[sabsubs]

Originally Posted by Motoringlover

All - Please find Service bills attached for your ready reference.

Service Interval - First Free Service.

Mileage at Service - 1287

General Update - No major changes, additives added.

Total cost - Rs1,508/-

Dated - 20th Jan 2014.


Thanks - ML.

I recently got my first free service done for my i20 Sportz diesel. As per the first service bill of yours both the consumables are additives. While giving my car for service I made it very clear to the SA that I don't want to see any additional charges like Windshield washer, additives etc. He was trying to push for some actually. My first service bill was zero actually. I think both of the things that are mentioned in the bill are not required at all. Did you request for the additives to be added or the SA pushed it without your knowledge?

[Motoringlover]

Originally Posted by sabsubs

I recently got my first free service done for my i20 Sportz diesel. As per the first service bill of yours both the consumables are additives. While giving my car for service I made it very clear to the SA that I don't want to see any additional charges like Windshield washer, additives etc. He was trying to push for some actually. My first service bill was zero actually. I think both of the things that are mentioned in the bill are not required at all. Did you request for the additives to be added or the SA pushed it without your knowledge?

Could not have agreed more, this was pushed without me requesting it, I was told this is suppose to be good for the engine, i did not haggle too much (thanks to a busy day) i was being pushed for teflon and something else, which i explicitly rejected.

Just to add, i did not find any inherent benefit in driving or say an impact to FE post the additives, which was the claim from the SA. You made a better choice rejectiving it.

Best - ML

[drmohitg]

Congratulations on your new ride. My friend is in the market looking for a hatch and is considering I10 grand, I20 and the Liva ( all diesel). A couple of queries to you:
1. What was the OTR price of your car? What is the current road tax % in Gurgaon for under 10L cars.
2. I was viewing the feature list yesterday and the difference between the sportz and Asta is hardly 40-50k whereas the feature list is quite exhaustive in the Asta compared to Sportz. Any reasons for not considering that?

[sabsubs]

Originally Posted by Motoringlover

Could not have agreed more, this was pushed without me requesting it, I was told this is suppose to be good for the engine, i did not haggle too much (thanks to a busy day) i was being pushed for teflon and something else, which i explicitly rejected.

Just to add, i did not find any inherent benefit in driving or say an impact to FE post the additives, which was the claim from the SA. You made a better choice rejectiving it.

Best - ML

Yes right, it wouldn't make much difference to the mileage as such. Those are just money making tactics. Ideally they do not do anything during first server, per my experience they just wash the car and give it back .

[Motoringlover]

Originally Posted by drmohitg

Congratulations on your new ride. My friend is in the market looking for a hatch and is considering I10 grand, I20 and the Liva ( all diesel). A couple of queries to you:
1. What was the OTR price of your car? What is the current road tax % in Gurgaon for under 10L cars.
2. I was viewing the feature list yesterday and the difference between the sportz and Asta is hardly 40-50k whereas the feature list is quite exhaustive in the Asta compared to Sportz. Any reasons for not considering that?

Thanks drmohitg and Congrats to yourself too on 3 Series, enjoyed reading your thread.

I paid 7.5 on the road, this included ~60K of discounts factored in, i am sorry not exactly sure of the exact road tax percentage, I will dig this up.

The feature list as you say is not far off between variants, my biggest issue was availability and i did not want to lose out on the december buying advantage (read as discounts), the local dealers did not have Silver Asta available, i wanted Silver, also since i was not losing on too much, i shose to pick the Sportz variant.

My key needs were ABS, All 4 discs brakes & Airbags and i get all of them in the sportz variant.

Let me know if i can help you with anything else.

Originally Posted by sabsubs

Yes right, it wouldn't make much difference to the mileage as such. Those are just money making tactics. Ideally they do not do anything during first server, per my experience they just wash the car and give it back .

Well lesson learnt. I though loved the dealership service experience, pick and drop of the car is just great, i never get that from Skoda.

