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Showing posts from 2012

Happy New Years Folks!

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Wish you all a very happy and prosperous new year. I will try to come up with some exciting posts next year and hopefully it will work out better than what it is now. Thank you all.

My Hyundai Craze

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Come on! Why not? They started off manufacturing cars by borrowing components from other companies. At one point Hyundai was struggling. Cost cutting resulted in poor quality and Hyundai was deemed as an unreliable product.  They even tagged it " H ope Y ou U nderstand N othing is D rive-able  A nd I nexpensive".  They started investing on quality, design and even tied up with Honda for quality survey and measures. Sales began to increase in 2004 and since then quality has never been a compromising factor. They hired new designers. Christopher Chapman, ex-designer of BMW was hired as the head of design in the US and Kia hired Peter Schreyer , a former Volkswagen / Audi designer.  The design has changed for sure. We see the fluidic vehicles everywhere and they simply nailed it. The fluidic Elantra for instance is just amazing. Suddenly it seems to me that Hyundai is at the top of the leader board and they are taking it seriously.  You should read this article a

Mileage is important

Innova gives a mileage of 11 kmpl of petrol. At 75 rupees per litre of petrol you would end up travelling 73.3 kms for 500 rupees. My i10 gives about 15 kmpl. That is about 99.9 kms; a difference of 26.6 kms i.e I could go from RT Nagar to Koramangala and back to RT Nagar (well, somewhat). You have a credit card with a 5 to 10 % cashback offer but you still end up spending more. If you are someone who works out your monthly budget you will notice how big an expense it is. So yes, mileage is important and I don't understand why in the name of luxury ordinary people end up making a mess of their life buying cars that simply don't meet the needs. I spend 7.5 lacs for a top end fabia and I expect a top end mileage out of it. Hell! It gives about 13 kmpl in city. So lets do some math. For 500 rupees petrol what is the total mileage in city you will get from the following vehicles with the assumption that its 75 rupees a kilometer. Alto - 17kmpl - 113.22 kms i10 - 15 kmpl - 9

Tireless Wheels

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A tire that requires no air. Awesome isn't? Well.. its not a fiction and is very much in use right now.Michelin is developing a tire called the 'Twheel'. Its a tire and a wheel that requires no air. Bridgestone is also coming up with one. More info here Air less tire

Average Mileage - 17 to 20 km/litre

On my way to Mangalore again for Diwali. This time the route was through Hassan. My i10 averaged at about 17 to 20 kms / litre with AC being on most of the time. The route was just amazing and you can simply cruise through to the city in about 6.5 hrs; assuming you don't halt anywhere.

Sometimes I wish....

Sometimes I think to myself.. hmmmm! I have the i10 and I wish I had the Polo or the Fabia or the Figo or the Punto; but back in 2009 some of these were not even manufactured and the others were expensive. My conscious at that time told me not to pay heavy for a car which would bear the brunt of the first time car driving experience from an inexperienced guy. I bought the car and I loved it. It was cute, quick, compact, much like owning a mini for me. Yesterday I got into a Figo and suddenly the thought of wanting to change my car crept in me. The key, the way the engine turns on smoothly, clutch, accelerator and the overall smoothness of the car was way different from the i10. Unlike the clutch in i10 which is tough, the Polo, Figo and Fabia have a smooth feel to it. It gives a better control while driving and therefore lesser stress, strain on the driver. Sometimes holding the clutch in the i10 can be painful in traffic. Anyways... looks like after three years its time for a cha

Prepayment Loan Calculator

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Find my nice little android app in the Android Market to help you out with clearing your car loans (any loan basically). Prepayment Loan Calculator

Nissan Evalia - Bring in new designers please

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What is wrong with Nissan? They come up with a beautiful car like the Sunny except that its got a butt of an elephant, Renault does the same mistake calling it the Scala and now its the Nissan Evalia. Nothing is wrong with the cookies in the jar. Its the jar that is not the right one. Seriously! Nissan has to invest on good designers. It just looks horrible in all directions. Why would I want to buy a car like this? Imagine having an image of the Omni in photoshop and then scaling it uniformly. That feels like the Evalia, but atleast Omni looks descent. This one is like errrrr! 'having no words to express it'. This is the only image I shall share. How cool is this!!!

