[BNM]

Hyundai Creta SX+ AT

OMG ! This is going to be a difficult act to follow after RavenAVI and Naveen.Raju who have written such wonderful initial ownership reports on their Petrol and Diesel MT versions respectively. I strongly recommend you to read those reviews first if you happen to stumble upon this first - by accident. They have covered every feature, nook and cranny of the Creta in their pictures and words leaving me very little to cover on the AT version. I am writing this review after 350 Kms on the Odometer.


What You Will Like
1. Great looking Compact SUV
2. Neither too Big nor too Small - Ideal for a family of 4 and easy to park.
3. 6 Speed Automatic - very comfortable to drive in city limits.
4. Very refined diesel engine - N.V.H levels are excellent !
5. Decent Boot space. Can swallow 2 big international travel size suitcases and more.
6. Good ground clearance and decent ride quality.
7. Great 7" Head Unit with good sound fidelity. Very responsive with a lot of features.
8. Steering weighs up decently at higher speeds compared to all the most other Hyundai vehicles !
9. 3 years unlimited warranty which can be extended by 2 more years
10. Good Seating position with great visibility. Easy Ingress/Egress
11. You will love the static bending lights. Great for our poorly lit roads.
12. 60:40 split rear seats.


What You Won't
1. The Automatic is not fully loaded. Skimps on Safety features like curtain Air Bags and ESP
2. The 16" Stock alloys look like plasticy. Tyre Noise from the stock Good Year tires. Spare wheel is not an Alloy !
3. Skips on features like Auto Rain sensing wipers, Reach adjustment, Driver side mirror, Supervision Cluster and a long list of small yet useful features available in cars like i20, grand i10.
4. Excess Chrome in some areas like the tailgate garnish and front grills - not to everybody's liking
5. Very tinny sounding stock speakers which doesn't do justice to the fine sounding head unit.
6. No HID light unit. The white light would have complimented the LED lights.
7. The drive at speeds between 20 and 35 KMPH
8. Dealer attitude - so many bookings that the sales guys have become rude and snobbish !
9. Dark interiors and a high rear window line - makes you feel claustrophobic.
10. LED lights not being used as DRL's when this has become a standard for many cars of today
11. No AWD. So not an off roader by any standards.
12. Rear wheels only get drum brakes. For the AT, ESP should have been a must.

A bunch of features on the Verna but missing on the Creta!
Rheostat control, Driver side mirror, Distance to empty Cluster, Slidable arm rest, chrome door handles, faux wooden inserts, electrochromatic mirror



Alternates Considered
In 2014 there were 52 Lacs vehicles plying on Bangalore roads everyday and today it has increased to 55 lacs. This is only going to get only worse and the commute times are becoming notorious longer every passing year. My commute to office (25 Kms one way) which used to take around 60 minutes 5 years ago now takes 2 hours and even more on Fridays. Invariably I go back home with a bad temper and lots of knee pain. I had been complaining this to my wife and we decided that our next car would be an Automatic. My typical usage is around 10,000 Kms/Year averaging around 60 Kms/Day. 90% of my travel is in the city.

1. Santa Fe: Took a TD of the AT 4 AWD in May. Loved it. But it is a 5 seater at best. Too expensive at 36 Lacs. An year old used Santa Fe is available for 26 lacs - Very high depreciation.
2. Audi Q3 and BMW X1: Upwards of 40 Lacs. Too much for too little. Considered used cars but again heard about the very expensive maintenance from colleagues and friends and decided to keep away.
3. Fortuner: Test drove my colleague's car. Too big to negotiate/park and fit into my garage besides being 32 Lacs.
4. XUV 500: Liked the SUV and the test drive. Was my nearest alternative. But again no AT and purpose not served.
5. Skoda Octavia AT: Very good looking and refined. @ 26 Lacs OTR, low ground clearance and Skoda's A.S.S it was a no no.
6. Elantra AT: Just a bigger version of my existing Verna. Been driving Sedans for 11 years now - Boring !
7. Duster/Terrano: Good vehicles, affordable but no AT.
8. Mahindra Scorpio AT: Was announced after I had made up my mind on the Creta. Moreover Scorpio is 14 years old !! Love the M-Hawk engine. Wish they could transplant it into the Creta !
9. EcoSport AT: Too small to my liking.


