[Mpower]

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

Both are 4-speed ATs, so not sure what is modern about the AT in A-Star.

Sid's thread suggested that both are coming from the same supplier, ie JATCO.

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

And I wished it were a straight gate like in i10 and other AT sedans. We humans apparently are never satisfied.

Not sure if they do it for style or for safety, but I prefer the straight gate esp if you are popping neutral at signals.

[scuderiaferrari]

Originally Posted by pgsagar

Scuderia, awesome looking A-Star you got there! She sure is a stunner. Get those doorhandles and ORVMs painted body-coloured a.s.a.p. They don't look good in black. Congrats once again! And thanks for posting pics.

I for some reason like the black door handles (same in the Baleno too) and the ORVM. For ORVM, in B'lore, I feel it would be a safer bet to leave it as Black...

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

And I wished it were a straight gate like in i10 and other AT sedans. We humans apparently are never satisfied.

I prefer the gated one in the A-Star. The Cruze has a straight one, with a Manual mode, which you get when you shift to the left from 'D'.

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

BTW, on AT sedans I don't see the lower gear options. Eg, it would be just P/R/N/D/S, instead of the P/R/N/D/3/2/L seen on hatchbacks. Why this difference between hatches and sedans ? Also what does "S" stand for ? Sport ?

S generally stands for Sport. In this mode, the car shifts into the next gear at a very late rpm, rather than at the earliest possible option (which normally it is in the interest of fuel economy). In cars which have a paddle shift / tiptronic, in most cases it holds onto the gear selected and will not upshift even at redline. City / Cruze AT is a good example of this.

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

On my A-Star thread, I had mentioned how life would have been easier if the order of gears was R->P->N->D so that R is at one end and would be engaged only if you wanted to reverse the car. Unlike now, when even to move to D from P or vice-versa, you have to engage R, though there is no intention to reverse. But since all the AT cars I have seen have it as P->R->N->D, there must be some serious constraint that blocks manufacturers.

I think there is a logic to this. With the way it is now, if someone pushes it all the way to the top, it will reach P.

Now let us assume if it was R. In a traffic signal / garage or something, you push it all the way up and the car is in R. The moment to you release the brake (accidentally), you rear end your car.

Now in P, this wont happen. Also, in certain cars, like the A-Star, you really do not need to apply brake to start the car. It is only required to move out of P. Now imagine starting the car accidentally in R, without the brakes. Rear end the car + chance of ruining the transmission. ATs are not designed for jumpstart in 2nd gear like MTs.

[scuderiaferrari]

Originally Posted by rkap01

I drive 1.2 sportz I10 AT. Pretty satisfied by it, but have not driven A Star AT. Mileage is at par. I 10 is costlier. Probably more safety features in A Star AT. From the photos it seems that A Star has a more modern automatic transmission system. Any comments?
Any thread which compares both the cars?

If you are getting anything above 12 - 13 km/l in city conditions, that is pretty good..

So, I tried doing my own comparison of i10 AT and A-Star AT. (Thought I had posted this yesterday also).

Whats my experience with these cars.

I had been an i10 MT owner for around 2.5 years, with about 45,000 kms of usage. I have also driven the AT.

A-Star : About 1900 kms if AT usage. Again, I have driven the manual too...

But, please keep in mind, being an A-Star user now, I might be a bit biased towards it (I believe that is human tendency).

I will try to be as fair as possible.

These are entirely based on my experience and perceptions. Regarding FE for the i10 AT, those are from the forum, and what I have heard from people and internet.

I have split my comparison into 5 areas and scored the cars on a scale of 10 for all the subcategories.






Overall a marginal victory for the A-Star AT.

To sum it up, if it is comfort, convenience and space then go for i10. If it is fun, value for money and nimbleness, go for A-Star.

Once again, I might be a bit biased and all these are based on my experience / perceptions.

[sbiswas]

Originally Posted by scuderiaferrari

I think there is a logic to this. With the way it is now, if someone pushes it all the way to the top, it will reach P.

