Jan 21, 2009 12:36 PM
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Dear readers,
I can't begin to explain my sorrow writing this sordid tale of the i20 test drive. To minimise the emotional torment, I will keep it short.
THE i20. as I walked toward the test vehicle with bated breath, I realised how skilled photography can do wonders even with an average joe. The looks are extremely mild and I probably would not even notice anything new just in case the car happened to pass me by on a busy city street. In short, it looks like an inflated i10, just like how the Maruti Versa looks like an inflated Omni.
As I entered the drivers seat, I had an instant deja vu. I felt I was sitting an the original Honda City. The seating was upright, steering was low and not very comfortable. For a tall man like me, the sides of my thighs would slightly brush against the steering wheel. So, after a little seat adjustment and a look around in the car I noticed the quality of plastics used was very good and instrumental panel was well laid out. Smooth lines, soft edges, and well placed a/c and music controls.
It was a Asta model, and hence the gear knob was a blinding flashy chrome topped one. The clutch setting felt like my foot was a good 2 feet inside the engine compartment and the accelerator was as rough as the one in the Chevy UVA.
The 1.2 Kappa felt smooth but not smooth enough and the gear ratios seemed very short, resulting in frequent gear shifting at low speeds making driving a bit stressful in heavy traffic. Company sales executives claim fuel efficiency of 12 kmpl. I doubt it.
However, the most shocking was the ride. I could feel the little bumps like a thud and the steering wheel felt heavy and uncertain, almost like the wheel alignment had gone woozy. Taking a u-turn was not pleasing either. Body roll was tremendous. Reversing the car was tough since I couldn't get a hang of the edges and even more since the rear glass was very narrow. Big disappointment.
Overall, the car felt strictly average, and probably excessively downgraded for the Indian market. I can't afford the car at the price(Asta - 6.8 on-road Mumbai). I would probably be more interested in the Suzuki A-star ZXI or the good old Getz 1.1