With the Audi Q3 Next to my car. Notice that the Creta is slightly taller. Length and width are very similar !
You can buy 2 Cretas and a hatchback for the price of 1 Q3 and still be left with some spare change.




Creta - how it fit my bill in all aspects
1. Compact SUV - We are a family of 3. Don't need a big 7 seater SUV. Neither do I off road apart from getting in and out of the craters and climbing the huge Road humps placed every 500 mts on Bangalore roads.
2. Proven refined Engine - got used to the same 1.6 CRDI Engine on my Verna for the last 4 years and the 1.5 Engine on the I gen Verna before that for 5 years. No engine trouble whatsoever(95,000 Kms both included)
3. A little expensive but still affordable - At least 9 Lacs cheaper from the next alternative AT Sedan (Octavia) and 15 Lacs from the next alternative AT SUV (Fortuner)
4. Feature Rich with very good fit and finish.
5. Hyundai's A.S.S. and cost of maintenance. Costs me around 8 to 10 K every year. Personally I have had a very good experience with them for the last 15 years. (Santro from 2000 to Fluidic Verna till date)
6. Ride Quality - 90% of my driving is within city limits. Ride quality is definitely good and it is handling all the obstacle courses in Bangalore well so far.
7. Handling: I am not a enthusiastic driver and not too worried about this aspect. The steering characteristics have improved but I don't toss my vehicle around corners.
8. Safety Features: Having 2 Airbags and ABS is good but would have loved to have the ESP especially for the AT.
9. Fuel Economy: I get around 16 Km/Ltr in my Verna even in the worst traffic conditions. I expect to get around 14 on the AT. This would still be great considering the XUV 500 and Fortuner mileage ~10 Km/Ltr
10. Easy to drive/easy to park - even for my wife - fits into my existing garage.


Booking and Delivery Experience with the Dealership
I had been following the iX25 release in China for a while and was super excited when Hyundai announced that it would be released in India during August this year. I had a very bad experience with my earlier Fluidic Verna delivery which was delayed by a month even after making full payment (I had paid 1 EMI before the car was delivered). I did not want to repeat the same mistake again and so I called up the SA from Advaith Hyundai and made a pre-booking on June 23rd by paying Rs 25,000=00. I even offered to pay more but the SA told me that it was good enough. The vehicle was not even christened as Creta when I did the booking and it was booked under the name iX25 - AT/Top end not knowing what was on offer. BTW, I was the 2nd guy to book the vehicle at the dealer.

July was all about the excitement build up with news coming in bits and pieces everyday. 10,000 pre-bookings were announced around the 15th of July even before the official launch date. All this made me more nervous about the waiting periods and I even offered to pay more to the dealer. I spoke to the bank guys in advance and told them that the loan should be ready on the day of launch. Come 21st the prices were announced (17.09 Lacs OTR Bangalore) and the pricing was close to what I had expected (16.5 Lacs). I wasn't too surprised given that the top end Verna AT costed 15 Lacs OTR in Bangalore. I spoke to the bank and got the delivery order to Advaith on Jul 23rd itself. Now it all came down to getting an early allotment and delivery in the first lot. I was pretty anxious and called up the dealer several times and also made a couple of visits and met all the senior people at the dealership. However nobody was ready to commit to a delivery date citing heavy demand for the AT and also due to lower production volumes of the AT. I did express my frustration on the forum having paid in full. Several BHPians were sympathetic and some even chided me for having paid in full without getting any commitment. My unleashed my fury on the dealer at which point they agreed to give me a White AT on the 31st of Jul. My wife was dead against the white color since we already own a white i20 and insisted we buy only the Red. I was later told that I would get the car only in the second lot around the 20th of August. I resigned to that fact and started planning for the modifications. However I was in for a pleasant surprise when the SA called me on 3rd of Aug and told me that my Red AT was in transit and I could take delivery on the 7th of Aug. Whew !! So much for the booking experience.