[Motoringlover]

Team - experienced a strange issue with the i20, i copied some additional music from my Mac on to a USB drive and kept some music copied from a PC before, the i20 does not even display the songs copied from the Mac, has anyone ever experienced this issue, the USB drive works perfect in my RS - which has an after market headunit.

Is there a work around, my home computer is a Mac.

Thanks - ML

[Chitta Pradhan]

Originally Posted by Motoringlover

1. Initial driving Impressions.
2. Living with the I20.
3. Pictorial.

if you have specific areas you would like me to include, please give me a shout or leave me a note.

Hi !

Hope you are enjoying your i-20. USB in my Verna Fluidic 1.6 CRDI works fine. Probably you may have some issues in formatting of the pendrive. Should be solved, not an big issue.

I need your urgent help to reach at a decision. My 42.5 k run Verna Fluidic SX 1.6 CRDI is fetching a good price of 8.5 L. Thus I am tempted to sell it & go for a new diesel hatch for smaller size advantage. Yesterday & day before took TDs of Pulse, Micra, i-20 & Polo 1.6.

Between Micra & Pulse, I liked the Pulse more than Micra. Pulse had better NVH compared to Micra. But both reach 100/110 kmph reasonably easily & there after simply die down. I could took the Pulse to 130 kmph after flooring the right leg for a long time in a open stretch. Coming from 1.6 CRDI, this performance looked like too much of a compromise.Handling & ride was ok.- Pulse is added to my list for now & Micra-rejected.

Polo 1.6 was really impressive. Refined & enough of power, but too pricey and less on features.- Rejected

Now comes i-20. Unfortunately, it was too late & I could have a short TD inside the city only. My observations- equally refined as my Verna, could not feel at what rpm, turbo comes into action, even after repeated attempts. At lower rpms like 1200-1500 rpm, pulling power was acceptable, but no where near Pulse. I had driven a 2014 i-20 Petrol few months back. I felt the ride quality better than my Verna ( 2011 model, but 2014 Verna is said to have better ride due to stiffer springs). To me i-20 CRDI was very close to my present car & did not feel like a down grade at all. In fact in Asta I am getting few additional features like push button start, key less entry, rain sensing wipers etc. Probably I will not loose any features, not sure though. I may go for Asta, but upcoming 2014 i-20 is holding me back.

My queries to you-

- 60k discount bifurcations.

- During TD, ACC felt less effective than my Verna. It is possible that the TD car had a problem. How is your ACC functioning? Is it good enough in our summers say at 45*c.

- If you have driven Verna 1.6 CRDI, please compare NVH & engine power of both.

- I had driven a 5 geared i-20 of my friend approx 2 years back. Power to me felt sufficient. I could touch 160 kmph in no time. What's your experience? Have you ever felt that you needed more power on highways?

- How soft the rear suspensions are & how they behave under full load particularly on wavy roads. My Verna is worst here.

- Does your car has under bonnet insulations & claddings around the wheel arches for better cabin insulation.

- Verna has an dash illumination control, which is really helpful during night driving. I always keep it at the lowest, which reduces the glare on my face.

- What is the FE you are getting with AC in city & on highways. Please mention the load inside the car & speed maintained by you.

- In the petrol ASTA I was driving, I found the MID do not have average FE, a glaring omission. Does your car has it?

- Are you facing any ground clearance issues, Verna is notorious in this regard. ( with spring replacements & tyre up-gradation some bhpians have reported to have solve the problem).

- Given a chance now, will you go for i-20 CRDI again or some other car.

- Any other diesel car preferably a hatch I should consider- my primary requirements are :

1. good NVH.

2. Good engine power which should effortlessly take the car to 150 kmph ( this is where Figo/Swift/Pulse/ Liva fail- Swift being the better of the lot).

3. acceptable ride quality.

4. As many Features as possible.

Will appreciate your quick response plz.

