Hyundai Exter: An Year Long Ownership Experience That Left Us Wanting For More

The smallest SUV in Hyundai’s India lineup, the Exter, became part of our garage back in October 2023. More than a year later, it’s time for it to go back to Hyundai, and to our surprise, splitting ways with the Exter is harder than we thought it would be. It has left a longing impression on each of our endeavors, and trust us when we say, there have been plenty of them with over 20,000 kms clocked on the odometer. In this story, we take a look at a few of its characteristics that stood out during this period.

The Compact Form Factor

The Hyundai Exter is a car that benefits from the pros of an SUV, without suffering from the cons of one. What that means is that while it does have the stance and the ground clearance of a butch SUV, its actual size is actually smaller than a few hatchbacks. This unique formula works really well, where you can make your way through traffic or a narrow street without dropping a sweat. And the same applies for when you need to tackle ungodly speedbreakers or rough roads, as its ground clearance and tall stance gives you the confidence to march on. Best of both worlds.

The Comfort Factor

The Exter is surprisingly comfortable for a small car. Its seats feel supportive and comfortable for averaged sized individuals. Despite spending hours inside the cabin on a single stretch (on multiple occasions), there were never signs of any aches, pains or numbness. And despite the compact dimensions, there’s absolutely nothing to complain about in terms of the space on offer for a family of four. Just wish there was an armrest up front and back, which would’ve improved the comfort and space even more. 

The comfort factor extends into its ride quality as well, wherein it soaks up pretty much everything without too much movement in the cabin. It feels planted at higher speeds too and gives you confidence at triple digit speeds.

The Smooth Factor

With over 20,000 kms clocked, we’ve put the Exter’s 1.2-litre 4-cylinder NA petrol through various terrains and drives. Everyone who got behind the wheel of it had one thing to say – the engine is a smooth operator. It might not be thrilling to drive, but it's refined and gives you a relaxed driving experience. The manual transmission is easy to use, even in heavy city traffic, and there’s an option of an automatic transmission as well, which comes with the added convenience of paddle shifters. Combine this trait with its comfortable ride quality and you have a rather friendly road trip companion when driven in a relaxed manner.

The Tech Factor

Hyundai vehicles and technology are two things that go hand in hand, and there is no discrimination in the case of the Exter. An 8-inch infotainment system with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay takes care of all your entertainment needs, while the 4.2-inch MID display relays all information in a precise and easy-to-read manner. 

However, that’s your usual tech package, which feels nothing out of the box until you dig a little deeper. The infotainment system’s user interface (UI) supports multiple regional languages (including 2 international languages), which can be selected as per your preference. Moreover, the Exter also sports Hyundai’s Bluelink connected car technology with over 60 features, which you can use to remotely control various functions of your car with the convenience of your smartphone. You can also sync your smartwatch with Bluelink for even more usability. 

If that’s not enough, it further gets Alexa and Google Voice assistant as part of its Home to car (H2C) tech, which can be used for sourcing various vehicle information and controlling various functions via your Amazon Alexa speakers. 

These are just the convenience part of things and the Exter takes safety rather seriously too. Of course, it gets an extensive list of features including six airbags and a host of electronic aids, but its dashcam is what stands out. It was the first in its price point to get this feature right from the factory, and it comes with dual (front & rear) cameras, which supports full HD video resolution. Sweet!

It was fun while it lasted, our time with the Exter. On the whole, it is an all-rounder that ticks all the right boxes without breaking your bank. No wonder that the Hyundai Exter was the Indian Car Of The Year in 2023. Well deserved!