Note: The OTR price was 17.09 Lacs in Bangalore. I took the Auto Loan from HDFC Bank and Insurance from HDFC ERGO and bargained for a good discount on the Insurance. The final OTR price was exactly 17 Lacs

August 7th
The SA called me around 11 am and said the vehicle was available in the showroom and I could take delivery any time. Excitement brewing, my wife, daughter and I got into an auto and made our way to the showroom on Residency road around 4pm. On the way, the skies opened up and it rained like hell - I was thinking to myself that it started raining because I got the vehicle earlier than promised. Anyway, we got down at the showroom armed with a kilo of sweets and smiled proudly at the Red beauty standing there equally drenched like we were. We finished the formalities quickly and I paid Rs. 4000 for the fancy number. There was a customary celebration with an embarrassing "Congratulations" song being played as sweets were passed around. I stood as far away as possible while my wife took the keys and was in the midst of all the hoopla. We then went to the car and took a few pictures. The dealer also took a family picture and gave us a instant copy in a photo frame with a box of chocolates.

Wifey taking delivery from Advaith, Residency road. I let her drive it out of the showroom aaalllll the way to the temple. I had my heart in my mouth - It was the most agonizing 5 Km drive for me which seemed to take forever !



Exterior Styling / Design & Build Quality
Hyundai has been known earlier to copy designs blatantly from competitors in the past - like the first gen Sonata which shamelessly borrowed its design from the Jaguar. Over the last 5 years things have however changed and they have come up their very own fluidic sculpture. This has particularly worked well for them both internationally and India especially with the Elantra and the Sonata. The same design language was also carried over to their SUV's like the Santa Fe and Tucson.

1. The new 2014 Santa Fe design was accepted very well and Hyundai used it and scaled it down 2 sizes and presto - The Creta was born ! A no nonsense safe & elegant design.

2. The roof rails are a bit tall to my liking. The shorter version on the iX25 looks more elegant.

3. The front head lamps are bulbous and jut out similar to the i20. Would have been nicer if it had been designed like the 2015 Tucson.

4. The black cladding looks great and adds character to the CUV.

5. What appears to be skid plates aren't functional skid plates. They are just pieces of the bumper painted in Silver to look like skid plates.

6. The rear view mirrors are pretty large and do a good job. Surprisingly there is no warning written on the mirror "Objects in mirror are closer than they appear to be". It would have also been nice if they were auto foldable on locking the car.

7. While the chrome front grill and door handles are digestible, the rear tail gate garnish is completely out of place. Anyway it seems to be liked by us Indians a lot and is evident on other vehicles like the Duster, XUV 500, Terrano etc. When I told my wife that I will get it removed, she warned me not to touch it and to leave it alone.

8. The build quality is very decent (8/10). The doors are heavier and shut better than all the other Hyundai's. But nowhere near the VW's.

9. Panel gaps are consistent (9/10). A little excess near the bonnet in my opinion.

10. Paint Quality is good (8/10). White, Silver and Red are the most popular colors. However the blue and ivory colors look disgusting. I heard there were no bookings for those colors from my dealer. Though Black is great, it does not stand out since the black cladding blends into car color.

11. The Indian version missed out on the sun roof. The roof top of the Chinese version appears black due to the sunroof and looks extremely sporty like the evoque. I decided to get it stickered in black and got it done with the 3M glossy finish.

12. The shark fin antenna looks good, doubles up as the GPS receiver and secured safely on the rooftop with bolts from the inside. No worries on getting it stolen when you leave it parked outside.

13. The ground clearance is great at 190 mm (I lost 5 mm due to my tyre profile change). So far I have not scraped any road humps which happens often with my Verna.

14. The wiper blades made some noise. Not a deal breaker.

Side Profile: Looks shorter than it actually is !


Front Profile: Notice the headlamp shape - Bulbous and jutting out !


Rear Profile: Very Neatly done. The chrome is growing on me slowly (No Option).
Note the AUTO Badging. CRDI or VTVT is missing totally.


A closer look at the roof wrap !



Rear view mirrors have no warning on them!


Engine Bay - Lots of space to reach everything. Neatly laid out.