Pulsar 200 - Where is the silencer?

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I got to see a Pulsar 200 in action recently and what is interesting is that bike makers are beginning to think outside the box to compete in the market. I could not find the silencer. I had once asked myself out of curiosity if it was ever possible to have a car not look like a car but still is a car? The same with a bike too. Thats just me like the mars rover 'Curiosity' trying to find answers on how life formed. Imagine a car with just three wheels but handles like one with four wheels. This would not only reduce the cost of manufacturing but also reduce pollution by not having to create one more for every vehicle in the world. Anyways, I got a bit distracted there. I just woke up from a good sleep and my mind is fresh. So, the Pulsar 200 has its silencer neatly hidden below the chassis. Its called the underbelly exhaust. Imagine the silencer of the Fazer but nicely tucked in under the bike instead of jetting out of it. How creative is that? Overall the bike itself looks

Alto has a make over

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There is nothing like the Alto. It is a small car but is seriously packed with energy. Mangalore city probably has more Alto's than anywhere else in the country or it seems like that to me because everytime I go to my hometown I get a see a lot of it. Maruthi finally decided that its time for them to focus back to the roots. The Alto now has a fresh look. Everything inside seems to be more or less the same. The exterior has been redesigned and it does not look bad. Customers are in for a delight.

Electric Bike - We need more of it!!! Seriously!!!

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I read an article about this bike and I wished to share it. Its the C 1 from Lit Motors. A fusion of a bike and a car. Its enclosed like a car and also has a steering wheel and does not tip over. So you can take it anytime and wherever you need without worrying about balancing it. The C 1 makes use of two large gyroscopes to balance itself. Its a got a metal shell and has a top speed of 120 miles. Since its electric it can tavel 200 miles on a full charge. We definitely need such vehicles in a country where commuting long distances is very common and people are constantly concerned about the money it takes to fuel up their vehicles every day. What more, less congestion and more comfort and it is still a bike. Here is a video of this cool bike

Mahindra Quanto - Gone Wrong

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They stunned the country with the XUV and then came the Renault Duster and they began to wonder hmmmm!!! why not experiment with the Xylo??? We will chop it, redesign it just a little and tell the world its a mini SUV that costs less and is better. Seriously???? It would have maybe worked if Mahindra decided to chop the XUV instead of the Xylo. What was Mahindra thinking? 

Hero Splendor dethroned by Bajaj Discover

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We all love the splendor. It was ideal for all age groups, was light, neat and sleek. It offered low maintenance and had a very good life. Years after it was launched I still see a lot on the streets now. However time moves on and things change. Bajaj Discover seems to have dethroned the best selling motorcyle and is now world's largest selling motorcycle. I am not a great fan of Bajaj products. I feel their design always lacks something. Personally the Splendor will always be my favorite. 

McLaren Vs Lexus Vs Lambhorgini Vs Bugatti

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I could not resist but post this video from head to head. This is simply awesome especially because of the background music.

Ferrari F12 Berlinetta

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The F12 Berlinetta is the latest from Ferrari. Its lighter, faster and meaner and yet its fuel efficient and environment friendly with lower carbon emissions. It boasts a V12, 6262 cc engine, 7 speed gearbox and is the fastest car Ferrari has ever produced. Its reaches 100km/h in 3.1 seconds. Check out this awesome review from Auto Express to know more.

Renault Scala - Not Again!!

