[blueblooded]

Dear BHPians,

I have finally fallen for an EON. This decision was quite difficult as I have to contend with multiple competitors for the final selection.

The process started with the oppressive summer heat in this part of country (Eastern Uttar Pradesh). The day time temperature has been programmed to remain above 40 for last month. Moreover, the maximum diurnal temperature is hovering around 45 degree celcium for at least a week.

In this heat ,my jeeps 1.MM540 and another MM CJ500D are like ovens on wheels and its almost impossible to go outside post 8am and ante 5pm, but we cant remain stuck at one place...we need to venture outside at least to visit one's family doctor. It seemed as if we are going to sublimate in sun.

Now my current rides - Fiat punto is with my kid bro and the Innova is with dad.

So I was vehicle less for almost a month

Now , going by the Team-BHP reviews on EON boosted my confidence and tilted the balance in favor of EON.
I test drove it as the taste of the pudding is in the eating!.

The points I noticed during the test drive are -

1. The AC is very effective even in the rear bench - a definite plus ,given the hot summers here in UP

2.Pretty good ergonomics and the interiors are quite good as compared to the competitors

3.Good suspension in its category

4.The LPG -advantage

5.The bootspace is again quite good

6.Foldable rear bench seats for the occasional shopping spree.

The claim of the best in class average needs further corroboration

Now the dislikes

1.Sometimes the engine seems under powered

2.Petrol -its really very costly .

3.AC makes the engine strain a bit in stop and go traffic ,this problem is more pronounced in LPG mode .

4.Sometimes the vehicle gives certain unexplained jerk ,both under petrol and LPG mode ,it seems as if the engine is choked of fuel -experts please do elaborate.

My requirements were.

1.A small and value for money car which even my wifey can drive

2.Being used to big boot space of Punto and Innova ,I cant do without a good boot

3.The budget should be around 3.50 lakhs

4.The good after sales ,as i have really suffered a lot owing to Tata fiat dealers poor after sales services with my punto and palio .

Now the following cars were in contention considering i was not prepared to invest beyond 3.50lakh

1.Maruti alto-a)Best car in its range due to
I)Very good average in its segment
II) Maruti after sales is industry benchmark
III)Good build quality

On the downside
1).Wifey wants a more contemporary car -Alto is arguably quite traditional looking despite the new looks and K10 engine
2.AC not as effective as the EON.

2.Spark-A GM product ,GM is still to come out clean post the sub prime crisis and reportedly it has down scaled its Indian R&D operations

Though the Spark is a good product with a lot of freebies, still the GM after sales service is not at part with HYUNDAI.

3.Beat -over designed and too flashy looks along with the GM after sales.

So finally at the base of the pyramid, we have only few cars to think about .
Hyundai EON-LPG, Maruti Alto ,Chevrolet Spark, Beat.

The decision tilted towards the Hyundai, despite the various perceived and real shortcomings

Now regarding the buying experience , we started with the Hyundai Dealer near our place -i.e. KRISHNA HYUNDAI .

We reached the agency riding our MM CJ500D in sweltering pre monsoon Heat at 12 noon sharp.
We were properly greeted at KRISHNA HYUNDAI and offered chilled water
The Sales executives provided us all the details.
I gravitated towards the EON delight+ LPG .
I was quoted Rs 377665
As the promotional offer the Insurance was being provided free -ie.Rs 9100/-
So now the on the road price came to Rs 368565/-

Later on ,I ringed another Hyundai dealer -Ganpati Hyundai,which offered me Rs 2500/- cash discount over and above the final price quoted by KRISHNA HYUNDAI. When I haggled a bit more ,they agreed to provide remote lock of minda FOC.

Thus ,the competition pays and consumer truly gains if one has patience and a bit of bargaining prowess.

1.The interiors are quite good as compared to the competitors

2.The AC is very effective even in the rear bench-a definite plus ,given the hot summers here in UP

3.Though it lacked the
Moreover, the SA offered all the accessories minus music system

Finally I bought the EON on 15th of june.

I am loving my current ride a true value for money product .

One thing which is conspicuous by its absence is the temperature meter. Though, I suppose that overheating would never be a problem in the engine but still temperature gauge would have given us a peace of mind .
Now talking about the city driving , its good enough and one can easily roam in town, but the poor low end torque would definitely be an irritant . The is OK and definitely not as good as my punto ,but what one pays is what one gets.

The suspension can take small potholes without losing its cool but one is in for a nasty jerk from big potholes.
It is not a fun to drive car but one can easily juggle the city traffic owing to its compact size.

Now the seats are really great and do provide very good all round support ,the contours at the sides provides added comfort .Thankfully the front leg room is even sufficient for 6 footers as one can slide seats towards rear.

