Friday, May 09, 2008

All About Hyundai i10 Car

If you regularly go through the Indian television channels then you might have already seen that television ads for Hyundai i10 are raving around the channels. Hyundai i10 is a compact passenger car targeted to segment A or entry level consumers. The South Korean automaker, Hyundai Motor Company (SEO:005380) launched Hyundai i10 on 31 October 2007 through a glittering launching ceremony.

Image Source: Telegraph

This is the first time a specific model of a car had its global premier in India and most importantly, the car is being manufactured from Hyundai Motor India Ltd.’s plant located near Chennai. India’s showbiz star Shah Rukh Khan, the brand ambassador of Hyundai, was present in the world premier of Hyundai i10.

Hyundai Motor India Limited is the second largest passenger car manufacturing company in India and it is the fastest growing car manufacturer of Indian market. Being a wholly own subsidiary of Hyundai Motor Company, Hyundai Motor India started its operation in 1996. The company sold its 100,000th car within 19 months of getting into production and it became the second largest car manufacturer of Indian market within six months of being operational. Hyundai Motor India Limited is currently marketing passenger cars in six different segments in Indian market.

Hyundai i10 has received huge success since it came into the market. Its cheap price tag along with some excellent features has been proven perfect for India’s price sensitive market. However, it does not mean that Hyundai i10 has been successful only in Indian market. In fact, this year, Hyundai Motor India Ltd. is planning to sell 2.3 lakh i10 cars in which 50 percent will be exported to other countries and the company has received orders for 31,000 units from overseas markets. So, not only did Hyundai i10 impress the Indian consumers, global consumers also accepted it with great interest. This compact car is being exported to 70 different countries across the world from India.

Having seen the success of Hyundai i10, the company is going to introduce Hyundai i20 this year from its India plant. Hyundai has set up its second facility in Chennai plant earlier this year aiming to make India its hub for small car. Hyundai i10 has been awarded with the Car of the Year 2008 award. Now, let us have a look at the specifications of Hyundai i10 car.

Price:

I would like to let you know the price of Hyundai i10 before going through its features because it will help you make proper judgment over the features when I will take you through the offers of Hyundai i10 car. Hyundai i10 comes with a price tag ranging from £6,495 to £7,895 for U.K. markets, while for Indian market price ranges from Rs. 3.39 lakhs to Rs. 3.98 lakhs.

With the starting price of £6,495, Hyundai i10 has become the cheapest car of this segment in U.K. Even for Indian market, it is a competitive price tag. Four versions of Hyundai i10 are available for U.K. market with different price tags. These are: Hyundai i10 D-Lite, Hyundai i10 Era, Hyundai i10 Magna and the automatic version Hyundai i10 D-Auto which are available for £6,495, £7,095, £7,595 and £7,895 respectively. So, the consumers have quite a lot options to choose from. Still, price is undoubtedly one of the strongest sides of Hyundai i10 compact car for both U.K and Indian market.

General Features:

  • Hyundai i10 is a city car which targets segment A or entry level consumers.

  • Hyundai i10 has replaced its predecessor Hyundai Santro/Atoz.

Exterior:

  • Hyundai i10 measures 3.56m long and 1.59m wide. Thus, it has become a perfect city car which can be easily parked in a congested city area.

  • Hyundai i10 is available in 10 colors.

  • It provides tubeless tires.

  • Hyundai i10 has panoramic sun-roof.

Engine:

  • This iRDE engine produces maximum 66.7PS@5500 rpm of power and a highest torque of 10.1Kgm@2800 rpm.

  • Hyundai i10 petrol engine comes with a 5-speed manual transmission.
  • The engine emits 119g/km of carbon dioxide. Thus, i10 can qualify for the £35 VED rate band and it can be exempted from the London congestion charge.

Interior:

  • The interior of Hyundai i10 is spacious and attractive.

  • There is enough space between the driver and the passenger seat because of its short throw, i-shift gear box.

  • Rear spoiler, leather wrapped steering wheel and gear knob are also provided in Hyundai i10.

  • It offers AC/heating facility.

  • Ectronic trip and odometer are also available in Hyundai i10.

  • Hyundai i10 comes with four electrically operated windows, electric power steering, tinted glass, 14-inch wheels.

  • Dual Airbags is available for the driver and passengers.

Other Features:

  • Hyundai i10 comes in four different versions: Hyundai i10 D-Lite, Hyundai i10 Era, Hyundai i10 Magna and Hyundai i10 D-Auto.

  • It is equipped with Anti-lock Braking system (ABS), which provides safety to the car.

  • Auto door unlock is also available with the Hyundai i10.

Complaints

  • However, there are some complaints about the car as well. Some said that Hyundai i10 has defects in its gearbox and the company does not provide pre-delivery check-up for Hyundai i10.

  • Complaints also posted for Hyundai i10 battery as well. I have gone through some complaints that show that Hyundai i10 battery is defective causing break down middle of the ride.

However, you do not need to be an expert to understand the popularity Hyundai i10 has among the entry level consumers. In fact, I think, may be those few complaints are exceptions and I do believe that Hyundai will provide enough support to those who are facing such problems.

To be honest, Hyundai i10 does not have an exceptional look, neither have some high tech features and the price is not unique too. However, the advantage and the main catch of Hyundai i10 car are found out when its price, features and appearance are combined altogether. This is where the main attraction of Hyundai i10 lies. To me, the value Hyundai provides with Hyundai i10 is really something special for the consumer of this segment.


0 comments: