Hyundai Eon review, test drive

Hyundai is gunning for the Alto with the Eon. How good is it?

Published on Dec 05, 2011 05:17:00 PM

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The Eon doesn't look built to a cost

Good plastic quality and excellent fit and finish make Eon cabin a nice place to be

Eon's three-cylinder, 814cc petrol engine.

Slip past the Eon’s wide-opening front door and you’ll be convinced you’ve got more than your money’s worth. The quality of plastics is good enough to belong on the bigger and pricier i10. Fit and finish is really good and there is nothing visibly low-rent about the cabin; except for the old-fashioned door locks on top of the sill. The beige plastics on the lower portion of the cabin further enhance the upmarket feeling.

The dashboard itself is smartly styled, with the centre console following the hexagonal theme of the Eon’s frontal styling. The dull silver trim also adds a touch of class here. The central AC vents are small and, expectedly, do not have a wide spread. We liked the large, easy-to-use knobs for the AC controls and also the convenient placement of the Aux/USB ports on the music system. The simple instruments that include a speedometer, fuel gauge and temperature gauge (there’s no rev counter) are easy to read on the move. A small digital readout here also indicates ideal gears for best fuel economy. Hyundai has scooped out a useful storage cavity on the top of the glovebox that is large enough to hold a bottle. The front door pockets can also a hold a bottle each and the big glovebox is very useful too.

Drivers will appreciate the good visibility out of the front windscreen, though the thick A pillars do create a small blind spot at T-junctions. Finding a good driving position is simple, and is made easier still by the tilt-adjust steering available on higher variants. Back support from the slender, single-piece front seats is quite good, but their tapering shape means your shoulders are left unsupported. The fixed headrests are a tad short too.

Entering or exiting the rear seat is not all that straightforward and requires you to angle your feet to avoid touching the body. Space at the back is comparable to the Alto’s but much less than in the Tata Nano, which remains the benchmark for roominess. Rear kneeroom is adequate so long as the front occupant doesn’t push his seat all the way back. Headroom, however,
is not all that good. Also, the narrow rear windows make the Eon feel smaller than it is. Passengers in the back will also have to make do with a slightly short seat squab and limited shoulder support.

Boot space, at 215 litres, is quite good for a car this size. You can even fold the rear seats when more space is needed. However, the loading lip is high and slightly narrow too.

The Eon is sold in six variants covering a wide price span. While the base D-lite variant does without basics like air conditioning or power steering, the top spec Sportz model we tested featured a CD player with USB and Aux capability, front power windows, keyless entry and steering tilt-adjust.