Now let us assume if it was R. In a traffic signal / garage or something, you push it all the way up and the car is in R. The moment to you release the brake (accidentally), you rear end your car.

Now in P, this wont happen. Also, in certain cars, like the A-Star, you really do not need to apply brake to start the car. It is only required to move out of P. Now imagine starting the car accidentally in R, without the brakes. Rear end the car + chance of ruining the transmission. ATs are not designed for jumpstart in 2nd gear like MTs.

This will not happen. As a safety mechanism, an AT car does not start unless it is in P or N. You can never accidentally start the engine while the stick is in R or any of the drive positions.

The order of R-N-D is by optimum design as you may have to drive the car forward or backward from a standstill and may have to switch between R and D frequently while parking/maneuvering. The parking gear P implies end of driving where the car locks the output shaft. Logically this should be at one of the ends. As L1/L2 are rarely used, keeping it above R makes sense. Also, in the USA, where ATs were made popular, people usually drive backwards to come out of a parking - which may have influenced the design.

[supremeBaleno]

Originally Posted by scuderiaferrari

Overall a marginal victory for the A-Star AT. To sum it up, if it is comfort, convenience and space then go for i10. If it is fun, value for money and nimbleness, go for A-Star.

Nice comparo, scuderiaferrari. And given that the comparison is based on your actual user experience over a period of time with both the cars, I think this would be of more help to a prospective AT-hatch buyer than a simple shootout between 2 cars conducted by auto-mags. IMO, this deserves to be in a thread of its own for the benefit of the fast-growing AT-buyer segment.

It would have been good if Hyundai put out an AT version of their i10-1.1 at around 5-lakhs.

[scuderiaferrari]

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

Nice comparo, scuderiaferrari. And given that the comparison is based on your actual user experience over a period of time with both the cars, I think this would be of more help to a prospective AT-hatch buyer than a simple shootout between 2 cars conducted by auto-mags. IMO, this deserves to be in a thread of its own for the benefit of the fast-growing AT-buyer segment.

It would have been good if Hyundai put out an AT version of their i10-1.1 at around 5-lakhs.

Thanks supremebaleno.. It would be great to have an AT version of i10 1.1.. There was one when Hyundai launched the i10, I believe. But not sure if they were ever sold.

So, the latest update on the FE. It has not been very good. Neither has the driving condition and traffic. Not much of a light foot driving. My wife also drive the car for some distance, mostly in 1,2 and rarely in 3. Lot of traffic, 75 - 80 % ac. Quite a lot of downshifting (kick down) for overtaking. The best part is the car even shifted to 1st even at 40 km/h when A pedal is pushed down, especially to overtake. And lot of occasion when the car was fully loaded. And I did not switch of at many a signal. Was not looking for FE at all.

The car consumed 26.39 l of Shell Reg Unleaded for 311.1 kms, translating into 11.79 km/l. Pretty low, but nothing to complain about considering the condition.

I will be light footed and practical next time... Hopefully I can.. The problem is, whenever I drive the Baleno, the free revving nature has an effect on the A-Star's FE.. Hmmm.. Isn't that interesting...

[sushir]

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

@sushir, how do you find the car ? Do post an update on the car.

Ohh, it is fabulous and my wife is loving the odd late night drives on Hosur road. The FE for me is around 10-11 kmpl with very heavy traffic drives with AC on all the time.

Originally Posted by scuderiaferrari

One open question to all A-Star / AT owners.

Is there an irritating odour from the fan, when only the fan is switched on?

Also, has anyone tried connecting an mp3 player using the Aux-in option? I connected my iPod and iPhone and in both the case, the volume was too low and the voice part not audible even at max volume. Maybe because of the audio cable that I am using. Any similar experience. If it is an issue, then I need to report it ASAP to the service center and get a replacement head unit under warranty.

I didnt face any such odour from the fan. The new car smell is still intact and I love it.

I connected my ipod and iphone both via the Aux. I used a very high quality gold plated connector cable for the same and was very happy with the results. Crank the ipod/iphone volume to max and the car volume set to 11 units should do the trick for a very nice experience. Dunno why the radio default volume is so high though.

