Hyundai i10 IRDE2 review - Welcoming our new Greyhound

I had plans to buy a hatchback car for my wife this year and she was willing to try her driving skills on Beat but somehow she was always hassled with front dashboard and A-Pillar visibility of this car, We started looking at cars that would suit her driving style and good for 70% city driving and 30% occasional highway trips.

Confused with lot of options available on hand, I had to be mindful of our budget by trying not to exceed it too much and also wanted minimal compromise on interior quality, running cost, fuel economy and resale value of the second car.

Options Shortlisted:
Honda Brio: My wife was keen to test drive Brio, however I was never a fan of Brio’s uninspiring dashboard, front bumper design and extra large visibility on the tailgate door, plus we did not to require additional petrol car powered by 1198cc engine for city driving so I kinda played a spoilsport in cancelling this option for her.

Hyundai EON: We contacted Sanjay Hyundai outlet at Kalyani Nagar for Hyundai EON and Grand i10 test drive, the temptation to go for the Grand i10 diesel version was impulsive, we thought of stretching our budget if needed however bucket seats and front dashboard visibility were an issue again for my wife so had to drop Grand i10 from our probable list. After test driving EON we were disappointed by feeling of low cabin height and cramped leg space with noticeable lag on second and first gear pick-up.

Maruti Celerio: We then started reading through Celerio reviews, and watching TD videos, as exciting the concept of semi automatic gear sounded at the announcement of the car it was dampened with overall styling (both interior and exterior) also looking at overall package offered with Vxi version in Semi Automatic category it did not feel like a VFM offering to us.

We were also skeptical about the semi-automatic gear performance as it was a new offering in the Indian automobile market and this second car would be used by both of us and my driving style in city would have not matched with Celerio, also this car proved to be a runaway hit for Maruti brining good enough waiting period on bookings which was another downer.

Surprisingly we had being overlooking i10 on our list and when all options dried out we decided to take it for a test drive and this time I contacted Kothari Hyundai, Kharadi outlet as our experience with Sanjay Hyundai was disappointing, their staff was just willing to sell a car as fast as possible coaxing us to hurry up on documentation by instigating fear of price rise just to close a deal before month end, not even willing to offer any freebies etc.

My wife took i10 test drive and she found it perfect for her, so finally our car hunt was over, We booked i10 Sportz version and I was impressed by the overall experience at Kothari Hyundai starting with documentation, working out finance arrangements, staff attitude and promptness in dealing with queries right up to Gudi Padwa which we choose as delivery date for our new car.

I did not want to press much on freebies so only opted for mats, mud flap and a reverse parking sensor with LED. We got 3M underbody coating done with paint protection package additionally and opted for extended warranty on the car.

I am writing this review at completion of 1700 kms drive, and car has undergone first free service at Kothari Hyundai Workshop in Kharadi.

Next Gen i10 is what Hyundai calls 2014 IRDE2 version goes to validate continuing popularity of i10 in keeping sales alive even after introduction of very successful Grand i10.

Interior
I liked the black and beige two tone interiors in i10 as it does not produce unnecessary glare on windshield while driving during day, A touch of chrome on door handles and ac vent adds to the premium appeal of i10 interiors.

Hyundai i10 feels less roomy than Chevrolet Beat both in the rear and front section however it has got apt leg and headroom for the driver though to provide a comfy ride. Front seats do not offer very good thigh support, If you push driver seat too behind for getting extra comfort for your legs, rear passenger may experience cramped leg space.

Rear seat can accommodate 3 regular size passengers, not sure if all of them would feel comfortable for long drives. It would be better for 4 passengers max.

OEM Music player: Hyundai i10 Sportz has a 2 Din music player with door fitted speakers; it was a pleasant surprise for an audiophile like me, as I liked audio quality of the music player as it packs just the right amount of bass and thump for your songs while maintaining tone clarity. Shuffling music while driving is little distracting so have to be cautious.

