Hyundai Creta Review & Transmission

OVERVIEW ;

As the Renault Captur launch is closing in, Hyundai has quietly made a few changes to the Creta. The new French SUV will be up against the Creta. It is stylish, looks premium and is built on the same Duster platform. There will not be diesel automatic in the start though. First is the addition of an all new colour, Earth Brown. This is made available with single and dual tone options. The Red Passion colour does offer the dual-tone roof option. The Pearl Beige colour has been discontinued. There will be a change in the colours on offer. This is a new change on the Hyundai Creta 2017.Moving on to the interiors, the SX+ dual tone variant comes with Luxure Brown interiors. This means addition of black and brown fabric seats with contrast stitching. The steering wheel and even the gear knob get brown stitches on it.

EXTERIOR AND DESIGN ;

There are no significant changes made to the exterior of the SUV however it does get a new SX+ Dual tone trim which offers Piano Black Finish Roof Top & Sporty Black Spoiler. This new dual tone trim will be provided with two body colour combinations in the form of two colour combinations White & Black and Red & Black. This trim also gets a 17-inch diamond cut alloy rims which were only available with SX+ Auto and SX(O) until now.Apart from the changes mentioned above, there are no other changes made to the exterior of the SUV. The SUV is offered with a total of 9 exterior body colour options. Check Ex Showroom Price of Hyundai Creta in Carzprice

INTERIOR AND COMFORT ;

A long wheelbase of 2590 mm implies an opulent cabin, which translates into good head room, leg room and shoulder room. That said, the front offers impressive space and the rear has ample room, allowing to seat three adults comfortably. A high window line at the rear enables restricted view from the back. The dual-tone dashboard is perfectly styled and appears chic. The central console does not look cluttered. Use of beige and silver accent renders an elegant look to the cabin. The range-topping grade gets a 7-inch touchscreen, just beneath which are climate control buttons. Leather-upholstered seats are exclusively available on the range-topping variants while rest of the trims feature fabric-upholstered seats. Leather covering can be seen on the gear knob in the SX+ automatic variant only. Comfort goodies on offing include adjustable front head rests, keyless entry, power windows, height adjuster for the driver’s seat, adjustable rear seat head restraints, 7-inch infotainment system with steering-mounted controls for audio system and bluetooth, audio-video navigation, and smart key with push button, among few others.

ENGINE AND PERFORMANCE ;

Hyundai always gives multiple powertrain options on its cars and same is the case with the Creta too. The compact SUV comes with two diesel engines and one petrol unit. Starting with the petrol mill, the 1.6-litre Dual VTVT engine generates 123 PS and 151 Nm, being matched to a 6-speed manual gearbox. The NVH levels on the vehicle are terrific, the petrol motor being barely audible even when you are driving at triple digit speeds, it does get vocal once you get past the mid-range. Low-end performance is where the petrol-powered Creta shines as the mid-range isn’t very strong while the top-end is quite lacking, it’s best to short shift using the smooth shifting gearbox and the light clutch. The ARAI claimed mileage is 15.29 km/l so real world mileage will be lesser.

Diesel is the more popular choice in this segment and Hyundai has 1.4-litre and 1.6-litre oil burners on offer. Both these engines also do duty on the Verna with the smaller diesel belting out 90 PS and 220 Nm. The 1.6 diesel is considerably more powerful with 128 PS and 260 Nm. Both the powerplants are matched to a 6-speed manual gearbox and Hyundai has managed to tune the transmission for butter smooth shifts, aided by a very light clutch. The 1.6 diesel has quite a lot of lag in the low-end so one does have to give it the beans in stop-go traffic as the turbo spools up in all its glory past 1900 RPM. The mid-range is the strong point of the motor while the power fades off quickly post 3800 RPM. When ambling in the city, downshifts are needed to get going quickly.

The 1.6 diesel mill is also matched to a 6-speed automatic gearbox. Although a single-clutch unit, it’s very responsive to throttle inputs and there is a tiptronic function on the lever so as to let one take care of shifts. When driven in D mode, performance from the motor is slick with the turbo lag not being very apparent. The 1.6 motor feels more linear in the automatic version but you miss the punchiness of the manual as the latter has the silence before the storm. The engine up shifts at around 4000 RPM and won’t stretch the motor all the way to the 5000 RPM redline which is encountered on the manual. 100 km/hr in sixth gear sees the tacho ticking in a shade above the 2000 RPM mark while the ton comes in third gear. The ARAI mileage for the 1.4 diesel is 21.38 km/l while the 1.6 diesel returns 19.67 km/l in manual guise and 17.01 km/l in automatic avatar.

DRIVING DYNAMICS ;

he Creta also has an absorbent ride. The suspension works silently even on heavily rutted sections of road, and bump absorption too is right up there with some of the best riding cars in its class. It may not ride as flat as the Renault Duster, and there may be a bit more movement of the body over bad roads, but the Hyundai comes close enough. Yes, sharp bumps filter through, and then the suspension does feel a bit fragile, but for the most part, especially at lower speeds, ride quality is excellent and Indian car buyers will like that.

What’s also surprisingly good is the steering of the car. To begin with, it is light and easy to twirl, and what makes it better is the fact that it feels direct, with not as great a sense of vagueness around the straight-ahead as you find in most Hyundai cars. Straight-line stability is good, and the steering weighs up nicely as you speed up too, but that weight does feel a bit artificial. We also found the Creta surprisingly willing to turn into corners. It does roll a bit on its tall suspension and does not grip the road with the confidence of the Renault Duster, but all things considered, the Creta is quite accomplished in corners too, which makes it a good all-rounder.

SAFETY FEATURES ;

The Hyundai Creta is jammed pack with all the possible gadgetry one can possibly ask for in a car of this price range. Touch screen infotainment – Check. GPS navigation – Check. Climate control – Check. Keyless entry with a start stop button – Check. Rear AC vents – Check. Quite simple, the Creta negate the need to go to an aftermarket accessories dealer to fit a bunch of tacky addons that may or may not work in the long term.On the safety front, you also get a set of airbags and more importantly, traction control. And while the latter may not send the hordes into a frenzy, considering most western countries require traction control as a standard fitment, having an extra layer of protection isn’t exactly a bad thing afterall.

CONCLUSSION ;

Hyundai has recently launched updated Elite i20 and now they have also decided to upgrade their Creta SUV as well. Unfortunately the 2017 model year SUV does not get any mechanical changes under the hood, but it does get a new infotainment system, a whole new trim and along with a new dual tone exterior shade.

 

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