My 2023 Hector: Good & bad highlights after a long weekend trip

Fuel efficiency with Aircon-on doesn't really drop too much compared to Aircon-off, just about 10% lower.

BHPian ar14920251 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Used the car over slightly longer trips over the weekend and then drove my previous car as well. I must say the experience in the Hector is very pleasant and you have the feeling of zen when in the car. Now that's what you want when in traffic!

Coming to specifics, I'll add some daily usage feel points.

The Great:

1. Seating and road presence are high and very commanding. Thanks to this the size of the car isn't a problem. You can see till the end of the bonnet (almost) so manoeuvring in the city is perfectly fine.
2. As everyone says, the space on offer is humungous. Nobody will complain ever. Even in the boot, below the boot mat, you have space to stow away a bunch of things along with the tools and jack and whatnot.
3. The ambient lighting is great with leg area as well.
4. The doors are full length till the bottom of the car. So any dirt/spray stays on the door and never gets past. Meaning you will never soil your pants/saree getting out of the car. This is an unsaid gift during rains
5. The cabin isolation is supreme. Just unbelievable. With windows up, you don't hear anything outside and end up focusing on the nitty gritty stuff like tyre sounds and auto turn indicators going tick-tock - It is that silent.
6. Aircon is awesome for such a big car. Daytime in Bangalore with outside temp 28C required just AC with Fan @2 for 4 people in the car.

The Okay

1. The turbo lag effect called out is definitely there but it is not a deal breaker. You typically see a 2s lag before the revs go higher and engine output kicks in. So, if you are an enthusiast and drive highways the majority of your time, you will not enjoy this car. Once you are past the slow speeds, the response is much better so bear with it for a few seconds.
2. Manually Aircon buttons would have been great. You end up having to fiddle with the screen to adjust this. There is an AC full button but I suspect that will pretty much be loved during peak summer.
3. Android Auto is not laggy as with the previous Hector. It is not superfast but not something you would complain about now.
4. Sunroof is freaking huge. The 2nd row will enjoy long drives and hill roads.
5. Mileage is between 6-9 km/l. Mileage with Aircon on doesn't really drop too much compared to Aircon off, just about 10% lower. Pleasantly surprised by that.

The Arrghhh

1. Android Auto though (for some reason) has a worse resolution on the huge 14" screen than Apple CarPlay. (Why??)
2. Day / Night / Auto mode on Google Maps in Android Auto is not consistent as it stayed in day mode at night. This was annoying with a big bright screen as you try to get your kid to sleep in the 2nd row. Will try this out again to validate as this seems a simple enough feature!!
3. When you turn the screen off to screensaver mode, the music controls on the steering don't work! Turn off the screen to avoid distraction but you need to go back to that for any other change
4. When your fuel level is below 10%, the range meter goes blank! The car will highlight that you have low fuel and even proactively pull up Maps with results to the nearest fuel stations which is great. But you don't know how far you can go when the fuel is lower. This is when it is actually helpful.

I am sure there will be more highlights as I use it more. Feel free to shoot questions for folks looking to make a decision.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.