Jan 10, 2009 08:17 PM
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I have owned the Getz GVS for nearly 3 years (35000Km) now and had almost decided not to write the review as I had already written about the other car bought more recently. I decided to write as I feel that the readers should know the comparative on experiences and be informed of the pros and cons.
Drive Experience: Hyundai has combined soft gear shift, easy steering and pedals with a powerful 83BHP engine to give you the effortless drive experience that is as good in cities as it is on highways. the car drives very well in city where its agility and power give you a leisurely drive experience.
The soft power steering makes it easy to navigate the potholed or crowded roads and you never feel the strain, that is until you drop below 20 Km/hr that’s where you feel something missing. Sometimes you may notice is a slight lag in the pickup when you try to run like a rocket ahead of the traffic when the signal turns green but thats probably due to the way this 1.3 litre engine has been tuned.
On the highways its decent though nothing to set the road on fire. The 1.4litre petrol has a soft start and can accelerate rather quickly to 60-70 range. Nowhere on this run does it feel strained or stressed. The drive from 70 till 100 is a different matter, while the motor pushes the car to higher speeds the chassis cannot take anything beyond 80 without a protest. At 100 Km/hr it is evident that you need a firm hand to keep the matters under control and at 120 you know that’s the best the car can do without causing significant driver fatigue. Sadly the Getz is not designed to run at high speeds on Indian roads, it may run at 150 without problems on the flat and smoother European or American roads but where do you find that in India? Therefore I never pushed the Getz beyond 130 as one I was scared of potholes and having to brake suddenly at a high speed. No I don’t mean that the brakes are not good, at those speeds if the brakes are too good which is the case with Getz one might over brake with the soft pedal and skid or burn out the tyres.
Mileage: For the large and heavy hatchback the city mileage of 12 km/litre is quite decent, I routinely get this mileage on Delhi roads with full A/C during summers. Winters are a different matter, routine mileage increases to 13.5 in city and sometimes touches 14 Km/litre (I have driven for more than 550Km on a full tank before the fuel warning light comes on). On highways I have run up a mileage of almost 16 during the summers with full A/C. I cannot comment on the highway mileage in the winters, as I have never taken the Getz to highways during winters. In fact I stopped taking the Getz to outstation drive ever since I got my other car, but more on that later.
Comfort: The front seats are very comfortable and there is very little driving fatigue especially when compared to other similar cars. The rear seats are also quite comfortable considering the extra leg space that is available to the passengers when compared to other hatchbacks. The ride comfort is further enhanced by the rear suspension which has a torsion beam along with the normal coil springs. Its great at negotiating the bends and doesn’t roll much, bad roads are a different matter where the body rolls significantly even while driving straight and spoils the overall comfort for both the driver and passengers.
Air Conditioning: The air conditioning is really good and can make you shiver in the rear seats during peak summers while running full blast. With proper setting you can run it continuously for sustained comfort and I haven’t missed automatic climate control ever.
Interiors: The interiors have been a bit of a disappointment as the fabric tends to catch the dust and the lighter colour makes the dirt quite visible. This has led to frequent dry cleaning and the resultant wearing out of upholstery. I have since put seat covers to get around the problem but the light gray ceiling still has to be taken care of. As a result I never drive this baby with windows rolled down.
Post-sales Service: I have become somewhat of a fan of Sunrise Hyundai on their after sales services. in fact I never had to look for an alternative service station and continue to get the vehicle servicing and repairs done at the same place. Though sometimes I have come away feeling they managed to sweet talk me into spending more than I cared to, on unnecessary frills like the sensors on the fuel lines, the anti-rust coatings etc.
All in all this is a big car small price, a great value for money and certainly much better looking than the SWIFT which was the other car I was looking at.