As I only have 130 kms on this car, so whatever I have said must not be taken as a final verdict ,and the thorough study of highway behaviour of this car requires some more days

regards

Now
Praveen Singh

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Initial Ownership Section. Thanks for sharing!

[aaggoswami]

Originally Posted by blueblooded

1.Sometimes the engine seems under powered

3.AC makes the engine strain a bit in stop and go traffic ,this problem is more pronounced in LPG mode .

4.Sometimes the vehicle gives certain unexplained jerk ,both under petrol and LPG mode ,it seems as if the engine is choked of fuel -experts please do elaborate.

5.One thing which is conspicuous by its absence is the temperature meter. Though, I suppose that overheating would never be a problem in the engine but still temperature gauge would have given us a peace of mind .
Now talking about the city driving , its good enough and one can easily roam in town, but the poor low end torque would definitely be an irritant .

1) The engine has just about sufficient power for city driving. For highways, its not that good.

3) It does. In B2B traffic, this problem is really irritating.

4) Try changing spark plugs and cables. Both LPG and CNG need different sparkplugs and better cables. Adjusting the sparkplug gap can also help. But remember, this has to be done by really an expert, else things can get worse. Considering that your vehicle is new, another set of sparkplugs might not be needed, but do have a word with a few garages, they know which plugs to install for alternative fuel. I have seen multiple cases of jerks and most of them are solved by new set of plugs and better cables. Moreover, if the car is jerking even in petrol atleast you can try this :
Disconnect the battery for atleast 20 mins. This takes back whatever the ECU has "learnt" and mostly jerks atleast in petrol mode would disappear.

PS : I am speaking this from my own experience. Your car may or may not respond to the battery disconnect work as it does with other models. Then a complete tuneup job will be required IMO.

5) Absence of temp gauge is really irritating, agree with you. Regarding low end torque, atleast Eon wont stall and there is some torque available. The K10 Waggie I have has even worse low end torque, but it gets significantly better as rpm rises.

[blueblooded]

Originally Posted by aaggoswami

1) The engine has just about sufficient power for city driving. For highways, its not that good.

3) It does. In B2B traffic, this problem is really irritating.

4) Try changing spark plugs and cables. Both LPG and CNG need different sparkplugs and better cables. Adjusting the sparkplug gap can also help. But remember, this has to be done by really an expert, else things can get worse. Considering that your vehicle is new, another set of sparkplugs might not be needed, but do have a word with a few garages, they know which plugs to install for alternative fuel. I have seen multiple cases of jerks and most of them are solved by new set of plugs and better cables. Moreover, if the car is jerking even in petrol atleast you can try this :
Disconnect the battery for atleast 20 mins. This takes back whatever the ECU has "learnt" and mostly jerks atleast in petrol mode would disappear.

PS : I am speaking this from my own experience. Your car may or may not respond to the battery disconnect work as it does with other models. Then a complete tuneup job will be required IMO.

5) Absence of temp gauge is really irritating, agree with you. Regarding low end torque, atleast Eon wont stall and there is some torque available. The K10 Waggie I have has even worse low end torque, but it gets significantly better as rpm rises.

Today I spoke to the Sales executive about the recurrent jerks .I was promptly told to report to the workshop wherein the mechanic brought the ecu reader and started tinkering with the car,when I asked to explain what was he doing -he tried to evade any answer and behaved as if I was no where around ,this really made me lose my cool ,still again I insisted upon being told what was being done with my car ,he curtly told me that its beyond my ken .
This unpalatable incident really shook me as I was having an impression that hyundai after sales and customer relations are industry benchmark .
In vain they tried to upgrade the ECU software ,only realise after full half an hour of exercise that no updates are required for 2012 make vehicles .
Initially the mechanic reset the ECU by disconnecting the battery terminal and ECU connection for 10 seconds.
The cars performance did improve post the hit and trial exercise ,but the occasional jerks still show their ugly face .
I would definitely in no mood to let go,but lets see what their response is
One thing I would like to ask ,should I use the precious petrol during honeymoon (read initial 5000kms) to better run in the engine or is it safe to take gas route .
regards
praveen singh

[deehunk]

Buddy you have purchased a LPG car which runs with an outdated technology of closed loop system where the vehicle runs like a semi-carburetor by fooling your ECU unlike in petrol where fuel injection is controlled by a dedicated ECU. Hyundai LPG vehicles have never been a hit because they charge a premium price for LPG vehicles and use an outdated technology. In this kind of system the spark plugs have to be checked every 5-8k km and replaced, the vaporizer has to be cleaned every 5000km. The people in *** have no clue of a LPG vehicle and you better find a good tuner in your city and rely on him. Because you have bought this vehicle you have to learn to live with it as it is, dont expect any miracle in the performance of LPG mode by ECU tuning as the kit itself is a problem. Check for more information on this link about LPG kits Go LPG - Which type of LPG conversion do you need?. Good luck and keep this post updated. Please share the photo of engine bay if possible, cheer up and enjoy your new car.