Performance: 4 Cylinder 1086cc IRDE2 engine feels refined and perfected for city driving, you do not feel rear body weight of i10 while driving at all which makes it easy to steer around in city traffic. Steering feedback feels little different at the center while driving at high speed. 

Tilt steering feature is useful and gear shift indication is another value add for new drivers, Rear windshield view is little wider as compared to Beat also A-Pillar is not obtrusive which offers good visibility around corners.

Gear shift: Gear shift is smooth to operate and EPS is very responsive than Chevy Beat

1st Gear: Responds well to pedal acceleration, does not feel sore on engine when you rev it or drive at slow speed.

2nd and 3rd Gear: I liked pick up on 2nd and 3rd gear in this car compared to Chevrolet Beat with no engine knocking at all even when car came almost to a standstill while driving beyond 2nd gear, which means less gear shifts during heavy traffic conditions.

4th and 5th Gear: i10 cruises well in city while driving on 4th and 5th gear; engine response is peppy and smooth. The moment speedometer crosses 80kmph mark and above 2000 rpm engine starts feeling little cranky, need to test it on highway to see how well it performs during high speed driving.

A/C: Pune’s simmering heat does take a toll on aircon, I found cooling inside cabin taking some extra time during afternoon when mercury touches extreme levels as compared Beat’s AC.

i10 scores well on braking, suspension and ground clearance. Only features I would miss in this car would be rear viper and spoiler and the option to get a Bluetooth enabled music system with steering controls.

Exterior styling does not change much in 2014 Hyundai i10, overall design still looks fresh.
 
Boot Space: 225ltr boot space is good enough for light luggage while on small trips and for regular shopping items while driving in city.

Fuel efficiency: Clocked average of 13.85 kmpl, 12.20 kmpl and 14.24 kmpl on 3 full tank refills, decent to start with. Mileage has improved after first free service, not sure how far car can run when the fuel refill LED starts blinking. 

After Sales Service Experience:
Service appointment booking process was easy and I liked upkeep of customer lounge area at their service center, it is a busy place during weekends so better to give car for servicing on weekdays, gives you enough time to explain anything specific you have to highlight to the attendant as he goes around taking notes.

Service attendant also explained what work would be carried out during first free service; allowed enough  time to inspect car post servicing was completed. We were also in for a surprise winning a silver coin in some promotional offer running when we brought the car.

Overall Impression:
Pros:
Easy to drive in city, smooth gear shift.
Good ground clearance and suspension feels improved.
Excellent OEM music player and speakers.
High quality plastic material used for interior finishing.
Easy ingress, egress and offers comfortable posture for driving.

Cons:
Placement of A/C vent on main dashboard awkward for driver, chills directly on fingers while driving.
Limited leg room for rear passengers can result in uncomfortable long drive for 3.
Missing option for rear wiper and Bluetooth enabled music system.

More updates on mileage and A.S.S experience to come ahead.




 

Network issues with Vodafone and hopeless customer service

Vodafone amazed me with their swift resolution service recently, best part is they send you an SMS about this gaffe, here's an insight into my recent ordeal with their so called customer service.

I used to encounter poor connectivity problem at my residence from 1.5 years, not very frequent so I could live with it, off late in the past 6 to 7 months I noticed network issues going from bad to worse. Initially the problem was only in one bedroom of the house, now the situation has reached to a point where I move around in the house searching for a random spot where I can hear the opposite person calling clearly and be glued to that spot until the call get's over.

I started missing calls also a lot of times even with full network on 2G mode on the phone, calling person would hear a message about my phone being switched off, calls started going blank while in progress, voice scrambling issues etc. I cannot even think of using 3G service on my phone unless I am sitting right in some sweet spot corner of the house where Vodafone network feels happy to reach my phone.

