Hyundai Exter Review: Micro, Multifaceted, Masterstroke

The Hyundai Exter is a micro-SUV. It is aiming at large volumes for the Koreans in India and subsequently other markets too. It is larger than the popular Korea-only model, Casper, and smaller than the global subcompact SUV, Venue. And it joins what is now the largest single-brand SUV portfolio in the Indian car bazaar.

Hyundai Exter: Exterior

Now when it comes to styling, this one does break the mould, and when it comes to Hyundai cars it also gives us a new design language. let's take a look at some of those details. So split headlamp lights down below DRLs on top plenty of cars have that now so nothing new there but it’s that H motif that will really grab you. Now this motif might show up in many other models so let’s see. But H for Hyundai of course you also see it in the tail light too, so nicely done. It grabs your attention and it gives the car its own identity. Exter badging is the second thing that gives it that identity.

A lot of people might like that it is exaggerated it's like the big SUVs like Range Rover or you know we have seen many Ford models Explorer etc. globally having that kind of badging up front. It is different, it is exaggerated you might think it’s a gimmick. But you know what? I think it works. Parametric shows up in this front grill and also shows up in this little black panel at the back it's glossy piano black with all those little bumps and ridges something different I also like that it seems to be finished well let's see how it ages.

I want to talk a little bit about the way now usually in SUVs all shapes and sizes and different segments there is an exaggeration here because you see a huge wheel, well sometimes the wheel doesn't really fill it nicely this has been done really cleverly because the proportion of the cladding to the actual wheel gap and the wheel size really nice. And gives a good stance, and makes it look really mature and robust as well. And you get 15-inch alloy wheels only at the top end, or as optional 14-inch steel wheels. A 15-inch as well as what standard depending on the variant.

Unconventional styling for a small car I said that it's different. You got lots of cuts and ridges and incongruous surfaces running through the metal. And also through the cladding. It gives the car a really different identity and makes it look wider and more robust as I was saying earlier. And look at this little thing, yeah typically you would have been just a straight line. The gaps and panels would have not been completely incongruous like this.

I like how that's been done and then of course up here again piano black treatment comes in a bit closer and takes a look at the texture and the surfacing that you see on it. That same pattern is also on the C-pillar and it takes what could have been a boring entry car design to a more exciting place. But not everyone will like it perhaps.

Hyundai Exter: Engine & Transmission

It would have been great to have a 1.0-litre or there I say even larger displacement turbo petrol engine on this thing of course what is not to want but I get why we still have just the 1.2 kappa. Now this engine has been around for a long time but I'm pretty impressed with how they managed to keep it going it still got legs this 1.2 because it is nicely refined it gives a sense of refinement it is a gradual sort of delivery of power that you get, so it’s not you know energetic enough compared to a turbo.

But really for a car of this size, the performance is pretty good the refinement really comes through and frankly, it does pretty well. NVH is good the overall experience feels pretty sophisticated, especially at the entry end of the market.

The 1.2-litre, NA makes 81 bhp and gets a decent dose of torque. Yes, yes it could all have been more. But buyers won’t care as much as car reviewers will. The gearbox is where I’d have honestly loved a conventional auto, but here too there’s something to be said with that AMT. First I’m testing the manual though.

Hyundai Exter: Ride & Handling

The manual gearbox tuning is really nice and notchy the way you can get into gears it also pulls through in higher gears quite well, the mid-range torque could have been a little bit more but I can understand how they balance efficiency for performance here on the whole it's pretty satisfying experience but you know what is funny. What is that horn I mean it sounds like one of those little clown cars that brings the clowns out in the middle of the circus for comic relief.

The car’s weight is more than I would have guessed. This tells me Hyundai is serious about improving its structural stiffness and safety of the shell. It feels stiffer for sure. But that’s just a guess at this point. So mileage is not some crazy number, yet it’s a good number. And ride quality is also therefore surprisingly nice.

When this car first got announced all the snarky comments came tumbling out of the social media closet it's a Grand i10 on stilts or worse even the next-generation Santro on stilts. 185 millimetres of ground clearance is great to have especially with bad potholes some of the rain that we are experiencing right now totally helps. The car doesn't feel like it's exaggeratedly tall. It does not have that sense of being bumped up and I like that it drives really nicely with the right quality I always talk about one thing I really like or I don't like you know that the right quality the suspension the way it’s been tuned it's nicely stiff, totally not what you expect on an entry car from Hyundai I like it.

Okay AMT time! Driving any AMT you have to get used to it. So that little bit of a pause that comes in especially when it's upshifting the thing with this one though is that they have now managed to reach a certain level of refinement with AMTs. So this one is kind of on the upper end of that curve which is good because especially on the downshift you don’t really feel the shifts anymore, it is nicely done it does feel pretty smooth. But I say this with that big in brackets “For an AMT”.

But where am I going with this? Well, there is also a bit of a world first at least from what I know. Doing an AMT with a paddle shift now nobody has done that before I will tell you why that's clever firstly having a paddle shift gives you that sense of, having got something very cool and sophisticated, second it gives you that sense of control that you know in regular AMTs you put the car into manual mode any kind of got to go nudging up and down like a Tiptronic it is not the most fun experience.

Here you don't really have to put it into the manual mode you can manipulate straight away using the paddles but basically, you get the sense of control and yet if you forget to change or you know if you sort of delay it a little bit, the cars actuator will still pick it up. So a sense of control a little bit, so sense of control little bit of fanciness and a pretty smartly designed system, kudos Hyundai – that was good engineering.