I have not seen many Nissan Sunny's on road. I get it that it is a CAAAARRRRRRR! but hey! don't you guys get it. It is just simply not looking good. Renault decides to come up with Scala with the same looks. What is wrong with them??? I had an experience in the back seat of the Sunny recently and yes it is definitely a CAAARRRRRR!!! There is a lot of space inside the car. Your kids would not have any issues having fun in the back seat. However what disappointed me the most is the design of the exterior and interior of the car.  Exterior The huge buttocks of this car makes the car's rear stand apart from the front. What was Nissan thinking??? While the front looks descent the rear looks all messed up. Even the side profile of the car is not appealing. Each element of the car is actually good but the way they have been integrated together is what makes it unattractive. Nissan messed it up big time. Interior Again individually all elements speak up just f

Volkswagen Polo - Simplicity sells!

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I got a chance to experience the Polo yesterday and I must say that I finally am convinced that all I heard about Volkswagen is indeed true. Let me get into the facts right away. These are simply what I feel about the car. What i like: I have seen several reviews claiming the ride quality of Volkswagen to be one of the best in the market. This is true. Few of my colleagues in the car felt the same too. The ride quality is definitely way better than most cars in the market today. I had always been crazy about the looks of a car. The new Fludic Verna for example has a very different and classy look; echoing "Fludic" from front to rear. At the same time many feel its ride quality is not as smooth as it should be. The fact is a driver is going to spend 100% of his time driving and its important a buyer pays more attention to the drive quality and comfort over the looks. So yes, the ride and comfort in the Polo is simply good. This is a verdict from four of us inside

Honda Brio - Useless?

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I don't understand the purpose of this car. It's small and costs over 4 lacs. What will you do with a car like this? Maybe go for a drive to have some tea!!! It's compact and Honda has designed it well. I mean, there is leg space, there is this little boot space, there is good visibility and there is all the goodies (well not all of them) you need in a car, but is it good enough?. It sports a1.2 litre engine and is definitely power packed, the drive is smooth and so is the performance and hey! its Honda. Personally I feel it is smaller than the i10 and comparing its price to what it offers it does not seem worth the money to me.

Electric Car - Renault Fluenze

Electric cars have one major problem. You need to quickly find a socket to re-charge the batteries when it runs out of charge and it takes a lot time to fully charge the batteries; usually about eight to ten hours. One option is to simply remove the discharged battery and replace it with a new one and then keep the old one for charging.  Its clever how about 400 Renault Fluenze operate this way in Israel. You can read more in this link. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-19423835

Who has the largest car collection?

I am not sure of the authenticity of the information but it is definitely interesting. Check this out http://www.siliconindia.com/news/business/Whos-Got-the-Worlds-Biggest-Car-Collection-nid-126661-cid-3.html?utm_source=clicktrack&utm_medium=banner&utm_campaign=TopNewsDontMiss

Bangalore traffic craziness

This city is going to die very soon; that's what it looks like to me. Its going to EXPLODE! People have no driving sense and there are more vehicles on road than recommended. The sad truth is the infrastructure is so poor that i am surprised there are so many vehicles being registered. In addition to the traffic craziness we also have garbage issues, bad roads, corruption, increased crime rate and pollution. I am already having this urge to move out from this city. I commute from home to work and back home five times a week. It's been over a year now and on each passing day i see the matter getting worse. People just dont seem to get it. Following simple rules like speed, lane discipline, waiting at the signal etc is out of the window. The worst for me is this crazy honking. Today i am feeling the pain in my ears and hence this post. I don't understand why people honk. It looks to me that everyone is in a hurry to catch a train. Imagine a wonderful morning from home going

Toyota camry!!!!! oooomph!!!!

Toyota launched the Camry at an introductory price of 24 lacs ex-showroom Delhi. This car will be assembled in Bangalore as the company has a joint venture with Kirloskar group. Camry has been there for seven generations and assembling the car here would help them reduce cost and also cater to the needs of the Indian mass. The new Camry will be a 2.5 litre petrol engine with a six speed automatic transmission. Unfortunately there isn't a diesel variant as of now. This car can very well be compared with Honda accord and the Skoda superb. I personally think the Camry is built very elegantly and is very symmetric in its design and features. Honda accord on the other hand seems very bulky and Skoda superb is very bland. The two plants will be at Bidadi on the outskirts of Bangalore.

