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The flight getting there was extremely tiring. More than tiring, it was just sheer boring. To top it off, I couldn’t manage to get anything other than the middle seat. There were no aisle seats in the entire #*&@% (add your expletive of choice here) aircraft, no window seat either. “Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me,” and the stern-faced Air India woman at the counter just looked at me emotionless, making amply clear to me that that was it – and I should avoid connecting my thoughts and vocal chords any further.
Now, not that I’m in the habit of initiating conversations with people who are complete strangers, but this, I thought, might be a good way of killing time. And one of my neighbours was a charming lady – so the excitement was heightened as you’d perfectly imagine. But, as much as I wanted to chat, I’m not the kind to walk up to someone and say, ‘hi,’ and start talking for hours. Damn! My neighbour, too, didn’t look the kind. Damn again! So, the situation was reduced to a setting where my head was pointing towards the window – that’s the seat she was in. Not that she was anything great to look at, but the view outside was rather alluring. Still, how much of the endless blue sky and clouds could I ogle at? I was sitting with ‘tilted’ neck because I was wondering if I should start a conversation or not – there was plenty of time to kill, and I was already dreading the flight.
So, after sitting tilted-neck for the better part of half-an-hour, I realised that I didn’t really have the courage – or the inclination anymore – to talk to the girl. I decided to fiddle around with my cell phone. Technology is a brilliant thing – and thank goodness I can get my head around tech without too much of a fight or head-scratching. After all, I’ve been fortunate to belong to a generation that’s been at the epicentre of the technological shift in India. The way cell phones have progressed in the past decade is simply baffling.
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I recollect the days when we used to have cell phones that were the size of a brick. Motorola’s Talkabout and Nokia 5110, for example, were as big as my arm. That’s an exaggeration, but you get my point. It was a big thing to be carrying a mobile phone those days. Incoming was charged more than what you get charged making an ISD call today, and outgoing attracted a per-minute cost of what can now buy you a McDonald’s meal for lunch.
But things have moved on, and now the war between network providers is forcing the call costs to come down to as low as a Rupee for, well, I don’t know – 5 minutes! And, it’s not just the network providers, the phone manufacturers are getting better at their game too. The rate at which smart-phones are hitting the market makes my relatively high-specced Android device seem already at the brink of being last-gen. But it will suffice for a few months at least – or a year, I hope. There are amazing software versions and applications out there, and after I fiddled around with the ones I’d installed, I finally got down doing what is actually the best way to invest your free time – by something worthwhile, reading.
The PDF reader opened the digital form of one of my favourite auto publications in the world – a hugely respected international mag which has no equal anywhere. I used to save up for almost 6 months just to buy a single issue. I would even call my sister and ask her to send me the issues as they hit the shelves in the UK. Mind you, this was 10 years ago, and there was no free download, or torrent, and the idea of a digital magazine was far removed from reality.
So, I got busy reading. And then I got engrossed. It was the Lancia Stratos on the (e) pages – one of the most exciting sports cars to have ever been produced. I’ve never driven a Stratos – or even touched one for that matter. The closest I’ve come to experiencing sheer driving pleasure has been thanks to the Porsche Cayman – not even the Nissan 370Z or BMW Z4, let alone any sports sedan, came close. But just reading about the Stratos gave me a thrill, and I longed to – no, lusted to – drive it. I still do. But, the Stratos – an entirely impractical mid-engined supercar – represented the absolute opposite of what I was about to experience when this #*&@% (you know what to do) flight was to finally land, and I was to find myself in the driver’s seat of the new Hyundai Verna – an entirely practical four-door family car. After a briefing, lunch, and many loud greetings, we got going. Coimbatore to Kodaikanal was nearly a 200 kilometer drive that was sprinkled with a ghat section to enjoy. But would the new Verna be up to the task? Such was our schedule that we’d be driving through the afternoon and staying overnight at Kodai, before heading back to Coimbatore the next morning.
The highways down south are completely unlike those in the North – say the popular Delhi-Jaipur section, which is supposed to be a good stretch of road, but the traffic congestion simply robs you of any feel-good factor whatsoever. So, the smooth roads, and sparse traffic on the Coimbatore-Kodaikanal stretch was a welcome relief. And if you’re the kind of person who enjoys travelling by road, you’d agree that great views framing the tarmac demand a good long-distance touring car – to fully appreciate the experience. It’s a good car that completes the experience. So, what of the Verna? On the first day, I was driving the 1.6 litre diesel with a manual gearbox. Hyundai has a history of doing good diesels.
