I am writing this review after spent five months on Hatchback cars. I understand there will be big confusion on select hatchback cars because of close competition. I believe this review will help you to some extent on judge the car selection on Petrol fuel type Selection criteria set was Cost of car - 4.75 Lacs INR Max On-road price, Key features of AC, Power Steering, Central lock, Front power windows, Space, Luxury look for the money value. In this condition, Santro Xing, i-10, Ford Figo, Wagon R, Toyota Etios Liva, Alto K-10 falls in the cost of car. Alto K-10 is removed due to luxury look and Figo for space(Height). Santro Xing - Old model with near future production stop from Hyundai assumed. So removed.
Toyota Etios Liva - Interior quality is dull compared to others, Gear shift had draw back when drove test and engine sound was high. Hence removed. Wagon-R and i-10 are close match together, Wagon-R is improved well in failure of gear shift to cable type gear shift having 20K cheap than i-10. But luxury look is low compared with i10 and gear shift as well. So, I went to i-10 Era, i-10 is a great hatchback with lucury look. i-10 have better plastic quality interior and smooth gear shift with no engine. I cannot comment on mileage now but received 21.2 KM/Litre in last two days of travel. i.10 has i-shift engines and drivelines. In My view, It is better to go for 1.1 irde2 engine model as Kappa engine has additional valve trains which consumes more oils may guide to drain engine lubricants. It depends on in-dividual decision. Hyundai service is better and their guidance on maintain new purchase car to get max output power is well. It is important for you to review all of the features when you drive your car from dealership. i.e.
Check tailgate fit, toolkits, first-aid kit, apply anti-rust coating below chassis, upgrade seat covers with discount from dealership, check tachometers, odometers, fuel gauge, windwipers, engine sound and idle condition and sound on high RPM. For get a good performance, drive your i-10 a long drive for first 500KM having a speed of 50-70KM/hr. It is important because new vehicle is manufactured and set all oils but oils were not applied through passage of motive parts.
This long drive with several minutes drive will help oil drain system allow to enter all of the wear portions help to drastically reduce the wear and tear of the engine and drive line parts. Ensure that you drive in a highway consistently to set your engine for your driving condition and set the good mileage. Pl. avoid short drive for first 500KM. Drive in straight road enable your tyre to resist and reduce load on engines. It is more of like a person going first to a Gym. i.e Give less weight/power/torque to the engine for initial days enable engine to take it stength to next level and then set your engine on your sytle of driving. I can confident in say that Hyundai i-10 is the best option out of all low cost hatchback available in India.
Thanks for reading the above factors and congrats for your decision