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      Hyundai Eon Review

      Aditya Chatterjee

      Aditya Chatterjee

      Opening

      Hyundai Eon Review

      Hyundai has successfully created a very strong and reliable image in the auto industry. Its products like the Santro and Accent have been highly successful. One impressive bit about this Korean auto major is, they have updated themselves with time and hence their products done look dated.

      Bringing the “Fluidic” philosophy in India across all its models, Hyundai has proved that they are very serious about India and also one of the most aggressive players around.

      If an entry level car comes from such a stable, it has to maintain all the positive attributes that the brand has created. Also, an entry level car need not look dull and boring always but instead can look a lot funkier than expected. The Hyundai EON Sportz is what we stumbled across recently to find out more on this entry level car and all the big things Hyundai has packed in this small little car.

      Appearance Exterior

      The Hyundai EON boasts of the same Fluidic design that its elder siblings flaunt. As I mentioned in the introduction Hyundai, EON defies the logic that a micro car has to look dull and boring and should be just a little better than any lost transport solution.

      Detailing done in the headlight as well as the hexagonal front grille looks very dynamic and perhaps puts its Japanese rival to shame. The fog lamps are very aesthetically placed on the front bumper. Even the bonnet has a swaying line flowing from the face to the A pillars of the vehicle.

      The side profile looks in motion with the window line flowing from the headlights towards the C-Pillar and the roof line falling towards the rear spoiler. Interestingly, none of the lines on the Eon look out of place even the flares on the wheels or the profiled contours on the lower profile of the doors.

      C Shaped tail lamps which also double as the C Pillar from rear is the best aspect of the Eon’s overall design. In fact it looks the best among any other entry level car contenders. Hyundai EON though features in the entry level car and is the smallest by far by Hyundai still it does not lack in the design department as compared to bigger cars which speaks volumes about it. 

      Appearance Interior

      Interiors of the Hyundai EON are very fresh and bring out the fluidic language too which can be seeing on the flowing lines of the dashboard and the door trims. The materials and the design of the trims inside have a premium feel.

      The instrumental cluster is done in a simple fashion. Also, there is an ideal gear position indicator which tells the driver to shift up or down depending on the rpm and the speed at which the vehicle is raveling.

      Build quality of the interiors is fantastic and has a plush feel around it. If only the EON would have had little more space than the present, it would have felt roomier inside because at present the EON feels a little tight on space. The front row legroom and headroom is decent, however the one in rear is average. The second row would seat 2 comfortably against 3.

      The Sportz variant gets an integrated music system which decent audio qualities. It has a 4 speed AC motor which doesn’t make the cabin chilly but then it performs well. The seats are very well bolstered and come with integrated headrests as well but the headrest position is not too comfortable and safe for taller passengers.

      Front door pockets can hold a 1L bottle with ease and still have space. On the dashboard, exactly opposite to the co passenger, there is a storage pocket too. The glove box can fit commodities generously. In the central panel, there is a large storage pocket for the front row which also has glass holders and for the second row there is a bottle holder at the end of the central panel. The Hyundai EON has a 215 litre boot space and this space can be increased by collapsing the rear seats.

      Overall, the EON fairs well in the interiors with its fresh design language. The interiors of the EON are the best by far for any entry level car or even cars which feature in the immediate next segment. 

      Performance Drive

      The Hyundai EON is powered by a 3 cylinder SOHC 814cc engine which produces a max power of 56 Ps at 5500 rpm and a torque of 7.6 Kgm at 4000 rpm. It comes with a 5 speed manual gearbox.

      Since it’s a small engine, it is not a very enthusiastic motor. There are lots of vibrations and grunts at lower rpms. In fact the gear stick starts trembling from the time ignition is switched on. The gear stick has vibrations at lower rpms however with the increase in engine rpm, these vibrations tend to fade away.

      Very contrary to the application of a micro car, I enjoyed it more on highways then inside the city reason being the motor gets smooth at higher rpms. Even though the Nano will not be an apple to apple comparison completely but then the fun factor of the Nano compared to the Eon is more. However, the Nano doesn’t feel as upmarket and plush as the Eon which is a very big advantage for the Eon (which can also be cause of the price difference of two cars).

      If we compare the Hyundai EON with its direct rival the Maruti Suzuki Alto 800, Eon scores more not by a margin but by a considerable difference. The Alto 800 sadly fails to attract any charm as its interiors are too basic compared to the fluidic philosophy of the Eon. The Alto 800 merely enjoys the repute and reliability of its brand which can be seen from the sales figures.

