[Sawyer]

Haven't done much driving with the car, but the first refill did yield 14 km to the liter. Mostly e way driving, so not truly representative. On the e way, the car feels good up to 125-130, which is also the limit of my comfort zone given all the hazards ever present in India - there was a cow on the e way yesterday! But that apart, the car starts to feel disconnected from the driver at speeds beyond those, which doesn't promote any urge to cross these, to my mind at least.
I think now that the engine is not underpowered as in bhp, but is lacking on the torque front. Which is not surprising, given the small displacement, I guess. That means that it needs to be kept in the power band, particularly climbing ghats and such. Suspension is adequate, but not the kind that soaks up all the road surface issues. Road noise is an issue, but that may be a price point matter - I am not sure if it is any better in any of the other cars, up to even the Jazz, in this area. It is more of a tyre and wind noise - the engine remains refined sounding, but then at the 3800 rpm or so that it spins in 5th at the road speeds I referred to, it would be very disappointing if it did not. Headlights are just about adequate - indeed, I have not come across any car in these price points where they have not been so, except for the old Palio. I guess that benefitted from having a separate pair doing main beam duty, and having all four lit on main beam. Or too, my eyes are getting older! The horn takes some pressing to emit a noise - probably something that may be a good thing for all cars in India, given the racket we love to make on the roads.
In summary, the car continues to meet my expectations of it, including for it to be somewhat boring and characterless, and I hope it remains so in use, and in its maintenance, because I do not have the time at this time in my life to pander to any temperamental stuff from my automobiles. I now want them to get me from point A to point B in comfort, regularly and without a fuss. As far as the i20 is concerned, so far so good!
PS: One quirk I did not like - I Pods need a special wire to allow for control from the HU? The Apple provided one that connects to the USB socket on PCs does not work? So, the i 20 manual says when I checked it, because my I Pod was being read as just a dumb USB with no control to speak of. Where does one get such a wire, and what is it called?

[wildon]

Originally Posted by Sawyer

PS: One quirk I did not like - I Pods need a special wire to allow for control from the HU? The Apple provided one that connects to the USB socket on PCs does not work? So, the i 20 manual says when I checked it, because my I Pod was being read as just a dumb USB with no control to speak of. Where does one get such a wire, and what is it called?

HYUNDAI.i20&i30 IPOD CABLE ASSY PART No96125-2L000 IPOD on eBay (end time 12-Aug-09 07:16:04 BST)

[jmshaw]

Pray why spend on such cables when you get a 2gb USB stick for as less as 300-400 bucks? You don't need to endanger your Ipod's safety; I leave my USB stick in the car knowing the damage ain't that great even if it's flicked. And ya it's so convenient to plug in a PC, copy some new songs and go...

Originally Posted by wildon

HYUNDAI.i20&i30 IPOD CABLE ASSY PART No96125-2L000 IPOD on eBay (end time 12-Aug-09 07:16:04 BST)

[Sawyer]

Moving the I Pod songs to a USB stick was just what was on my mind!! And I have to say that the sheer convenience of the thing, in terms of progress, has been a lot more than in the case of automobiles in the last five years or so.

[amidoc]

Originally Posted by Sawyer

Took delivery two days ago, and my first impressions and actions:

1. Bought the car as a highway and city drive, to keep for 5 years, with minimum service hassles, after checking out the Ritz and the Grande Punto. I thought that the overall ( including *** ) package suited my needs best. At my age, I am past the power urge, and prefer refinement and FE.

2. Bought a white car, because white makes a small car look big, is easy to touch up, and remains the coolest under the strong Indian sun.

3. The Rs 90k premium over the Magna is attractive in terms of what you get for it - ABS/EBD, 2 airbags, alloys, wider section rubber, climate control, internally adjusting ORVMs given the internal width of the car, USB socket being the ones that come to mind. Makes it easier to spend the extra cash, knowing that it is not for just bells and whistles as in the Spark, for which there is a separate post.

4. Retyred the wheels to same size Michelins. I first used Michelins for 4 years in my 1995 Zen, and they did outstanding duty. They actually make the car look a little less imposing compared to the OE Acceleres and my wife thinks I made a mistake for that reason - but ladies will be ladies for the large part! I just feel safer on Michelins.

5. Will put V Kool 70 on the front glass and X 68 gold dust film on the rest. I find that it makes a huge difference to internal comfort, and logically, it would pay for itself in terms of reduced load on the AC, marginally better FE, and keeping the interior plastics in better shape and color. I also find that the VK70 cuts daylight and headlight glare remarkably well, and one quite gets used to that benefit. The 3M CR series films are better specced, and a lot cheaper, but I am not sure about the install quality. Finally, that is what delivers the product quality for the time I want to keep the car, so V Kool it remains.

