Hyundai i20
If you’ve noticed over the years, Hyundai has managed to deliver solid products to the Indian market and all over the globe. Of which, most products have become superhits and managed to carve their own space in the hearts of the Indian audience. I’ve been fortunate to have a go at their cars lately, the Creta being mighty impressive, the Grand i10 Nios Turbo in other pages of this issue and my favourite of them all, the all-new i20. Their successes in the World Rally Championships doesn’t necessarily transform into on-road, real-world performance but there is always trickle down tech and know-how which raised my expectations for the new hatchback. Getting to extensively drive the i20 on the highways, twisties and back into the city as part of the Great India Drive, I was left desiring the i20 as my long term car because it easily exceeded my expectations.
My biggest grouse with Hyundai cars have been the uninvolving driving experience and a biased focus towards comfort. With the new i20, Hyundai has turned things around. I could go on with the nuances of its newfound handling and suspension capabilities but let me condense things for you. The suspension damping setup is sublime. It makes bad roads appear better than they are, softening larger potholes and minimising the effect of undulations disturbing its balance. The revised steering setup brings some amount of life into the wheel and while it’s still not enough to clearly communicate where the wheels are facing at slower speeds, it is weighted just right for every other condition. The combination of which makes the i20 dance from side to side on a winding piece of road. If Dhruv doesn’t steal the keys to the car by next month, I’ll be back with more on the driving details of the car.
I COULD GO ON ABOUT ITS HANDLING CAPABILITIES BUT IN SHORT, THE SUSPENSION DAMPING IS SUBLIME