Mahindra unveils a new plant

We all know that mahindra had acquired a major stake in Reva Electric. The company is now expanding it by inaugurating a new manufacturing plant in Bommasandra in the outskirts of Bangalore. The new plant has the capacity to produce 30,000 units a year. What is astonishing is Reva has till date sold only about a few thousand units. Mahindra shall help boost the sales by introducing this new plant and also the new two door electric model which was showcased in the auto expo in Delhi. This new car is bigger than the Reva and is also electric.

Be proud of the Pixel

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Tata motors promised a 1 lac car to the world and they fulfilled it. The Tata Nano was born and it stunned the world. Many thought of it as a joke but Ratan Tata has made it loud and clear that if you set your goal right then it is possible to achieve anything. And now they want to do it again and this time with the Pixel. Tata has finally unveiled the MegaPixel at the Geneva Motor Show. Its a four seater, environment friendly electric car. It is a concept itching to come to reality. The one thing giving me goose bumps is an Indian product going international with an international design. I simply love seeing the Tata logo on the Pixel. The petrol engine recharges the battery on the go and it promises to provide 900 km with a tank of fuel and an economy of 100 km / litre. What is stunning in the pixel is the maneuverability. You could pivot and turn around a particular wheel enabling an exceptional turn radius of 2.8 meters. I can go gaga over the pixel but you will have to chec

Deepika Pandukone - Yamaha

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Bebo came in to boost sales of the Mahindra's scooter - Duro. Asin came in for TVS and now its Deepika Padukone here to endorse Yamaha scooter range. The scooter is called 'Ray'. We know John Abraham is wooing people with the Yamaha bike range. Lets hope the scooter sales picks up too. Personally I am in love with the Yamaha FZ series. I think the bike looks masculine and awesome and I am in fact planning to own one very soon. I think it looks way cooler than most of the bikes out there in the market and Yamaha has nailed it. I frankly have not seen much advertisement of the FZ series and looks like Yamaha wanted to cut costs on branding and advertisement as their sales were going down. However the bike is already a hit in the market and I think Yamaha can now breathe a sigh of relief.

Ford Classic

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It is now affordable and it is not a hatcback. Isn't that cool? For the price of a hatchback you now get a fully loaded sedan. Sometimes I wish they came up with such offers in early 2010. Its not I dont love my hatchback but just that I could have maybe settled for someting better. Anyways the ex-showroom price for the classic titanium is about 6.8 lacs for the petrol and 7.8 for the diesel version.  This is the old fiesta model. renamed as classic. What is astounding is that Ford claims the classic to provide a mileage of 32 Kms for the diesel version and 21 for the petrol. This is in test conditions. I wonder how much it would match to the onroad conditions. With the rules being stricter now I wish Ford actually hits the mark on this one.  Many claim it to be cool car to drive but having a poor resale value. A cool looking car and loads of cool features. I feel its worth the money. What say?

Used car market booms!

A new vehicle would not have clocked even a mile, would smell good and is less likely to give you any kind of problems for several years. It does however cost money. If you are ok with saving couple of lacs on a vehicle that has clocked say 10k to 20k kilometers then I think its worth the buy. You should have a trustworthy mechanic check and test the vehicle you buy. New car sales have dropped this year however the used car segment still has a steady growth in its sales. In fact in India the new car market is more or less of the same size as the new car market.

New Suzuki Swish

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Suzuki is trying hard to win the race. Honda has been there for a while, TVS is slowly picking up, Mahindra tried hard, and now its Suzuki. The new Suzuki Swish is in the market. Its sports a 125 cc engine and can reach 60 kmph in 8 seconds. Susuki tried with Access 125 but I have not seen much in the city. Swish 125 also has the same specifications. So I am not really sure what suzuki is trying to do out here. Also it sports a analog dial which is less sporty than the digital ones we have in the market today. I guess suzuki still has a lot to do and has to go back to its drawing board to trigger to come up with something intuitive and different.