I’m impressed to see that the gear actuator isn't trigger-happy like old AMTs used to be, kind of holds its gear even if you kind of slow down when you're cruising along let us say 40 or 50 kmph you dip a bit it will hold on to its 4th gear even the 5th in some cases so that is nicely done too.

Hyundai Exter: Prices & Variants

The Exter would have benefitted from a proper auto, but seeing the target buyer, and the competition this will also work. The price difference between AMT and manual variants is a bit steep – considering AMT is meant to be a low-cost auto. I know there’s a paddle shift on some of those variants but I smell margins here.

So of course driving the manual is a little bit more fun, but on the whole, considering our city traffic this is probably the more practical purchase if you are thinking of the Exter. I talked about the ride quality earlier when I was driving the manual but I want to quickly add that the handling is not too bad as well, you get a sense of width on this car which is again good for the entry segment and overall by the steering could be little bit sharper little bit stiffer is a huge improvement compared to previous Hyundai small cars. This one handles pretty well too.

Hyundai Exter: Safety Features

So frankly in many ways, this is the Santro for the 2020s. Makes sense. Everyone wants an SUV. Not everyone has budgeted over Rs. 10 lakh. Ta-da. Is this making more sense now? And it is better appointed, better to drive, and safer. In fact, Hyundai is really turning things up when it comes to safety because many years ago with the Santro they cannot push the market leader Maruti to make rear seat belts standard wasn't the thing.

Now all these years later it's good to see safety being the one thing that is being pushed again by Hyundai and I hope it once again pushes the market too because we are talking about making 6 airbags standard across the entire portfolio. We are talking about making rear seat belt reminders the little ding for the rear passengers too and even 3-point seat belts are standard ISOFIX, this kind of thing is coming in and of course, we talked about potentially having a good crash rating as a good sign, good times, great fun for the market especially at the entry end.

Ok so now you want to know about the crash tests on this car. Well, Hyundai says this car should stand up to a 4 or 5-star rating with Global NCAP’s new more stringent norms. That’s a bold claim, and one I hope delivers. And the other thing I quickly want to mention there is a lot of stuff that has been enhanced in terms of safety, now Hyundai is even talking about the crash capability for the first time talking about global NCAP requirements in its presentation so while we do not have a test yet so I do not have a score to give you.

This confidence from Hyundai that this car will score really well and score with the new protocol at Global NCAP with a pretty high rating it also has seat belt reminders for the rear passengers as well I hope that really helps change some of the habits that we see in India. The car DOES feel better built. The doors also shut with a great ‘thunk’.

Hyundai Exter: Tech & Interior

The space inside matters too right? Well, the Exter is a car with a small footprint, but to check it out inside and it is pretty spacious. I'm really happy with the space I am being offered and the black interiors actually are a standout. Then you have these nice 3D bits up front which gives it a bit of a different look so to say. Now you have this beautiful black shiny plastic that is used right here. And you have the 8-inch display. Now that is not standard, but you get it from the one above. And that's what makes it very interesting.

You also get a digital instrument cluster and which basically displays all the information that you need. And then you can also change the colours inside there. It's an HD system that you get in the top and variant and you get everything from your you know reverse cameras to operations, navigation, and Bluelink connectivity, more than 60 features are on offer there for Bluelink connectivity and the 8-inch system is intuitive, very quick response on either front and really well done by Hyundai I must say.

What is also interesting is that it has also put in voice commands here. So there are about 90 voice commands that you can choose from and 15 of them have been tuned for Hinglish. A bigger 12-inch screen would have set the benchmark in this segment but an 8-inch from the S variant beats what the Punch has to offer when it comes to personalisation and customisation.

The seat upholstery has colour-coordinated stitching and piping with 3 options - Cosmic Blue inserts, Light Sage and Silver and you notice these colours splashed on the AC vents as well. It’s a dash of colour to the otherwise black interiors. Hyundai has managed to give you everything in the top trim and that includes a segment-first Dashcam, very effective and creative, and very much for the selfie gen but it missed out on Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, which is wired but not a deal breaker.

Hyundai Exter: Rear Seat Comfort

The rear seat though will be a challenge especially to get 3 people in, because the shoulder room is not that great. So seating 3 behind is a challenge. Frankly, I do not have much room here, especially on the knee front. Because this seat has been adjusted according to my driving position and it is touch & go. I mean I don't have space here as you can see, but there's a good amount of headroom right here and a good amount of shoulder room too because of the large glass area that you see here there's ample light that comes in so makes a spacious cabin.

You get rear AC vents you get a charging point at the rear, and you also get three-point seatbelts all around in the entire cabin, which is great. You also get ISOFIX child mounts seating and you get a good amount of under-thigh support and you lean back so there's a good amount of space that you can expect right here. Having said that, the big surprise obviously, is the boot space because for a car this size, that boot space is big.

Hyundai Exter: Dimensions

The wheelbase of the Exter is similar to the Grand i10 Nios and it is just 5 mm longer than the Punch and you feel a sense of spaciousness. There’s good knee room but the recline angle on the rear seat is a bit more than one would like though and there’s no armrest provided.

And you can push the rear seats down as well, though having a 60:40 split would have helped improve usability. But the boot space takes you by surprise. Yes indeed! There are 391 litres of it, the Punch gets 366 litres.

Hyundai Exter: Verdict

So good on price, good on build and great on features. The Exter ticks more boxes than I had originally expected it to.

Photography By: Apoorv Choudhary