Hyundai Creta Diesel
While we were off the roads, we were bombarded with questions about the diesel-engined Creta. Well, here are your answers
OBVIOUSLY WE GOT OURSELVES the turbo-petrol first. The strap line of our magazine ain’t ‘The Thrill of Driving’ (and riding, as we oft remind you) for nothing. But turbopetrol review done and dusted, we spiralled into the nation-wide lockdown over the last two months. In that time, our social media inboxes were flooded with questions about how to win the merchandise we were giving away in the lockdown. And this is relevant, because the second most popular question was our opinion on the diesel Creta. So here we are. As soon as we were allowed to get back on the streets, we tracked down the closest diesel Creta and demanded the keys, since you demanded a review.
Do I need to give you my opinion on how the Creta looks? I’m not sure. Enough people have said what they have to say, and all I have to add to that is it will sell regardless of whether it appeals to the tastes of us oh-so-sophisticated auto-journalists. What I will point out, though, are the differences from the turbo-petrol. Up front, the diesel has more chrome on the grille and the skid plate is silver where it is blacked out on the petrol. This blingy approach continues on the side — silver roof rails, silver C-pillar — again, where the turbo gets blacked out bits. The wheel design
is slightly different, while at the back, there’s a singe exhaust tip. There’s also the obvious lack of ‘Turbo’ badging on the grille and boot (though this is a turbo-charged diesel engine).
The insides are more of an obvious change. The dual tone (replacing the — take a wild guess — all black) interiors are refreshing and does lend the cabin a little more airiness. There’s none of that fancy red accenting either. In terms of the layout and functionality, it is all pretty much the same and for the only other difference you need to put your head in the footwell — different pedals. The layout of the dash is logical and everything is where you expect it, but there are hard plastics around for the most part. In terms of equipment, you still get the same 7-inch instrument cluster, 10.2-inch infotainment screen, all the creature comforts like wireless charging, panoramic sunroof, an air purifier and reclining seats in the back. The cushions on the rear headrests have to be the best thing about the interior of this car though — soft, plush, comfortable — and they do wonders to elevate the backseat experience.
What is new for the Creta is the diesel engine — a BS6-compliant 1.5-litre engine that replaces the older 1.6 diesel. In terms of numbers on paper, the engine is actually a step backwards — it makes 13bhp and 10Nm less, but driving it tells another story. The Creta doesn’t feel sluggish despite the lower outputs and is more than willing to get the pace on. Refinement is really impressive, with vibes being negligible and not too much clatter entering the cabin. As for its characteristics it is a typically turbo-diesel engine. It has a strong mid-range that pulls cleanly and tapers off before the redline. It comes on to boost very predictably and smoothly too and won’t catch you out.
While it is available with an automatic, the Creta we had on test was a manual. The 6-speed manual will obviously be the more
engaging car, but if someone was prioritising engagement, they would look at the turbopetrol. So let’s talk about convenience instead — the clutch is light and easy to operate, the shift quality is fairly good and rowing up and down the box isn’t cumbersome at all. I do wish it had slightly shorter throws though. Also, the manual doesn’t get the drive modes and traction modes that the automatic variants of the Creta get, but it isn’t something you will particularly miss.
As for the ride and handling, the new Creta has a sophistication that the old one lacked. It stays far more planted at speed — not bouncing around with undulations in the road and not compromising its bump absorption either. The steering weighs up at speed and overall you feel far more confident behind the wheel of the new Creta.
Does that answer all your questions? I certainly hope so! The new Creta diesel is a really capable all-round SUV. Refinement, performance, comfort, features — it delivers on all these fronts. If your priorities are more focussed towards practicality and comfort, the Creta diesel won’t put a wheel wrong. My only issue with it is it doesn’t light a fire within you; it feels a bit clinical. But again, that is something I can live with since there’s that blacked-out gangsta-spec one that we tested last month available as well. ⌧