Wheels & Tyres
The AT version comes with 16" silver clean finish alloys with a PCD of 5*114.3 and look like plastic hub caps - atleast that is what my daughter commented. The stock tyres are Good Year 205/60 R16. The tyre size is not popular in the market specially the 60 profile. The Good Year tyres per my expert friend make a lot of road noise. When I enquired with the dealer if I had the option to upgrade to 17" Alloys and tyres, I was given a hefty price. Also I was told that I would get only Pirelli brand tyres which come with only 2 years warranty compared to other brands like Michelin and BridgeStone which sport 5 years warranty.

So, I decided to get them replaced by my good friend Mr. Chander Naidu owner of SNLP Pit Stop, Sanjaynagar. He showed me around 50 alloy designs to choose from amongst several brands. I finally chose EVO with full machined black finish. Mr. Chander also advised me to go for Michelin P3 ST tyres. He has it himself on his Fortuner. My upgrade was as follows

1. 17" EVO Alloys (cost around 40K for a set of 4)

2. 215/55 R17 Michelin P3 ST Tires (cost around 52K for a set of 4)

3. I kept the stock spare wheel intact. There is a 5mm overall diameter difference which can managed for small distances in case of a puncture!

4. Expect around 10K for the OEM alloys and around 12K for the Stock tires unless you intend to sell them directly to somebody who wants to upgrade from a base variant.

17" EVO Alloys


Michelin P3 205/55 R17


Just after Installation at the PitStop



Interior Design/Quality, Space & Comfort
Hyundai has always known for its features, Interiors and fit/finish. Creta is no exception. Here are my observations

1. The driver seating position is very good. The seating height is comparable to the Innova, Qualis, Duster and Terrano with the height adjustment all the way up. I noticed this while I was next to some of these vehicles on the road. Getting in and out is like walking into the vehicle. No need for a side step though it is being provided as an accessory for 12K.

2. The road visibility is very good from the driver's seat. Both sides of the bonnet are clearly seen from the driver's seat. The A pillar isn't as intruding as some other reviewers have mentioned. Certainly better than the Ecosport which has a front quarter glass creating a blind spot.

3. The visibility from the rear glass is also good but not great due to its small size. Sorely miss the electro-chromatic mirror coming from the Verna and i20. Need to use the dumb day/night mirror adjustment instead.

4. The rear view mirrors are large and offer great visibility. However unlike the verna where the mirrors were almost at the eye level (since you sit lower) you have to make a concious effort to look down into the mirrors. In the verna you could just flick your eyes left and right - here you have to look down and flick your eyes left and right.

5. The Steering position can be adjusted only for rake which will be good enough for most people of average Indian height. Reach adjustment may be required for shorter people and will be missed.

6. The Start Stop button is placed on the left like all other Hyundai's. Personally I would have preferred it to be on the right not giving access to others in the car.

7. All adjustment buttons are ergonomically placed and easy to reach. A good degree of separation between the window and mirror controls.

8. The fit and finish of the dashboard is excellent though one might argue that it has a lot of hard plastic all over the place. The beige console could have been black as well similar to the iX25.

9. The Steering size is just right and feels good to hold. It does not come with the leather wrap which is available on the top trim. All audio/mobile controls are placed on the left side of the steering. The mode and trip meter controls are placed on the right. This toggle on the steering is better than the separate button provided on the Verna.

10. The center arm rest is fixed and does not slide like in the Verna. It is ok for the AT version since the left hand does not have much work other than to hold the steering and the elbow can rest on the center. In the MT version the slidable armrest is a must with the left hand constantly working the gears.

11. The passenger side sea is a bit low when the driver seat is adjuster to full height. They should have made it also height adjustable.

12. A lot has been written on the space in the back. It is good for 3 medium sized adults to sit without rubbing shoulders. Anything more will be intrusive.

13. Under thigh support is not great on the front seats. Long journeys are going to be painful for sure.

14. I saw a few comments stating that the rear center seat is uncomfortable due to the centre arm rest. My family didnt feel so - maybe because I bolstered it with extra cushion while installing leather seats.

15. The AT version comes with fabric seats as standard. Nothing fancy. The top trim comes with art leather with door pads getting some leather too.

16. The AT of course comes with a 60:40 split rear seat option. Not very useful to me but a great option to have for many. Even the release buttons are pretty premium and different from the ones seen on the manual version.