Unfortunately I have total 4 Vodafone connections between me and my wife, 2 personal numbers and 2 blackberry connections issued by our companies. So their service issues have impacted my dependency on their useless network with regards to my availability on phone while I am home, Same issues that I face when I dial into conference calls from home.

I decided to pursue my network problem actively with their customer care so towards end of Feb'13 I tried calling their customer care helpline 111 as I intended to speak about 3G plans as well, I heard out all options on the IVR surprised to find out there was no option to reach directly to a customer care executive as I wanted to downgrade my 3G plan, their IVR kept playing recorded message for sending SMS keywords to subscribe to various plans, you cannot reach a customer care directly even by pressing 0 or 9 which is the case with most other customer service helplines

I then wrote to their corporate customer care id corpcare.mah@vodafone.com on 23rd February 2013 and received response on 26th February 2013 in the form of a email template seeking info points related to network issues, It was my fault I did not document their pathetic customer service's foul play in year 2012 when they had registered my complaint on a general service feedback call, a network engineer had called me sometime during July-August last year promising to visit my residence to check the network issue but that visit never happened and I did not pull them up for this issue.

When I replied to email dated 26th Feb, I also mentioned absence of option to speak to a customer service representative directly on IVR in my email which was not even acknowledged, I was given options to downgrade 3G plans with plan info and an advisory to note impact of mid-cycle changes to the 3G plan charging on the bill. Which goes to show absent minded reps who keep replying to customers with a set of email templates and do not actually note what he/she has written in the email.

Any ways  keeping the focus on network issue here, my email exchange with corporate care email Id continued in the month of Mar'13, I was not expecting my issues to get resolved overnight however I noticed they raise complaint tickets and close them at their will without calling the customer or sending an email on what resolution was provided on that complaint number?, best part is that they enrage you further by sending an SMS that your XYZ complaint number has being closed as per your feedback.

My wife also got calls from customer care confirming that her network issue is being lodged and later even she got SMS confirmation of complaint closure as per her feedback. How can I confirm closure if no one has even bothered to call back or ask if there was any improvement in the network service.

Screenshots below prove how complaints have being closed without any solution or call back - 1289151004, 1304980408 and 1304981172 are the complaint numbers.

On 1st March customer care emailed with complaint number confirmation 1289151004 and expected turn around time quoted in email was 4th March, whereas SMS states 9th March 2013, got SMS confirmation on 14th March that my complaint has being resolved as per my feedback, checked with my wife to be sure if anyone had spoken to her, she confirmed not receiving any call asking about the network issue.

I sent an email to corporate customer care email id again on 14th March 2013, no response so again on 16th March I raised this issue of complaint closure without calling customer to confirm on Vodafone's twitter ID @VodafoneIN on which some guy called me in the evening and stated he is again forwarding my complaint to concerned team for resolution and I would get a response "very soon"

The "Very Soon" moment arrived on 22nd March 2013, with an email with same template for gathering network issue related information again which I had replied on 27th Feb 2013, that goes to show what kind of intelligent customer care Vodafone has in India, why does a customer require to provide same information he has provided on a previous complaint, you should be able to track that down from my previous complaint number.

On 26th March I get another email with new complaint numbers now - 1304980408, 1304981172 this time they are prompt enough to close the complaint on the same date from the second screenshot above they raised and closed my issue on the same date as per my feedback again, wonderful. My wife also gets a confirmation on her number the same day.

Until now their network team is still investigating my issue and from 27th Feb 2013 to this date I received only one call about my issue only when I raised this issue on their twitter ID which was again a pacifier call to raise another complaint number with no response on what happened to my previous complaint and what prompted them to close it without my confirmation. 26th March email states that my issue would be attended by 5th April 2013, but I have given up on my patience and no longer want to play running around the tree game.

What anger's me the most is they have also started spamming my number with an SMS to login to My Vodafone service online to keep my account active, I did login once to check if everything was all right but the messages have not stopped coming in, with the ongoing network issue it feels so irritating that your service provider is spamming you with misleading messages for keeping an online service active which is not my priority right now.

