2014 Hyundai Eon 1.0-litre Petrol: Review

The Hyundai Eon is a good city car; of that there is no doubt. Its compact dimensions with a well-packaged interior make it ideal for the first time car buyer who does not want a run-of-the-mill Maruti Suzuki Alto or the Tata Nano. The only drawback until now was its wheezy 800cc 3-cylinder motor. Although brilliant in start-stop traffic conditions, the Eon with its 800cc motor felt very strained when pushed hard. Now though, Hyundai has finally introduced the Eon with smaller capacity version of their tried and tested Kappa engine.

With 69PS of peak power developed at 6200rpm and 94Nm of torque at a healthy 3500rpm, the new 1-litre engine is exactly the shot in the arm the Eon needed to match the likes of the Datsun Go. And the extra 13PS is more than noticeable. Not only does the Eon now demonstrate enough performance for an individual be comfortable driving the tiny Eon on the open highways of our country, the 1.0-litre Kappa engine also syncs with the 5-speed gearbox extremely well.

Gone is the clutch judder and gear lever vibrations at idle; instead the gear shifts are slicker and with a well judged shift feel. In short then, the slightly bigger 1.0-litre, 3 cylinder engine has completely transformed the basic driving feel of the Eon for the better.

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‘With great power comes great responsibility’, said Aunt May. In this case, with more power comes bigger wheels and tyres as standard. The 13-inch wheels fitted with155/70 R13 tyres come standard on the Magna+ variant of the Eon that is the only version the 1.0-litre Kappa engine comes in. That said, the city-tuned suspension is still a little unpredictable on the highway and under high speed cornering.

The Hyundai Eon’s steering setup though still hasn’t changed, which is both a positive and a negative. In the city, the flickable, light and nimble steering make driving the Hyundai Eon 1.0 a doddle. At highway speeds though, the light steering does not weight up as much as expected. The Eon then, is best left for out tight and congested city streets where it excels.

On the exterior front, nothing has changed apart from the addition of a few badges. The eggshell like shape is the only one of its kind in this segment compared to the older looking Maruti Suzuki Alto and the conventional looking Datsun Go. Hyundai’s fluidic design language with large, pulled back headlamps that fuse seamlessly into the body, still looks quite appealing. The large rear tail lamps compliment the tail gate tying up the Eon’s unique look.

On the inside, the Hyundai Eon 1.0-litre, which is available only in the Magna+ variant, comes fully loaded with a factory fitted audio system. The well designed and audio system layout goes well with the multi layered dashboard. The beige and grey interiors with the large and comfortable seats compliments the Eon’s useable proportions well. The front seats, although quite cozy due to its good side support bolsters, lacks good head support.

The rear seats, although quite comfortable are a tad bit too highly raked for our liking. The rear seat space too is adequate enough to fit two average height individuals in comfort although one should not expect the kind of space you get in the Datsun Go. The boot though, is quite spacious and has enough space for an average sized family’s holiday luggage.

The Hyundai Eon 1.0-litre Kappa is priced at Rs 3.83 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi). At this price, it falls right in the melee with the top of the line Datsun Go and the Maruti Suzuki Alto K10. At this price, not only does it make extreme sense for people who want an entry level hatchback for their daily commute but do not want to compromise on power and driving pleasure. The Eon 1.0-litre may not have the dynamic abilities of the Alto or the spacious feel of the Go, but as a package for someone looking for their first car, it is as good as it gets.