      Maneuvering the Eon is not a task at all but the steering could have been crisper in feedback. It has a hydraulic power steering which is tilt adjustable, an initiative to keep the costs down. The top end variant SPORTZ could have sported steering mounted audio controls as well. The design not being a typical tall boy type, even on sharp turns the EON doesn’t incline as such. I am 6’1 so for me the height of the EON was sufficient to sign documents by keeping them on its roof.

      About the safety aspect, Hyundai EON offers engine immobilizer along with driver airbags among the other safety features. More than performance, the unique selling point of the EON is its mileage which Hyundai claims as 21.1 kmpl. We got a realistic figure of 16kmpl.

      Tech Specs

      Technical Specifications
       Make Hyundai
       Model Eon
      Variant Sportz
      Engine Capacity / No. of cylinders 814/3
      Power in PS/RPM 56/5500
      Torque in Nm/RPM 75/4000
      Gears 5/M
      Dimensions in MM
      Length 3495
      Width 1550
      Height 1500
      Wheel base 2380
      Ground clearance 170
      Fuel tank capacity L 32
      Mileage Kmpl 21
      Tyres rating 155/70 R13
      Tyres type Tubeless

      Features

      Features D-Lite Era Magna Magna(o) Sportz
      Ex-showroom Price Mumbai 294593 339503 371550 351494 401433
      Engine Immobiliser Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
      Front and rear seat belts Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
      Cabin mirror Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
      2-Tone beige and brown colour Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
      Single unit front seats Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
      Bench folding rear seat Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
      Floor console storage Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
      Cup holders  Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
      Dual tripmeter Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
      Gear shift indicator Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes
      Air conditioning No Yes Yes Yes Yes
      Tinted glass No Yes Yes Yes Yes
      Body color bumper No Yes Yes Yes Yes
      Metallic finish center console No Yes Yes Yes Yes
      Power steering No Yes Yes Yes Yes
      Central locking No No Yes Yes Yes
      Passanger outside mirror No No Yes Yes Yes
      Full wheel cover No No Yes Yes Yes
      Micro antena No No Yes Yes Yes
      Alternator management System No No Yes Yes Yes
      Internally adjustable ORVM No No Yes Yes Yes
      Tilt steering No No Yes Yes Yes
      Front power windows No No Yes Yes Yes
      Front door full arm rest No No Yes Yes Yes
      Tyres with size 155/70 R13 No No Yes Yes Yes
      Front and rear speaker grill No No No Yes Yes
      Rear parcel tray No No No Yes Yes
      Music system with 2 speakers No No No Yes Yes
      AUX-in-port,USB port No No No Yes Yes
      Keyless entry No No No No Yes
      Front fog lamps No No No No Yes
      Driver airbag No No No No Yes

      Competition All Specs

      Specifications
      Hyundai
      Eon
      Maruti Suzuki
      Alto 800
      Tata  Motors
      Nano
      Variant Sportz Lxi(Airbag) LX
      Ex showroom Price Mumbai 401433 333038 215607
      Power in PS/RPM 56/5500 48/6000 35/5250
      Torque in Nm/RPM 75/4000 69/3500 48/3000
      Transmission 5/M 5/M 4/M
      Tyre size 155/70  R13 145/80 R12 135/70 R12
      Brakes Front Disc Disc Drum
      Brakes Rear Drum Drum Drum
      Fuel Tank capacity (L) 32 35 15
      Dimensions in mm
      Length 3495 3395 3099
      Width 1550 1490 1495
      Height 1500 1475 1652
      Wheel Base 2380 2360 2230
      Ground clearance 170 160 180
      Minimum turning radius 4.8M 4.6M 4.0M
      Claimed Mileage 21.1 KMPL 22.7 KMPL 23.6 KMPL
      Features
      Power steering Yes Yes No
      Air conditioning Yes Yes Yes
      Front power windows Yes Yes Yes
      Music system with 2 speakers Yes No No
      Tubeless tyres Yes Yes Yes
      Central locking Yes No Yes
      Fog lamp Yes No Yes
      Driver Airbag Yes Yes No

      Conclusion

      Even though, the EON is loaded with features and feels like a pricey car without costing much, the EON could not attract lots of eyeballs when launched perhaps cause of the lack of hype around it. Also, the micro-small car segment has been predominantly led by Maruti Suzuki for a very long period and thus accepting a new player in this segment with such ultra modern looks needed time.

      Hyundai EON started gaining pace slowly which was also be seen with the company’s increase in market share from 17% to 23.8% between April to October 2012. So if the EON looks fluidic, has premium quality interiors and promises a decent mileage, it’s definitely a strong recommend. 

      Hyundai | Hyundai Eon | Eon