Force Indian fined 60,000 pounds

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Force India is forced to pay 60,000 pounds to a design company Aerolab. There has been a dispute between Force India, Aerolab and Caterham according to which Force India had to pay the other two companies over the intellectual property shared by the other two companies. Its a fee and fine combined. The fee is to be paid to Aerolab and the fine is to be paid to Caterham for misuse of confidential data. Vijay Mallya is definitely going through a rough patch.

TVS Apache RTR beast series

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The new beast series 2012 coming soon from TVS.

Staring at the tail lamps...

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On my way to work I did not realize how fast the time flew wondering about the intricate details and R&D that goes into design these clever aesthetic elements in a vehicle. Its like the icing on a cake and it just needs to be appealing. The design plays a crucial element in the value of a vehicle. Yes! I am talking about the head and tail lamps. So lets start with the classic Ambassador from Hindustan Motors. The lamps are very blunt, yet simple in design. The front lamps are circular in design, The tail lamps are simple and small. HM continues with the classic design like the Vespa and never wants to do anything different. Its heritage and its the Harley Davidson of the Indian auto industry. For almost three decades it has been having the same design elements and have not upgraded drastically. The Maruthi Swift has experimented from its predecessor. The latest design is different but the tail lamps are a let down. They dont gel well with the design in the rear and for some

Piaggio Vespa

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The Italian automaker is back again with the Vespa. Unlike the existing scooters we have in the market currently the Vespa is very old school and classic in its design and presentation which I believe would kindle the taste buds of passionate bikers in the country. Think of it being something like the Volkswagen Beetle or the Mini-Coupe with two wheels. It truly an Italian icon and blends with the spirit of the country. You can feel the Italian in it. It brings along with it the old memories of riding around with your parents in the 70s and 80s. The automaker claims that the Vespa would give a mileage of about 60 kmpl.  Its got a 4 stroke, air cooled 125cc engine. This is good power for a scooter. Everything else is what you see in any other scooter. What makes this scooter distinct is its design. It definitely stands apart from the rest. It is said that the designer of the Vespa had a lot of hatred for motorcycles as he found them to be heavy and unreliable. Thus the tradition of

Honda Aviator

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The new Honda Aviator has a disk brake in the front. This means its more stable and has a better control. It also looks good. Its a 110 cc though and the disc brakes come only in the deluxe version. The standard version has the drum brakes. Other than that it has the same goodies as the honda dio.

Facelift for Honda Dio.

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I own a Honda Dio and this vehicle is a classic. After about 2 years of using it the engine still sounds very refined and smooth. The one thing you can bank on always with Honda is the engine. I believe all their vehicles have this top class with the engines. Anyways, so my favorite gearless bike now has a facelift. The new Honda Dio is bigger, better and sexier. Its sports an 18 liter storage space, all new exterior design, a wider and longer seat, 15% more mileage(they claim so) and a new feature for safety where the rear and front brakes are applied the same time when the rear brake lever is pressed. So... Get Noticed.

KTM - 200 Duke - Simply Awesome.

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I got to see a KTM on road yesterday and I must say its impressive. The 200 duke is the only bike currently available in India. The shape of the bike makes it easy to commute around off/on-road with ease. The elevated handle bars seem to be the liking of most bike riders as they find it comfortable while cornering. I believe this also makes for a better posture for riding. I have always been a fan of the mono-shock since the time Honda Unicorn came into market. It makes the vehicle less heavy and yet give a smooth ride. It sports disc brakes in the front and the rear and a broad 150mm rear tyre is a delight. What is striking about this bike is where the silencer is positioned. Its right at the center of the vehicle. Its a three chamber silencer positioned intentionally at the center of gravity to provide better handling.  KTM review by Autocar India: Basic Specification - 4 Stroke single cylinder, 200 cc, 25 hp, electric start, 6 speed transmission,  125kg in weight. Its truly

Maruthi Ertiga - Love me? Love me not?