Originally Posted by scuderiaferrari

My mistake. I meant the Seatbelt warning light and not the Door-Ajar light. Does the seatbelt warning light come up?

I can confirm that I have not seen any light for seat-belt and no warning beep/chime from the car.

Originally Posted by supremeBaleno

On my A-Star thread, I had mentioned how life would have been easier if the order of gears was R->P->N->D so that R is at one end and would be engaged only if you wanted to reverse the car. Unlike now, when even to move to D from P or vice-versa, you have to engage R, though there is no intention to reverse. But since all the AT cars I have seen have it as P->R->N->D, there must be some serious constraint that blocks manufacturers.

I think this might have been a conscious decision so that it leaves no margin for driver error while intending to Park the car (the most common activity after Drive).

When a driver engages D, if the shift is wrong the driver would immediately know about it. Same is the case with R. This can then be corrected.

Imagine P being somewhere in between other gears (R-P-N-D) and a driver who wrongly engages P (actually engages some other gear, say N). The driver will not know unless until his car rolls away to glory.

Having P in one extreme end, ensure that there are no mistakes and the car stays put when we want it to.

Just my opinion.

[scuderiaferrari]

Originally Posted by sushir

I connected my ipod and iphone both via the Aux. I used a very high quality gold plated connector cable for the same and was very happy with the results. Crank the ipod/iphone volume to max and the car volume set to 11 units should do the trick for a very nice experience. Dunno why the radio default volume is so high though.

I believe the audio cable I am using is the culprit here. Let me try getting a new audio cable. Which brand are you using?

Now, for the latest update on the FE. The car has now done 2450 kms. And now I am kind of getting better at using the slush box.

No, specific driving approach that I am following. Just the normal light footed driving. A/C usage was approximately 35 - 40 %. The car consumed 28.76 l of Shell unleaded for 404.7 kms, equating to 14.07 km/l. I am very happy with what I am getting..

It looks like every alternate filling I get 14+ and the others slightly lower than 12 km/l. That is totally because of the driving style. Every alternate filling I induce kick downs, higher time in lower gears and so on...

Now, let me try to break that. And see if I can drive normally till the next filling.

I am also planning to do an oil change soon... Not per the schedule.

[recshenoy]

superb thread scuderiaferrari! very detailed comparisons and details.

Do you have any idea about which dealer offering TD of A-star Auto in Bangalore? One of my friend wants to buy an A-star for his wife. Currently which dealer is better in Bangalore? some one had advised him to avoid Mandovi!

[scuderiaferrari]

Originally Posted by recshenoy

superb thread scuderiaferrari! very detailed comparisons and details.

Do you have any idea about which dealer offering TD of A-star Auto in Bangalore? One of my friend wants to buy an A-star for his wife. Currently which dealer is better in Bangalore? some one had advised him to avoid Mandovi!

Pratham has/had a test car. I had TD'd it around the time A-Star was launched.

I had not been updating regularly in the last few weeks.

So, following were the FE figures which I got in Bangalore - 13.8 km/l and 12.8 km/l. Both with AC on a 100%. And the second one was with a full load of passengers, some late minute dashes and a not so light footed driving.

Yesterday night I drove the car back to Kerala. 3 adults and 2 kids and a boot full of luggage and 100% AC. (didn't take the Baleno, as my wife is planning to drive in Kerala) Tanked up at Bangalore and then by the time I reached Coimbatore, the tank was half. The drive was a pretty mixed bag, with a bitty of city traffic when exiting Bangalore (after the EC fly over) and very heave rain. It was raining very heavy from Hosur to Krishnagiri and then from Salem to CBE.

Now for the best part. FE till CBE was an astonishing 17 km/l, which was way above my expectation, considering the heavy rains and poor visibility and the2 lane traffic with lots of deviations, resulting in some crawling speeds.