The Accent’s 3-pot motor wasn’t too bad back in the day – and the earlier Verna, Getz, and i20, all either had or have stonking diesels. The new Verna is the same story – only, it’s even better. The power band exists between 2000 and 4000 revs, and the motor propels the car with such brutal force that it becomes almost immediately enjoyable. The gearbox is by far the best to have been fitted into a Hyundai – it’s precise and slides easily through the cogs, but isn’t as involving or direct as the Fiesta or City. And the lever placement itself requires you to move your arm a bit too far back if you’re tall. Well, we do our reviews with a focus on driving dynamics, and don’t normally romanticise things like a chrome-lined fog lamp casings. But, at the price point the Verna is likely to be positioned, it’s hard to ignore the equipment list it boasts. You get a glove compartment that keeps your drinks cool, and an inside-rear-view-mirror that throws up the view of what’s happening at the back when you’re reversing – which is very helpful. Then there are the usual suspects – airbags, ABS, iPod and USB connectivity, Bluetooth, etc. – that’ll keep you satisfied about spending somewhere in the range of 10 lakhs of your money at the top end. Neat!
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Doing a bit of driving after sundown, we reached the hotel and called it a day after our share of beers, laughs, and stories around a bonfire. The next morning, our departure was scheduled for 9am, but a few of us woke up early to take care of photography. The morning air was crisp, the sun was tender, and the roads were completely empty. I got to lay my hands on both the automatic diesel and the manual petrol this time. I expected the auto, being a 4-speed, to be a hilarious waste – but no, it was almost spot-on. Yes, the ‘box’ shifted slowly, but the ratios are sorted, and make it the perfect car for a congested metropolitan city. Nevertheless, the 1.6 litre petrol engine is – putting it plainly – the motor I’d have.
I accept that the 1.6 diesel has more punch and the sensation of speed is more pronounced, but the overall feel of the petrol engine is much more involving. It’s very linear and doesn’t mind getting revved – more importantly, completely unlike the diesel, this thing can deliver from anything as low as 1000 revs to as high as 5500 revs. I remember the time when the Verna first came out here. I was working with another auto publication and we had done an East-to-West drive with all the mid-sized cars. And somewhere deep in Maharashtra, we encountered a long, empty patch of road. My then colleague, Karan, was driving the Fiesta 1.6 and I was piloting the Verna. We were doing around 160km/h when I saw Karan in my rear-view, closing in fast, and before I knew it he was past me – with an unkind gesture and a happy smile. But the new Verna has moved the game up several notches. I suspect that the Fiesta will still make you feel more alive, but the Verna will surely match it for pace – in a straight line. But, come the bends, and the flaws in the setup start showing.
The suspension is soft and it’ll bottom out if you hit an undulation on the road at speed. It’s good and comfy for city use, but on the highways, especially the sweeping sections, there’s no escaping the body roll. On twisting roads, while descending the ghat at speed, I was being thrown from left to right all the time – thank goodness I was holding on to the steering wheel, which seemed to have been there specifically for that purpose. I say that because it didn’t weigh up at speed, and made the Verna feel quite nervous. But, getting practical, once again – I think this is a very good and competent car, and keeping in mind the expected price range of 7 to 10 lakhs, and the high levels of equipment, it should be extremely good value for money too. It’s certainly the best looking mid-sized sedan we have in the market currently – better even than the Honda City, and it rides very well to boot. The cabin is rich and made of good quality plastics, while the seats are comfortable and well bolstered.
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Cabin space too is more than adequate. But it doesn’t quite live up to its ‘fluidic’ tag – it just isn’t fluid going down a twisting mountain road. As I said before, it’s a good car that completes the experience. And I was virtually there. The Verna would have been more than enough within the confines of Coimbatore, or even on the stretches of straight highway, but my blast through the ghats had the Verna writing out cheques it couldn’t cash. So, high on looks and features, but low on true driver involvement, just about says it all.
Hyundai Verna:
Engine: 1591cc / 4 Cylinder / DOCH / 16 Valves / VTVT | 1582cc / 4 Cylinder / DOHC / 16 Valves / CRDi
Fuel: Petrol | Diesel
Transmission: 6-Speed Manual or 4-Speed Automatic / Front Wheel Drive | 6-Speed Manual or 4-Speed Automatic / Front Wheel Drive
Power: 122bhp @ 6300rpm | 126bhp @ 4000rpm
Torque: 156Nm @ 4200rpm | 260Nm @ 1900–2750rpm
XFactor:Looks great. 1.6 litre engines are impressive, and comes packed with a long equipment list.
May 11