I am going to raise this issue now with their nodal officer's email Id, let's see if they can still wake up from their deep slumber.

**Update as on 12 April 2013**

I received a call from some new relationship manager assigned on my account by the name Varsha Valsarajan on 1st April 2013 at 1:30 pm from this number 020-71774820, asking feedback on Vodafone service, so irritating this is when you already have a follow up going on to a complaint no one is ready to entertain or return a feedback call.

She again promised a call back and it's being 12 days then, I can take that assurance only as a April Fool's prank, she mentioned checking into the systems that my area has a problem because of which I am facing network issue, she enlightened me with a fact I am aware of since last 1 year.

Google Play Books now available in India

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Google Play Books service is now available for India, you can download this app from Play Store to start using this service, Play Books app has interface similar to that of Play Store with option to view downloaded books in carousel mode or list mode.

You can download books from Play Store through various categories and scroll through popular titles, top free books etc. They have also included a link to section of books priced below Rs 100 visible on the Play Books main screen. This app does not have any option to import any books that you may already have on your android device, so you can use it only for reading books downloaded from play store.

You can keep the sync option on in case you want to read same book across multiple android devices, also use this app for offline reading allowing option to save book locally on your phone/tablet. This app has got 3D page turn effect, voice reading to choose from app settings. Pricing of books seems to be in line with Flipkart and Amazon kindle store.

With evolving market for online purchases in India, I hope Google Music also launches soon as iTunes from Apple also started allowing downloads in INR few months back, which is a good move from two major companies currently driving smartphone market across the globe gradually recognizing the potential of popularity of such services in India and giving consumers out here unified experience on their OS ecosystem which is enjoyed by consumers in most other countries.

ake a look at other screenshots of the app here, link to play store app here

Sad state of electronics chain stores in Pune

Pune is touted to be a fast growing IT hub that has placed the city amongst an important destination for retail sector to take note of. When i settled in Pune from Mumbai by the end of year 2004, The eastern corridor in the city was nowhere close to development and it was then the outskirts of Pune city. As the city grew and expanded it has now become the most happening spot in the city and this area of the city came to limelight nationally post the Pune German Bakery bomb blast incident.

A lot of major retail groups set up their shops in this area of the city which now has a host of malls, as a electonics and gadgets enthusiast i always knew Pune definately could not match the charm of Lamington road in Mumbai when it came to electronics market, however even it came to buying a simple cable extension and misc electronics need these so called electronics megastores never used to have any and it required me to do some searching in nearby places to get a fixed source for buying or rely on ebay.



Recently Croma electonics closed down their outlet at Ishanya mall and even Dass Electronics has closed few outlets in the city along with a branch at nagar road, if you check their website today it has not even being updated i suppose from last Aug-Sep'10. These stores opened with lot of promises but somehow they could just not afford to pay huge lease amounts on commercial property compared to the sales that may not help them break even over a particular period of time. There were some small time laptop shops too which opened in the fortaleza society vicinity, opposite Gold Big Cinemas even they closed down soon.

The retail story is somewhere not clicking right in Pune, if you are even lucky to find what you need do not expect good after sales service from the stores in malls. Once you are out of the bright and airconditioned atmosphere of the mall with your product you have brought, as a consumer you are history. The so called "IT crowd" is not sufficient to register impressive sales, Pune  has a higher share of student population too which comprises of high footfalls and low spend category that's hurting the growth of retail sector here.
 
Every time i visited Croma or Dass a disinterested or overexcited salesman would come to you suggesting you stuff that you are not seeking, pushing products of some brand that their store is endorsing. At times these sales guys would form their own groups strolling in the store chatting and having a gala time. Same kind of attitude prevails with sales staff at Big Bazaar, Hometown, Lifestyle and Housefull stores which i have visited and experienced.