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An attempt by Maruthi to try out something different. The launch of the LUV - the Ertiga. From the looks it is obvious that maruthi tried really hard to try and blend in all design elements of most of the car out there in the market right now. The length of the vehicle reminds me of Honda Jazz and the protruded wheels guards in the body from Ford. There are some features that this car boasts about. Glove box, rear seat pockets, chrome handles, cup holders, arm rest, fog lamps etc. Yeah! the same old thing we find in most basic cars. So as you see there isn't anything new or special in this car that is worth mentioning excepting for the space. Its a LUV - a life utility vehicle, whatever that means. Maybe this means you can accomodate upto 7 people in this car as it has three rows and that is like life in heaven. Thats the only plus I can see in this car. Otherwise the interiors are cheap and so are the features. Its priced between 6 to 9 lacs and you can rather opt for a Omni or t

Vento or Verna?

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On my way to work I there is this white vento going past us and I notice the driver simply ignore the speed braker ahead and just driving through. What made me probe more into this car was how superbly the suspension worked. If it was my i10, I am sure my car would be thrown up in the air and it would literally shake things up inside it for a while, but the vento handled it really well and the reason I say this is because the car had a passenger in the back seat drinking her coffee and it was like she felt nothing. Verna on the other hand has a very soft suspension until the vento which is a little solid, but in comparison to the vento the verna is better in mileage, looks and a fanstastic interior. It is costlier than the vento but its worth the package. So will I choose a verna over vento? Yes! I would.

Vento or SX4?

A close comparison on the build and design of these two cars would make you realize how badly designed the SX4 is on the outside. Its bulky, the rear and front do not sync, the cuts and edges are very un-symmetric and the gaps between panels seems like marthi just built it out of hurry. In comparison the vento is superbly designed. Its very even, clean, neat and sensible. Its like the lego blocks fitting in together very nicely. The gaps are less, the design is complete and it makes a lot of sense. So if its the design you are looking for then Vento is the car and the Germans have done a fantastic job by just working on simplicity.

Figo Or i10

I have been pondering over this for a very long time now and I feel now that Figo has an edge over the i10. Damn! when I purchased the i10 figo was not available in the market. The reasons why I like Figo is the boot space, the length of the car, and the cost. With ABS and other cools features in the Titanium version and at a price lesser that the i10 it seems like a good deal. The downside of this car is the noise inside the cabin, no rear power windows, low height and poor response of the engine. I recently figured out that Ford intentionally decided not to invest on a rear power window as they felt the window was too small to have one. They decided to invest on something else instead. Its a good thing but when my son wants the window to be open I can just do it sitting in the driver seat and yet prevent it from being opened fully. Nevertheless, I have been using my i10 for 3 years now and I have not had any issues. Its still smooth, power packed and lovely.

And then there is Hyundai i40 too...

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The new i20 - Uber (High Ranking) for sure...

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The new i20 has the Gamma version which sports a 1400cc engine. Atleast its now not as same as the i10 and the gamma version also comes with a VTVT technology. It comes loaded with automatic rain sensing wipers, auto start, rear parking assist with reverse parking camera, 6 air bags, clutch lock to prevent the car from starting when in a gear, auto headlamps that switch on based on the visibility outside and lot more. Its surprising that the clutch lock feature too a long time to be implemented when its one of the basic problem we have most of the time. Anyways, all looks good with the revamp but what about the price?? The high end model is estimated to be over 7.5 lacs ex showroom. So for that price you can also get a sedan nowadays.

Crush Time

Too many things happening this year. I have not had the time to update this blog much. I always think to manage my time but it never happens. Updating the blog goes way down the priority. Work can get hectic I guess. I need to get cracking.

i10 review from WhatCar. Hyundai! I love you guys!!

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Hyundai i30 is for real. But not yet in india.

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Hyundai Eon - A Pie

Its a small car for sure, but its different. I got up close a hyundai eon a few days ago, and I must say I liked the look of the car at the rear. I did not like the design in the front though. The boot space is less and so is the power of the engine but for a small car with descent looks what more can you ask for? Atleast it looks better than the Alto.