[Motoringlover]

Originally Posted by Chitta Pradhan

My queries to you-

- 60k discount bifurcations. (This was a december buying advantage, the car costed me approx ~60K less, estimated if i recall correctly i could be wrong to some degree was approx 8.1 and change and i paid 7.5Lacs)

- During TD, ACC felt less effective than my Verna. It is possible that the TD car had a problem. How is your ACC functioning? Is it good enough in our summers say at 45*c. (I found the air conditioning ok - but have not yet experienced 45 degree Centigrade after buying it, for the current weather it does an ok job, when i compare to my RS - i find the Skoda to be more effective)

- If you have driven Verna 1.6 CRDI, please compare NVH & engine power of both. (I did drive the Verna and liked it, i have also owned the previous version of the verna in the past, that said, Verna is a league ahead when compared to I20, Verna felt a lot more enjoyable to drive acceleration is much better, essentially the displacement advantage and especailly the driving ratio selection is much better that the I20 - My opinion, essentially felt the value of the incremental money, if i was looking for a mid-size sedan i would pick the Verna)

- I had driven a 5 geared i-20 of my friend approx 2 years back. Power to me felt sufficient. I could touch 160 kmph in no time. What's your experience? Have you ever felt that you needed more power on highways? (Can't comment on the 5 speed variant have not driven it, but I20 is no sloutch when you cross the 2K mark, it can make siginificant highway progress - I am happy with the power levels)


- How soft the rear suspensions are & how they behave under full load particularly on wavy roads. My Verna is worst here. (Hyundai's are a mass market cars (i20 & Verna), it works perfect for me, my RS is very stiff and can be diffcult to deal with stiff setup, I find the i20 acceptable again its a small car - find the setup acceptable for commutes and not necessarily driving pleasure.)

- Does your car has under bonnet insulations & claddings around the wheel arches for better cabin insulation. (Not sure need to check this)

- Verna has an dash illumination control, which is really helpful during night driving. I always keep it at the lowest, which reduces the glare on my face. (Need to check this one, not sure, it does have a feature to turn the display of the lcd off)

- What is the FE you are getting with AC in city & on highways. Please mention the load inside the car & speed maintained by you. (I don't take this car to high speeds, normally is driven by my wife and we get ~17Kmpl with a mix of highway and city driving (Delhi - Gurgaon))

- In the petrol ASTA I was driving, I found the MID do not have average FE, a glaring omission. Does your car has it? (Same here - daft move by Hyundai - Mine also does not have it.)

- Are you facing any ground clearance issues, Verna is notorious in this regard. ( with spring replacements & tyre up-gradation some bhpians have reported to have solve the problem). (No complaints so far, mostly we 2 or at the max 3 in the car)

- Given a chance now, will you go for i-20 CRDI again or some other car. (Yes)

- Any other diesel car preferably a hatch I should consider- my primary requirements are :

1. good NVH.

2. Good engine power which should effortlessly take the car to 150 kmph ( this is where Figo/Swift/Pulse/ Liva fail- Swift being the better of the lot).

3. acceptable ride quality.

4. As many Features as possible.

Will appreciate your quick response plz.

Given you have indicated a preference to Renault engines earlier, you should go with it, otherwise i would recommend you have a look at the Polo GT TDI - (its more balanced to drive, acceptable features, but may be pricy to maintain given euro pedigree)

Good Hunting, all the best.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

Thanks - ML

[Chitta Pradhan]

Originally Posted by Motoringlover

Given you have indicated a preference to Renault engines earlier, you should go with it, otherwise i would recommend you have a look at the Polo GT TDI - (its more balanced to drive, acceptable features, but may be pricy to maintain given euro pedigree)

Good Hunting, all the best.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

Thanks - ML

Thank you so much boss for your super fast response. Having experienced both Verna 1.6 Fludic & i-20 CRDI, please give an idea how silent the cabins of both cars are, since this is one of my primary requirements.

As suggested by you- Pulse is in my buying list. What bothers me is lackluster performance beyond 100/110 kmph & resale value after 3 years.

As I had mentioned, I liked Polo 1.6 TDI very much during the TD, but not the price.