6. Other than this, the car needs nothing, to my mind.

7. First impressions remain good - the engine is good enough if one uses the box to keep it in the power band, the AC works well enough, though is not an out and out chiller. Sized with respect to the engine power, I guess. Ride is solid, but stiff kneed over the larger road bumps. ORVMs are a little small in glass area, but that also maybe because I am used to the panorama that my Pajero ORVMs provide! Seats are a little low, so older people with back problems will struggle a bit in and out. More out than in. I would have preferred a grey beige combination to the chocolate beige one, because I like the chocolate color only for the stuff one eats! But Koreans tend to have their own design quirks.

More later, though given the nature of the car, I do not expect much by way of more. Just solid, unspectacular motoring. Has its virtues! For a difference of Rs 90k over the top spec Ritz, I think this car is a better option if you have the spare cash. Which means that the Magna, for the price of the top spec Ritz is perhaps the better buy.

hi did you get any discount on the car. By the way why did you not wait for the 1.4 litre i20?

[CBlazer]

Originally Posted by amidoc

hi did you get any discount on the car. By the way why did you not wait for the 1.4 litre i20?

I'm wondering if anyone has got their hands on the 1.4 petrol i20 AT. It was launched along with the CRDI 1.4, but none of the dealers here seem to have even a Demo car. No one seems to even have a clue as to what the ARAI certified mileage is.

[Sawyer]

Originally Posted by amidoc

hi did you get any discount on the car. By the way why did you not wait for the 1.4 litre i20?

No, no discounts on the i 20 as of now. And the 1.2 engine was good enough for my needs, and I see no point in having or using more than my needs anymore. Age and using a Palio 1.6 GTX/Honda CRV in the city for eight years does that to you!

[Zensi]

Originally Posted by Sawyer

PS: One quirk I did not like - I Pods need a special wire to allow for control from the HU? The Apple provided one that connects to the USB socket on PCs does not work? So, the i 20 manual says when I checked it, because my I Pod was being read as just a dumb USB with no control to speak of. Where does one get such a wire, and what is it called?

Griffin Technology: iTrip Auto - FM Transmitter and Car Charger for iPod & iPhone - try the iTrip - Ive been using this one for more than 3 yrs now - and I really like it, coz it also charges the iPod at the same time, complete controls are from the iPod (except the volume). I love the feature that I can choose the playlists and the play count, favs, etc are all consistent, and constantly updated, and im not stuck doing maintenance on a memory stick.

It should be readily available in Chroma (Mumbai - I have checked, not sure abt Pune)

[fulcrum_77]

Originally Posted by wildon

HYUNDAI.i20&i30 IPOD CABLE ASSY PART No96125-2L000 IPOD on eBay (end time 12-Aug-09 07:16:04 BST)

Thanks for this information.

@sawyer: since yesterday, my iPod is not getting read! If I connect it, it starts charging, but the songs do not show up and the system does not say "connecting to USB". Memory stick works, so the system dosn't seem to be at fault.

I also found out that pressing the "info" key shows the track name stored in the mp3 files. I wish there was a way to display the title name instead fo the file name by default. Then I wouldn't need a separate iPod cable like the one above. I also found out that pressing the Fldr up and down keys changes the album n the iPod. So pretty much everything works for the iPod except the display shows filename as stoerd on the iPod instead of the title track names.

[Sawyer]

@fulcrum - I think that is how my I Pod works too. Music plays, but I can't select in the manner I can with a USB stick. I guess moving the stuff to a USB is the way to go, I see no point in buying another cable. Minor glitch I suppose, not a big deal.

[Sawyer]

@Zensi - The i trip is convenient, I used that for three years in my old car. But the wireless communication degrades the signal quality to an extent noticeable. And the USB leaves zero trailing wires. I find that once you learn the i 20 HU, it is very user friendly to a USB stick use, and I am sticking to that mode.
New question to owners - I notice that my car's suspension is clunky at low/city speeds, over sharp bumps, potholes. Esp the front, it makes a clunk noise as the front wheel rides down the bump as the dampers extend. Am going to the service station to see if this is my issue or a generic one to the car. Do any of you hear the same noise from the suspension? A hard ride does not have be clunky, and I am fine with the hard part! My Spark rides better on the same roads at those speeds.

[Sawyer]

The suspension noise has quietened after I brought the tyres down to 32 psi, they were at 35. It is still not supple, but not clunky as it was earlier. Another drive to BBay tomorrow after which, my usual 1000km oil and filter change, before settling down to the Hyundai recommended regime. Decided against synthetic oil, and the 10w40 SM rated Castrol Magnatec seems to be the right oil for the car, taking into account the 6 monthly changes of oil and filter that I practice with all my cars. Other than that, nothing to report, and no news is good news.

[KSM-Vtec]

you planning to move to synthetic oil

[Sawyer]

Huh? I said just the opposite! Magnatec is mineral btw. Have explained that on another thread.

[KSM-Vtec]

well that was a question, i very well know what u talking abt.

Originally Posted by Sawyer

Huh? I said just the opposite! Magnatec is mineral btw. Have explained that on another thread.