17. The reading lamps in the front and back are standard. However there is one difference here - If we leave the front switch in the middle position i.e the lights come on when the doors open, the back light also comes on. There is no separate control to switch it off. Otherwise it functions normally.

18. Front glove box is not air cooled and falls open without any damping.

19. There is enough space and cubby holes provided to fit all knick knacks and water bottles.

20. All windows go down fully. Only the driver side window has the auto up and down. No anti pinch. Only the front driver side window control has light indicator. All other controls don't !

21. Decent Boot space. Can swallow 2 big international travel size suitcases and a little more

22. Air conditioning is very effective. With the fan set to level 2, there is a lot of air circulation. Cools very fast. The vents at the rear also very effective. There is no fan noise up to level 4. There a small led line which changes color with different temperature - small gimmick if you lack entertainment.


I have always been a big fan of leather seats. I got beige Stanley Leather seats installed on both my Vernas. The color I chose this time was Black to go with the overall interior scheme. I also changed the Vendor to Genous on my friends recommendation. Overall the interaction with Mr. Basavaraj the Proprietor of Genous Leather Seats was great. He is very humble and down to earth and I came to know that he used to work for Stanley before. His factory is located just behind Urvashi theatre on Lalbagh road. Mr Basavaraj also advised me against getting the door pads done since there was a rivet mechanism which would come loose after a while resulting in rattling. So I left that alone and got the centre rest and the steering wrap done. Expect to be priced between 40K to 55K depending on the kind of leather you choose. I got very special rates due to a friends introduction.

Here are some pictures of the interior.

Front Seats with Red double stitching


Back Seats


Another view of the Back Seats - I changed the inside bulbs to white light


Steering Wheel - Very nice to hold. All controls neatly laid out. Leather Wrap looks classy


AT Knob. Note that the gear indicators (PRND) are always illuminated.


60:40 Split Rear Seat - One Seat Down


Both Seats Down. Note that the seats fold completely flat.



Audio System & Sound Quality

1. The 7" Head Unit system is feature rich and produces high fidelity music.

2. Has built in Navigation system and Maps loaded. Maps are displayed while music plays in the background.

3. The screen is super touch sensitive and not a finger magnet unlike most other touch screens we use in daily life.

4. The display is a little difficult to read during the day. But you can adjust the brightness to a good extent. There is also an auto day and night mode available.

5. Provides 5 pre fixed equalizer settings besides giving a wide range of adjustments for Bass/Treble and Mid range. The Fader adjustment is very cool.

6. Blue tooth connectivity works in a jiffy with your mobile devices. Number pad available to make calls.

7. Can play Bluetooth audio. The song list becomes available on the head unit and you don't have to worry about selecting songs from your mobile device!

8. There are 6 OEM speakers (2 tweeters included). The quality is just ok since the speakers are made of paper cones. Sound tinny and start jarring at higher volumes.

9. Can view pictures, play video etc., I haven't tried any of those frankly. There is a better place and time to do those anyway.

10. There is an annoying "I Agree" start up screen that comes up every time you start using the system describing unsafe usage during vehicle movement.

Music is very important to me just to maintain my sanity during my drive to work and back. I don't like deep thumping bass neither can I put up with the tinny OEM speakers.
Decided to remove the and replace all the OEM speakers with JBL speakers and a JBL AMP. Removed the parcel tray and installed a custom plank to accommodate 2 oval speakers for the rear.
Sound damping was installed in all doors in order to avoid jarring. The end result is crisp/clear music with just the right bass and treble to my liking. Cost around 30K

1. 6" Component speakers for the front door
2. 6" 3 way speakers for the rear door
3. 8" 3 way oval speakers for the rear bench.

OEM Speakers


JBL Speakers & AMP


Rear Tray


Annoying ! - This warning comes up everytime the engine is switched on


Engine Performance/Driveability/Autobox

Ahem ! This will be the most difficult section to cover since I will be the first person to do so - a lot of pressure but I will try my best. So far I have done about 300 Kms in all kinds of conditions - bumper to bumper, elevated AirPort toll road and some normal city driving.