To put this more in perspective, it took me 7.5 hours to reach CBE from HSR Layout, BLR (Started at 7.30 PM, reached CBe by 2.30 AM - there were a few stops for the kids which was about 1 hour altogether, meaning effectively 6.5 hours of driving). From CBE to my hometown near Kottayam, it took me just
4 hours (2.30 AM to 6.30 AM), something I never expected in the A-Star. I was never able to do this time in my i10, without anyone complaining. Also, despite the not at all light footed driving, the first block of petrol went down only at 112 ams!!! Now 3rd block has gone down and the distance covered after the refill at CBE was about 230 kms or something. Too lazy to go and check. But this, from the gauge looks better than the earlier one. But before the next filling, there will be lots of town drives and the 2nd service. So not really going to know how much i got.

The car handled the bad roads pretty OK, but the best bit was the handling. The Swift lineage clearly coming out.

Now, all was not really well during the last few weeks. There is a loud whine coming from the Fan blower (not sure if it is a problem with the blower, or something that got stuck in it). Minor rattle from the dashboard. The foam under the driver side carpet is still not properly aligned.

Anyway, planning to give the car for 2nd service this week, and hope to get these resolved.

Overall, as of now, pretty happy.

[Rameshdude]

Nice Comparison. My wife drives an i10 and i am planning to get an AT. i10 is a good car except for low mileage.(can't blame the car fully,because it is mostly city drive and you know how ladies drive !) no harm intended to anyone.

[scuderiaferrari]

Originally Posted by Rameshdude

Nice Comparison. My wife drives an i10 and i am planning to get an AT. i10 is a good car except for low mileage.(can't blame the car fully,because it is mostly city drive and you know how ladies drive !) no harm intended to anyone.

i10 is a great car in it's own way. I TD'd both, and preferred the A-Star especially for it's nimbleness, FE and the Maruti service. In the city, I was not really looking for power either ways. Still the quick gearbox compensates for it. But, from a interior space point of view, i10 wins...

One negative people always talk about A-Star is the small boot. But I am finding it very practical and useful for the weekly shopping. It's well shaped and the height makes it so easy to take things from the boot, as it is not very deep. Just perfect when you have kids with you.

And I had some bad experience with Hyundai service. Their cars are brilliant in all respects. But to me buying a car is a long term relation, for which based on my experience I preferred MUL.

I would suggest TD the A-Star, esp if it is for city use.

[supremeBaleno]

Originally Posted by scuderiaferrari

From CBE to my hometown near Kottayam, it took me just 4 hours (2.30 AM to 6.30 AM), something I never expected in the A-Star. I was never able to do this time in my i10, without anyone complaining.

What was the distance covered in 4 hours ? Maybe you could do it in 4 hours because it was the early hours of the day ?

Originally Posted by Rameshdude

My wife drives an i10 and i am planning to get an AT. i10 is a good car except for low mileage.(can't blame the car fully, because it is mostly city drive and you know how ladies drive !)

Given that everyone advocates driving ATs with a light foot, ladies should be getting better mileage than us who want to gun the engine. Our A*-AT is mostly driven by wifey and the FE is awesome - she is a careful driver.
BTW, I remember reading on another i10 thread that the low FE of i10 has more to do with the gear-ratios messed up than with city drive.

BTW, I never understood why light-footed driving is advocated only with ATs. Even with MTs, driving with a light-foot would give better FE.

Originally Posted by scuderiaferrari

One negative people always talk about A-Star is the small boot. But I am finding it very practical and useful for the weekly shopping. It's well shaped and the height makes it so easy to take things from the boot, as it is not very deep.

Given that the A-Star is more for the export market, where it would be used by either singles or DINKs, boot space (or even rear seats) does not really matter much, like it would here where a single car has to fit all requirements. The A-Star is a competent city car and if used for that purpose the boot is adequate.

[mdsaab]

Those are some great mileage figures. Especially 14 in the city with the AC.
Have been trying to zero in on an AT for my wife. So far was only looking towards the i10. But now i feel the a star would be a good option. It will purely be a city car. Can you please confirm on airbags and abs. I think abs is available if i am not mistaken, what about airbags?

[supremeBaleno]

ABS is available on the A-Star_AT. So is driver seat-height adjustment. But airbags are not available as they have put AT on the VXi version (airbags is on Zxi version).