Hyundai i20: Undoubtedly the best premium hatchback in India

The hatchbacks of Hyundai have always caught the attention of car buyers in India. The company has a full fledged line-up of hatchbacks in its Indian portfolio with range stretching from entry level to top notch models. Over the past few years, a model that in particular has found the critical acclaim of car buyers and industry critics has been its i20 model. The car touted as a premium hatchback by the company has certainly lived up to its expectations and has performed considerably well in the Indian car market. Its been not long since i20 was launched in India and from that time till now, the car has gone through a few upgrades and tweaks.

Hyundai launched i20 in order to rival Maruti Suzuki's best seller Swift and the car has performed significantly well considering the kind of brand value that Maruti Suzuki's hatchbacks enjoy in India. The hatchback of Hyundai has been able to carve an own niche for itself and has clearly shown the way to define premium hatchback cars in India. Recently in 2012, Hyundai launched its next generation version of i20, which was basically a facelift model having enhanced set of functionalities. As of now, i20 is offered in three engine options namely 1.2 Kappa 5 Speed Manual Transmission, Gamma 1.4 VTAT 4 Speed Automatic and U II 1.4 CRDi 6 Speed Manual. The first two engine options comes in petrol variant of i20 whereas the third one is available under the diesel version. The i-Gen i20 is offered in 6 trim levels ranging from base Era to top-end Asta (O).

The petrol 1.2-litre Kappa and 1.4-litre engines are capable of producing power outputs of 82 bhp and 98 bhp, respectively, while in case of torque the figures stand at 113 Nm and 136 Nm with giving due respect to engine types. On the other hand, the diesel engine gives away a maximum power of 88 bhp while generating a maximum torque of 219 Nm. Talking about equipment, the current generation i20 scores high on security features with a 6-airbag system provided on front and sides of the vehicle. Apart from it, the Anti-lock Braking System (ABS) with Electronic Brake-force Distribution (EBD) and reverse parking sensors adds to the long list of security features of the car.

In terms of features, the car of Hyundai is provided with push start/stop button facilitating a for keyless entry system. The unique digital multi-information system present on the dashboard displays information about the vehicles mileage and other important aspects. The newly designed instrument cluster panel indicates the driver as to when a gear shift is required. Besides all these striking new features, a electro chrome mirror is present to reduce the night glare of trailing vehicles and it also assists the driver in parking the car on tight spots. Coming to its price, i20 has been offered for Rs. 4.85 lakh for the base model that further climbs up to Rs. 7.88 lakh for the top end variant (ex-showroom, Delhi).

In India, i10 hatchback competes with various vehicles of different companies that include Maruti Suzuki Swift, Volkswagen Polo, Nissan Micra and Renault Pulse. Going by the features and engine performance specifications, i20 clearly is the front runner in premium hatchback cars. With its i20 model, Hyundai has been successful in tapping the potential of Maruti Suzuki Swift's market share, which still poses a major threat to the dominance of former. However, as newer cars are propping the ever competitive segment, it would be not surprising to see the market share of i20 dropping by a good margin in near future.