First things First
1. I am writing this from the perspective of moving from a MT Driver to a first time AT Driver in India (all my prior AT experience is in the U.S that too with Petrol cars like Sonata, Passat, Infinity-V6 etc,)

2. I will be making a few comparisons to my Fluidic Verna CRDI MT version for purposes of benchmarking. This is because they share the same engine/BHP and torque figures.

3. I am still in novice as far as driving AT in India is concerned. I have driven the Benz E 220 diesel AT, A TD of Santa Fe AT and finally a Skoda Rapid AT very briefly in India.

Of course the moderators will give a very comprehensive report when they publish their report. Till then I hope this will help making some decisions. For advanced AT users, I request you to post specific questions. I can try it out on my car and answer your questions to the best of my automotive ability.

A Few Observations:
1. The engine is very refined and quiet. N.V.H Levels at low and high speeds (9/10). However you can hear some whirring between 20 and 40 KMPH speeds (6/10)

2. The engine temperature increases pretty rapidly and settles to slightly less than the half way mark on the temp gauge. Verna takes a lot more distance to achieve the stable temperature.

3. There is no engine shudder when you switch off the engine while there is a definite shudder in the Verna.

A Few Precautions:
1. You have to have a light foot to operate the accelerator in our city driving conditions. Flooring the throttle unless you are on open roads is a bad idea without a manual clutch available - realized this very early. In contrast, In the US, You have to floor the throttle and get moving at traffic signals or entering a free way in order to avoid honks.

2. It is always better to maintain a safe distance from the vehicles ahead of you given that you have only the brake to rely on to stop the vehicle - that too only with 2 disc brakes.

3. Trying to weave through traffic at low speeds is a bad idea since you never know which gear you are in (Ist or 2nd) and you may not get the response you expect like on the MT until you are thoroughly familiar with your vehicle drive characteristics.

4. Avoid sudden braking and practice gradual braking instead. Creta is not in the league of Benz, Audi and BMW's !

5. In long signals it is better to put the vehicle in neutral and hold the brake. Constant brake application in Drive mode puts a lot of pressure on the brakes and may cause early brake pad wear out. I could hear the grinding noise of the brakes on my friends Benz E 220 every time I released the brake.

Driving at Speeds 0 to 10 KMPH in heavy traffic
Typically this is the scenario in very heavy traffic - bumper to bumper. In the Verna MT, you need to depress around 2/3rd of the clutch slot into I st gear and place the right leg lightly on the brake. Without any acceleration the vehicle will move with the high torque doing its job. It is exactly the same in the Creta AT except that there is no clutch to depress. It is sheer joy to feel the vehicle move slowly but surely without any acceleration whatsoever. It also goes over humps and will also get out of any potholes without any acceleration (10/10)

Driving at Speeds 10 to 30 KMPH in heavy traffic
This is the scenario in heavy traffic but there is some open space ahead of you say 30 to 50 mts. In the MT typically you would slot into 2nd gear and still do the dance with the clutch and accelerator this time. This is where it gets a little annoying in the Creta AT. The gear probably shifts to second but the moment you lift your leg from the accelerator, it goes to neutral - And it seems like it is back to the first gear and needs to start all over again. Here is where you hear the constant engine whirring and it gets annoying. (5/10)

Driving at Speeds 30 to 60 KMPH in normal traffic
This would be normal traffic conditions. Once you get past the 30 KMPH mark, the acceleration is smoother, the gear shifts become less noticeable and you will get 4th gear at 40KMPH and 5th gear by 60KMPH (I have seen this by shifting to tiptronic mode and viewing the gear on the instrument cluster). When you decelerate from 60 by lifting your leg off the throttle the speed comes down gradually holds the 5th gear till you get to around 50 and then shifts to the 4th gear and so on. Once you hit 30 it seems to go to neutral. (8/10)

Driving at Speeds above 60
This happens rarely in city conditions and the Creta excels here. From 60 to 80 the acceleration is effortless and you don't even feel the gear shifting from 5th to 6th by the time you hit 80. It holds the 6th gear even if the speed comes down to around 70 or less and then shifts to the 5th gear. It is a sheer joy to drive at these speeds. No sound, No vibration - and planted to the road (not the boat like ride feeling in the Verna). I was constantly doing 80+ on the airport road and my wife was complaining why was I driving so slowly - she felt I was doing 40 or 50. I certainly disagree with the comments made on NDTV that the engine sound gets loud at higher speeds. On the contrary it is quite the opposite. (9/10).