I am also open to a Swift DDIS with a tuning box, obviously the safest choice. What's your opinion on this? I may keep bothering you, till I reach a conclusion. Help me out

[Motoringlover]

Originally Posted by Chitta Pradhan

Thank you so much boss for your super fast response. Having experienced both Verna 1.6 Fludic & i-20 CRDI, please give an idea how silent the cabins of both cars are, since this is one of my primary requirements.

As suggested by you- Pulse is in my buying list. What bothers me is lackluster performance beyond 100/110 kmph & resale value after 3 years.

As I had mentioned, I liked Polo 1.6 TDI very much during the TD, but not the price.

I am also open to a Swift DDIS with a tuning box, obviously the safest choice. What's your opinion on this? I may keep bothering you, till I reach a conclusion. Help me out

Happy to help -

Well to start with, economic reasons aside 42.5K on ODO is really too early to sell the car, it will be very diffcult for you to match the performance with a lower displacement engine. (Even with Mods)

But if you have made up your mind to move from Verna to a hatch.

The way i see it, you have to make a choice between

1. Swift (Great engine, handling and gearbox combo - let down by impractical boot) - Uptick - Tuning box or remap can make it more fun.

2. I20 (Loads of goodies, comfortable to drive, Solid engine, VGT advantage and slick shifting gearbox) - Let down by handling. - Uptick - Remap can get better value as it has a VGT and marginally higher displacement than Swift but handling will still remain a concern.

Take a pick.

I agree resale value may be a factor with others.

Best - ML

[a4anurag]

Originally Posted by Chitta Pradhan

Any other diesel car preferably a hatch I should consider- my primary requirements are :

1. good NVH.

2. Good engine power which should effortlessly take the car to 150 kmph ( this is where Figo/Swift/Pulse/ Liva fail- Swift being the better of the lot).

3. acceptable ride quality.

4. As many Features as possible.

I would be confused between the i20 CRDi and Swift ZDi here with the above requirements though I would pick the Swift (not because I own one) for the reliability, handling, ride quality over the i20, but the i20 trumps on features, power.

Anurag.

[Motoringlover]

Team - Decided to take the I20 out for a moderate highway drive - NH1 - Gurgaon - Panipat - Gurgaon approx 245km. Thought will share some immediate impressions on the car.

I have segmented my thoughts on following -

1. Comfort
2. Ease of Drive
3. Driving Dynamics
4. Road conditions

Comfort - Well it is believed a softer suspension leads to a comfortable drive, now i actually feel that is only true for short distances, I actually felt a bit tired at the end of journey, not that it is a lot, overall undulations and shock absorbent vertical movements actually felt fatigue levels were greater, both for driver and co-passeger.

I have done the same route in my VRS, i was never tired at the end of the journey, could also very well be a difference between a bigger car and a hatch.

Ease of Drive - Scores decent marks, the gearing is definitely made for the highways, and once past 2000 clicks, she rewards with some swift performance and maintaining triple digit speeds with ease and all this with never feeling the engine is being stressed.

Driving Dynamics - Now this car no way feels planted, and also let down by tires, the harder compound tires also does not help in grip levels, but well i am not suppose to complain they are budget tires, i guess they will last longer (presumptive) - they car is ok in terms of composure with up until high 2 digit speeds, the moment you cross over the smallest undulation is enough to disturb the composure of the car.

Road conditions - Good Roads for the most part with minor stretches which are not really craters, but felt more like accumulated tar, tough to explain, but enough to upset the composure of the car.

In summary - keep the car at high 2 digit or even entry level 3 digit speeds, it does fine.


Please let me know if you have questions.


Best - ML

[vnabhi]

Originally Posted by Motoringlover

Comfort - Well it is believed a softer suspension leads to a comfortable drive, now i actually feel that is only true for short distances, I actually felt a bit tired at the end of journey, not that it is a lot, overall undulations and shock absorbent vertical movements actually felt fatigue levels were greater, both for driver and co-passeger.

I remember sharing the same feedback with you. Even Downsouth and his better half had the same feedback on their long trip to Bangalore on their Verna when compared to their Linea.

