled out.

http://www.autocarindia.com/auto-new...form=hootsuite . The top trim SX(O) has been

The current generation Hyundai Verna received a mid-cycle refresh last year. With this cosmetic update, Hyundai had discontinued the top-spec SX (O) trim. Now for 2016, the carmaker has made a few equipment tweaks across the line-up and has relaunched the top SX (O) trim. Here’s a look at what’s new in the 2016 Verna.

The 2016 Verna is available in four variants – Base, S, SX and the SX (O). All variants now come with standard dual airbags. The base variant gets the option of a 1.4-litre petrol and 1.4-litre diesel engines mated to a manual gearbox. In terms of equipment, there's the addition of a cooled glovebox but it loses out on a music system.

The Verna S offers the choice of a 1.6-litre petrol and a 1.6-litre diesel engine, mated to either a six-speed manual or a four-speed automatic gearbox. The automatic gearbox-equipped models come with 15-inch alloy wheels while manual versions come with steel wheels. A 2-DIN audio system is offered as standard. The carmaker has now discontinued the Verna S(O) trim.

The third trim, the Verna SX now comes with Audio-Video Navigation, 16-inch diamond-cut alloy wheels, front fog lamps, power folding wing mirrors, an AVN system and a shark-fin antenna. This variant is powered by the same engines as the S trim. However, it gets the option of an automatic gearbox only on the petrol-powered version.

Hyundai has relaunched the Verna SX (O) trim for 2016. It comes with side and curtain airbags, leather seats, steering, gearknob and armrests. It also gets push-button start, telescopic steering, rain-sensing wipers, push-button start, chrome door handles and a 'Supervision' instrument cluster. The engine options are the 1.6-litre petrol and diesel. Only the diesel-powered SX (O) is offered with a four-speed automatic gearbox, along with four-wheel disc brakes.

[manishkapadia]

All credit for this has to go the Maruti. Had there not been competition from the leader, Hyundai would not have done this. Amazing how Hyundai, Maruti, Ford, VW and Toyota now have duel airbags standard. But the company that started with this trend, that is Honda, as of today does not have Airbags on some of their JAZZ and Brio/ Amaze vehicles.

I am sure they are looking at this and will correct this. I have a gut feeling that build quality where it cannot be noticed to drop even further. Though I hope its otherwise.

[xs2mayank]

Good to see Hyundai finally waking up on safety aspects. Airbags are a must for any car and when it comes to premium hatchback like i20, they should be standard across all variants rather than being provided on only the higher variants. While premium features like climate control, start-stop button, DRLs etc can be added variant wise, safety features like airbags, ABS, disc brakes should come as standard across all variants so that a safety is not compromised for a customer who is buying lower variants.

Thumbs up to Ford and Maruti for compelling Hyundai to do this.

Honda - Are you listening?

[captain.torque]

Can someone please shed some light on the difference between the projector lamps on the top end i20 and Baleno. Are the ones on Baleno HID? Are they better?