Normal Start Stop due to Signals/Speed breakers/Obstructions & Irritants
Like I said before, Planned stops with gradual braking will get you to a comfortable stop. When starting from zero, In the MT you tend to push the throttle a lot more and will feel the turbo lag immediately. In the AT it is brilliantly disguised by upshifting to the second gear but not allowing you to get out of control at the same time (8/10). It is linear and no sudden turbo burst (similar to Duster 85 PS engine). In the Skoda Rapid AT I observed that there is a sudden gush as the Turbo kicks in ! In the Santa Fe too, the lag is pronounced and then it wakes up suddenly with the turbo kicking in.

While driving to work today, I increased the music volume a bit higher than normal. For a change I stopped concentrating on the gear shifts and all the noises that accompany at lower speeds. I drove normally and surprisingly it was a different experience all together. Just let the vehicle do what it is supposed to do without trying to adjust your driving style and being cautious. It was wonderful!


Suspension/Ride Quality/Handling/Braking

1. The suspension is definitely set up well in the Creta. It takes the craters well at moderate speeds. But it is no Duster !

2. The Ride quality in my case has definitely improved with the Michelin P3 tyres. Very less road noise. The thuds are more subtle and muffled from the inside.

3. I have declared earlier that I am not an enthusiastic driver. So I wouldn't know much about throwing the car into corners and test aspects like over steer/under steer/body roll. One thing I can say is that the steering weighs up quite well at higher speeds. In my Verna, I had to make small and constant adjustments of the steering while going on curves at higher speeds. I dont need to do that anymore with the Creta. Seems to be pretty planted. The wider 215/55 profile tyres also seem to help a lot.

4. Braking is another aspect I am wary about. There was one situation where I had to brake suddenly. Instinctively my left leg sprung into action and I ended up with both my legs on the brake. Got to get over this quickly.

I did some spirited driving on my way back from office around 10.30 pm in the tiptronic mode. It can be real fun if you have empty roads.

I really can't do justice trying to test the Handling and Braking aspects of the car without knowing how to and would rather leave it to the Mods to come up with it in their reviews


Summary So Far
Like I said earlier I am still getting used to driving an AT in India. So far I am pretty impressed with what I have seen and experienced. The Creta AT(for lack of a name like Lazarus) seems to be perfectly suited for what it was designed - to provide a pleasurable drive in the urban jungle without substantial pain. I don't think it is an enthusiast's car - don't expect it to be ! and you will be perfectly happy smiling ear to ear

P.S: My fuel tank is still 2/3rd full. I will post updates on fuel efficiency and any thing else I come across in future posts.
Odometer Today!


Links to other Creta Ownership Reports:
A lot of pictures and details are provided by both RavenAVI and Naveen in these links. I do not want to duplicate them all over again. Click on their names in the above link for separate reviews on Petrol and Diesel MT versions.

[Rehaan]

Thread moved out from the Assembly Line section. Thanks for sharing!

[nkghai]

Kudos to an excellent write up.
It looks great in Red.
Just to add, I think the Creta also misses out on cooled glove box. I never found mention of the same anywhere on the web site.

[Asish_VK]

Congratulations for your Creta.

The car looks Smoking hot in Red. Especially with the black roof wraping and the alloys . After looking at the opening snap, I was collecting the bits and pieces of my dropped jaw from the floor

Superb selection of Alloys. And the mods u have done to the ICE.

Have a happy and safe ownership mate, Drive safe.


On a funny note : Now as we got three superb reviews of creta covering Diesel, Petrol and Automatic, Mods, you not need to review the car again, Just copy and paste all the points from all these reviews, Job done


Asish

[Rajeevraj]

Congrats for the buy and thank you for the detailed review. Please keep updating as you pile on the kilometers. Especially interested to hear more on the behavior of the AT in different conditions.