Originally Posted by Motoringlover

Driving Dynamics

Originally Posted by Motoringlover

- Now this car no way feels planted, and also let down by tires, the harder compound tires also does not help in grip levels, but well i am not suppose to complain they are budget tires, i guess they will last longer (presumptive) - they car is ok in terms of composure with up until high 2 digit speeds, the moment you cross over the smallest undulation is enough to disturb the composure of the car.

True, but better rubber would have given you more composure. This apart, the over-servoed steering lets one down a lot and highway speeds.

[naru]

Originally Posted by Motoringlover

Team - Decided to take the I20 out for a moderate highway drive - NH1 - Gurgaon - Panipat - Gurgaon approx 245km. Thought will share some immediate impressions on the car.

I have segmented my thoughts on following -

1. Comfort
2. Ease of Drive
3. Driving Dynamics
4. Road conditions

Comfort - Well it is believed a softer suspension leads to a comfortable drive, now i actually feel that is only true for short distances, I actually felt a bit tired at the end of journey, not that it is a lot, overall undulations and shock absorbent vertical movements actually felt fatigue levels were greater, both for driver and co-passeger.

I have done the same route in my VRS, i was never tired at the end of the journey, could also very well be a difference between a bigger car and a hatch.

Ease of Drive - Scores decent marks, the gearing is definitely made for the highways, and once past 2000 clicks, she rewards with some swift performance and maintaining triple digit speeds with ease and all this with never feeling the engine is being stressed.

Driving Dynamics - Now this car no way feels planted, and also let down by tires, the harder compound tires also does not help in grip levels, but well i am not suppose to complain they are budget tires, i guess they will last longer (presumptive) - they car is ok in terms of composure with up until high 2 digit speeds, the moment you cross over the smallest undulation is enough to disturb the composure of the car.

Road conditions - Good Roads for the most part with minor stretches which are not really craters, but felt more like accumulated tar, tough to explain, but enough to upset the composure of the car.

In summary - keep the car at high 2 digit or even entry level 3 digit speeds, it does fine.


Please let me know if you have questions.


Best - ML

Thanks for the unbiased info. People usually write about the performance of their ride wearing rose tinted glasses.

I'm torn between the i20, swift vdi and the grand i10 crdi.

Since you have experienced both the Swift and the i20, which will you say scores higher on the above mentioned criterion.

I'll be driving 50km a day on a mix of expressway and inner-city jams.

Thanks in advance

[arvind71181]

Originally Posted by naru

Thanks for the unbiased info. People usually write about the performance of their ride wearing rose tinted glasses.

I'm torn between the i20, swift vdi and the grand i10 crdi.

Since you have experienced both the Swift and the i20, which will you say scores higher on the above mentioned criterion.

I'll be driving 50km a day on a mix of expressway and inner-city jams.

Thanks in advance

Since I own both the i20 and the swift (1st gen petrol though), my 2 cents:

Comfort - Both of them are good for the city, but for expressways the Swift. Harder suspension makes it less bouncy. I20 gets disturbed on even the slightest undulations. Having said that, I take only the i20 on the highways (cheaper fuel you see) and do not find it that bad, if you keep the speeds to around a 100 or so. Over 120, its definitely tiring. Steering is lifeless at all speeds

Ease of Drive - On the highway the higher gear helps, but in the city the driving gets irritating sometimes when below the turbo zone. My other car being an NA petrol does not help. Maybe the Swift diesel has the same amount of turbo lag, not sure

Driving Dynamics - Swift. Period. If driving dynamics is high on your priority, then please go for the swift with your eyes closed. I20 does not like being cornered.

Road conditions - In good roads, does not matter. When roads are bad, Swift's stiffer suspension helps.

I went with the i20 only because we already had a swift petrol, and the i20 has a huge 295 liter boot space while the new swift has only around 200 liters. The additional boot space has proved to a boon. So if you need lots of boots space, the Swift is not for you. Hope this helps