Evolution of the Santro
Twenty years ago we first saw a very young Shah Rukh Khan vouching for a little red hatchback. The quirky little hatchback came with loads of unique features. The hatch came with a truly quirky design. A toothy grille and large bug eye headlamps differentiated it from the rest. The tall boy design was another unique design feature which differentiated for the jelly beans design prevalent at that time. There was plenty of space within the cabin and this was especially the case with the headroom. The 1.1-litre motor offered plenty of power and decent mileage as well.
Combined with its inherent good traits and SRK’s promise, the Santro became a super star. From then on there was no looking back. Over the years, the
Santro evolved and was the first to offer power steering in the ‘Zip
Drive’ variant. Then came the Santro Xing.
A more matured design but still pretty quirky.
A few years back though, the i10 came in and this meant it proved to be better value.
As sales dwindled, Hyundai decided to pull the plug on the car with launched the company. But the legend is back as they say.
1. The layout is very similar to the Grand i10. The green accents are specific to this variant which features Diana Green paint. 2. The instrument
panel of the new Santro features a digital display which offers a multitude of information. 3. Steering mounted controls for audio and Bluetooth. 4. The rear AC vent is an excellent idea Sportz and Asta variants get 14in steel wheels while the rest are shod on 13in tyres. There are no alloy wheels available even as an option. At the back the tail gate comes with a design line much in sync with the Grand i10 and the tail lights are large and clear to view. Top of the line variants also get rear wash and wipe function as well as a parking sensor and camera. Hyundai has become a company which loves to load up their cars with best in class features and the Santro has got the same treatment. The dash looks smart and the quality of plastic and switch gear are excellent. The top variants also come with a 7in touch screen infotainment system which features Apple and Android support systems apart from Bluetooth connectivity. If you notice, our car here comes with funky colour
coordinated accents across the cabin and this is a feature you will get if you opt for this quirky shade of green! The instrument panel is also loaded and offers quite a lot of data including fuel efficiency etc. Then there is a tacho too. Hyundai is also offering electrically adjustable ORVMs on top variants. However the AMT version we are driving surprisingly does not get a reversing camera. The power window switches are placed on the gear stick console and are easy to reach. The steering too gets controls for audio and telephony. The seats are comfortable and offer generous support. Space is found aplenty both up front and at the back. Rear passengers also get their very own AC vent at the back. The boot is decent in size and can be opened from the cabin and by using the key.
The Santro is available with a 4-cylinder, 1.1-litre petrol engine which offers 69bhp and 99Nm of torque. Hyundai claims a fuel economy of 20.3kmpl and that’s quite a lot we must say. Then there is a CNG variant available as well which is slightly less powerful. The petrol variant can be had with a 5-speed manual transmission or an AMT. This is the first time Hyundai has offered an AMT and quite a lot rides on it. The AMT box comes with electric motor driven clutch
THE AMT BOX SHIFTS THROUGH THE COGS SMOOTHLY AND WITH A LIGHT FOOT, SHIFTS HAPPEN AT AROUND 2,000RPM
actuators, gear shift and select operation and Hyundai claim that this makes the shifts seamless. To try out what they were claiming we got our hands on the AMT version on this drive.
The engine feels pretty refined at idle. There is ample grunt in this four-pot motor to get upto high speeds and by that we mean an indicated 140kmph. Even at such high speeds noise levels and vibrations are kept well under control. However it is the AMT gearbox which is the star of this show. The box shifts through the cogs smoothly and with a light foot, shifts happen at around 2,000rpm. However keep your foot pinned and the shifts are held till 4,000rpm. This means that overtaking on the go is a breeze and there is no jerks felt. In manual mode too the gearbox shifts down relatively quickly and this makes driving the new Santro fun. The manual gearbox version at the same time is surely faster as gear changes are done manually. The box is slick and clutch light. A perfect combination for city driving. The Santro also sports a taught suspension set up. The car handles bumps and ruts with ease and little is felt within the cabin. This is especially the case when you encounter those tyrant tarmac creases. There is also ample ground clearance on tap and even the biggest humps near Konark couldn’t touch the underbelly of the Santro. The steering is set light in true Hyundai guise. Driving in the city is a breeze and making three-point turns even easier. However at high speeds you do feel the need for a little more feedback.