Zigwheels.com is carrying official sketches of Hyundai's assault on the Maruti Suzuki Alto - the 800cc Eon hatchback expected in mid-October. Seasoned automotive journalist and Zigwheels' editor Mr Adil Jal Darukhanawala was invited to drive the Eon in Namyang, Korea. He writes that the acceleration in every gear is seamless, credit to 56 PS @ 5,500 RPM and 75 Nm @ 4,000 RPM from the 814cc SOHC 3-cylinder petrol engine (one cylinder deleted from the i10's IRDE engine).
The report adds that the platform has no connection to existing Hyundai vehicles. Though there are certain parts shared with the i10 and Santro, the exterior form takes the attention away from the common parts.
Hyundai is likely to price three variants of the Eon range (Era, Magna and Asta?) between 2.5-3 lakh rupees (ex-showroom). This puts it bang in the middle of the Alto dominated territory where higher variants of the Tata Nano, Maruti's new 800cc car are expected to land.
The interiors as we speculated, has left visiting journalists impressed. IndianAutosBlog.com was first in bringing details on the Eon's dashboard layout, color and interior detailing.
Image Credit - Puneet Ghai from Team-BHP.com
What do you think about the Eon's design? Do you think the side profile could look less molten? The Fluidic Sculpture design ideology in full blast with flowing lines that swerve in all directions makes one head-turning hatchback. But could they have cut back on the curves and gone easy on the surfacing?
From the spyshots the tail light also feels oversized. Stablemates Alto, Nano and Santro are simple and understated compared to the Eon.
We will have to look at the car in flesh to make a real judgement, but from the photographs it feels as if Hyundai has tried to floor buyers with design.
Do you think the design is too loud for a 800cc hatchback?
[Images Sourced from ZigWheels.com]
