8000 KM on my i20 Asta 1.2 A very prosperous and happy new year to everyone.
I took time to write more on this because wanted the engine to settle down, do the second service, take it on a highway to see how it performs, and finally comment on the refinement, changed behaviour, handling etc. All I have to say to begin with is with each day, I am liking this car more and I am feeling happier with my choice.
We went to Daman in the Christmas weekend, went to Mumbai via expressway from Pune then took Surat Highway. 4 families and 2 cars, another being a Fiesta 1.6 petrol. Each were fully loaded with a kid and 4 adults (full grown, all overweight :-P). Before we started off, I checked the tyres for any possible leak, filled it to 33 psi as per standard with N2, and put Air Bond (cap to prevent air leak even if the valves give away). Second service cost me 1160, out of which 800 were for oil change, and 120 were for filling up nitrogen, air bond caps costing 30 rs each. A good deal I would say. Wheel alignment was done as well, and all wheels were outside tolerence limit, I bet they were already so when I got the car.
However, after the service, the first change I found was in smoothness. I was bit apprehensive about idle vibrations (little bit when you hold the steering wheel, but only too little), but the moment you slot in a gear, and it takes off, it is a different story as it seems the engine does not like to revved idle but gets happier as you slot in the gear box, I am happy it is not the other way. With the windows rolled up, all you hear is tyre noise and wind noise specially when the car is getting bit of vertical movement due to uneven roads. I find that sound is awesome.
I am getting almost 17 to 18 kmph with AC on, mostly highway driving, I fill Shell allways (52.55/litre), please try to avoid HP if you can, at least in Pune, they are cheap, and adulteration will damage your engine in the long run.
Now on to the journey, in the expressway, I could easily touch 130 and the engine was begging for more, but I did not push above 140 because was not sure if I or the car could handle this, the road surface did not seem capable of anything above 110. The tyre is Apollo Acelere with a speed limit of 240 kmph (stock). At full load you need to use 3rd gear if you want to accelerate while on a climb, but on an even surface 4th will be enough even for full load, and when I am alone driving, it needs 4th gear to really get a adrenaline boost to overtake on a short stretch, otherwise 5th is enough to overtake above 70 kmph.
It certainly is a great cruiserlike a typical europian car, and you will not notice any difference in smoothness/ride quality/noise in 80 or 140, the shock absorber is good (not the best, specially at the rear side, thinking of the heavy weight), and the low squat and the great chasis coupled with the aerodynamic profile gives it enormous stability, the flip side is the bottom end touches the bumps if the slope is not good (only) at full load. The ground clearence could have been 175 mm and it may not have mattered for such a heavy car. AC is good enough and never makes you feel ahything whether you are on a climb with 5 people in or not with luggage. On the surat highway, there were too many trucks, and we lost it to Fiesta when it comes to quick acceleration because of the power to weight ratio (1.6 vs 1.2 comparison when the later si also having full load is kind of na insaafi I guess?)
On the way back, it tested my patience as we were stuck in western expressway outside thane for good 1 hr, it was bumper to bumper traffic and people creating a 3rd lane on a two lane road. Can anyone suggest me how to bypass the Thane bit while going to Daman, is there any way we can bypass Mumbai traffic and go from Panvel to Surat Highway (NH8) directly? Google map did not help much. It was quite dark, and I am still on my stock headlamp (Phillips 55/60) I do not want to go for a cutout to install 90/100, can anyone suggest what will give me a longer powerfull beam? I get the problem with the oncoming traffic light, but once I was on the expressway, the light seemed okay, if not very good. I have installed Garware Icecool on front windshield, that also reduces the light a little, but that is expected as a % drop is known. Overall, this machine performs and we drove it continuously for 7 hrs, taking 2 minor breaks, and the engine seems a cruiser who is eager to take on road each time I cranked the engine.
The brakes are awsome, they really bite hard on the wheels. The road grip is fantastic, thanks to the 185 mm rubber.
Some notes out of observation -
1. Do not let the air pressure fall below 28 PSI, you may encounter punctures.
2. Do not try driving it like a sporty hatch because it ain't one, if you have more than 3 people, because it may let you down in terms of expectation. But having said that the handling and ride quality will be much better than the competition for sure, and that is my priority at least. It is not sluggish by any means though, I drove it around 120 kmph constantly easily with a dose of 130 140 at times, and I could not see any cars on this side of 10 price point crossing me on the entire stretch.
Last edited by Shyamtanu : 1st January 2010 at 17:03.
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