[Vik0728]

Originally Posted by BNM

Hyundai Creta SX+ AT

OMG ! This is going to be a difficult act to follow after RavenAVI and Naveen.Raju who have written such wonderful initial ownership reports on their Petrol and Diesel MT versions respectively.

Congrats on your latest acquisition BNM and it looking Smashing !!

No 2 ways about the fact that ownership reports from RavenAVI and Naveen.Raju are 'Creta=Pedia' sorts, but your stead looks quite stunning. You have really chosen the mods extremely well.

That picture beside Q3 says it all.

[Shadowspy]

Congrats on the new Creta! It looks great in red .

The comparison with the Audi Q3 was awesome. People in my office had a good laugh when I showed them the pic. I think this will make even more Creta converts. Although I am already a Creta fan.

[prakhar1998]

Congratulations on acquiring a beauty!
Very tastefully done mods. The alloys alongside the gloss black wrap with the color red just look stunning. I love how the front looks. Not so sure about the rear though. That chrome strip just robs the Creta of its sheer beauty.

It seems like the perfect car for you.

[arunphilip]

Congratulations on your Creta, and well done on an excellent and comprehensive write-up.

Originally Posted by BNM

Driving at Speeds 0 to 10 KMPH in heavy traffic
Driving at Speeds 10 to 30 KMPH in heavy traffic
Driving at Speeds 30 to 60 KMPH in normal traffic
Driving at Speeds above 60
Normal Start Stop due to Signals/Speed breakers/Obstructions & Irritants

I like the way you've classified your driving experience under these heads and described your experience. Very nice and very appropriate. Most of us city dwellers can relate to this, and as a fellow-Bangalorean I can almost visualize which stretches of my commute fall under these heads!

[vivekh15]

Congratulations on the Creta BNM! Lovely review. Absolutely love the mods! Looking forward to more posts!

[narayan]

Congrats BNM on your Creta. The alloy body colour combination looks good. Wishing you hassle free driving in Blr roads !

What exactly is the functional purpose of the roof wrap ? Given that its black won't it affect the cooling efficiency ?

For the boot chrome which you said you are trying to get used to, did you consider similar wraps to maybe make it body coloured ?

[Nempuguru]

Congatulations on your new ride. Looks very good in red. Spotted similar shade Creta this morning near Ecospace on my way to office. I could see many people glancing at it with eyes wide open.

Creta AT makes more sense for Bangalore's road and traffic condition.

[BNM]

Originally Posted by narayan

What exactly is the functional purpose of the roof wrap ? Given that its black won't it affect the cooling efficiency ?

For the boot chrome which you said you are trying to get used to, did you consider similar wraps to maybe make it body coloured ?

No functional purpose. Just for the looks! I did consider getting body color garnish but wife rules in that matter

[Abhi99]

Originally Posted by BNM

1. 17" EVO Alloys (cost around 40K for a set of 4)

2. 215/55 R17 Michelin P3 ST Tires (cost around 52K for a set of 4)

Congrats on your Creta BNM and wonderful write up!

I too am planning to upgrade to 17" alloys and better rubbers as I get the delivery of my Vehicle. While I make the decision, I need to pick your brain around couple of points -

1. Did you notice any difference in ride quality, due to aspect ratio of 55? Slightly low wall height would make the ride little harsher is what I am told.

2. What is the width of the alloys that you have put, 6.5 or 7?

[miharbe]

Congratulations BNM! I just love the colour and the alloys! Well done with that!

I have seen the car in grey and white. While white looks classy the red looks Oh So Nice and those alloys just complement her so well.

Few questions on the Audio upgrade:

1. What happens to the electrical warranty?
2. Do you have any WIP pictures of the installation?
3. Does the custom parcel tray retain the OEM functionality of rising with the boot lid?
4. Wouldnt having speakers in the rear door and then again on the parcel tray be an overkill?
5. I believe you mentioned a 4 channel amp so how are the rear 4 speakers connected? Are they on the same 2 channels? (Pardon my ignorance)

Overall a very nice car should be an awesome runabout within the city and not so bad on the highway. The manual is decently fun to drive so perhaps a better automatic gearbox may have helped it drive better.

Nevertheless enjoy, have fun with this and drive safe