[esteem_lover]

Originally Posted by aaggoswami

4) Try changing spark plugs and cables. Both LPG and CNG need different sparkplugs and better cables. Adjusting the sparkplug gap can also help. But remember, this has to be done by really an expert, else things can get worse. Considering that your vehicle is new, another set of sparkplugs might not be needed, but do have a word with a few garages, they know which plugs to install for alternative fuel. I have seen multiple cases of jerks and most of them are solved by new set of plugs and better cables.

I am not sure changing cables or plugs will do any kind of difference. This is probably due to the fuel running too lean. Like suggested earlier by deehunk, do not trust the Hyundai A.S.S for tuning your LPG car, get to a good LPG installer/tuner.

[blueblooded]

My bad ,I am really shocked to learn this that i bought a vehicle which is not what I expected it to be .Now I regret my decision of buying a Hyundai LPG .Moreover I made a unwarranted haste in my buying decision without proper research and it has really backfired I warn the potential buyers to be really fastidious in spending their hard earned money
regards
praveen singh

[deehunk]

Please share the photo of your engine bay to see how the LPG kit looks inside. In i10 irde 1.1 litre engine they retained Santro engine which had CI intake manifold, closed loop system can be used with these manifolds and there is no risk of fire. In i10 Kappa engine Hyundai used fire resistant plastic intake manifold , all new cars these days comes with plastic intake manifolds. There is always a backfiring in LPG mode and these manifolds carry a risk of fire mishap so a closed loop system kits cannot be used in cars with plastic manifolds as per Pandian(expert in LPG conversion). To save on cost during assembly they have probably continued using old technology.

[esteem_lover]

Originally Posted by blueblooded

My bad ,I am really shocked to learn this that i bought a vehicle which is not what I expected it to be .Now I regret my decision of buying a Hyundai LPG .Moreover I made a unwarranted haste in my buying decision without proper research and it has really backfired I warn the potential buyers to be really fastidious in spending their hard earned money
regards
praveen singh

Don't be too hard on yourself. I am sure you can tune it to your needs. Air filter is something that has to be constantly checked in a LPG car. Also make sure there is the right mix of air & fuel (Don't know how you do it in a ECU car).

[aaggoswami]

Originally Posted by esteem_lover

I am not sure changing cables or plugs will do any kind of difference. This is probably due to the fuel running too lean. Like suggested earlier by deehunk, do not trust the Hyundai A.S.S for tuning your LPG car, get to a good LPG installer/tuner.

Even if fuel is not too lean, the stock sparks are not known to last more than 5K kms. Even on factory fresh cars, sparkplugs have to be changed or gap is adjusted. The fine tuning is adjusting the gap such that the car does not jerk in either petrol or LPG mode. This can be done by experienced mechs only. There have been numerous complains of car not jerking on LPG, but then giving jerks in petrol mode.

Relying on outside tuners/mechs may result into void warranty, that is what I have heard atleast in my city.

Originally Posted by deehunk

Buddy you have purchased a LPG car which runs with an outdated technology of closed loop system where the vehicle runs like a semi-carburetor by fooling your ECU unlike in petrol where fuel injection is controlled by a dedicated ECU. Hyundai LPG vehicles have never been a hit because they charge a premium price for LPG vehicles and use an outdated technology. In this kind of system the spark plugs have to be checked every 5-8k km and replaced, the vaporizer has to be cleaned every 5000km. The people in *** have no clue of a LPG vehicle and you better find a good tuner in your city and rely on him. Because you have bought this vehicle you have to learn to live with it as it is, dont expect any miracle in the performance of LPG mode by ECU tuning as the kit itself is a problem.

But is closed loop not a better system overall and more advanced ? Do update me on this. Also, the known problem with vaporizer is either some ring or gasket. That is what I have heard. LPG products from Hyundai have not picked up the way CNG products of Maruti have. As mentioned above, going to outside mechanic may void the warranty.

[edges]

I am planning to buy i10-lpg or wagonR-lpg or eon-lpg.this would be my second car apart from the ANHcity and trading the 15 year old m800.
eon-lpg is ruled out as the jerk problems are very noticed the moment from the first gear and even in second gear as this would generally be the most shifted gears in the city driving conditions.
Loved the test drive on the i10-lpg.good pickup both in petrol and un-noticed drop when shifted to lpg mode simultaneously.
I havnt driven the k10 engine wagonR as they the company doesnt have the lpg variant test drive.will be testing the petrol variant today just for the feel.
Coming to the lpg kits in the these cars.please update(deehunk,aaggoswami,esteem lover) which car should i buy?

Thanks

[ani_meher]

Originally Posted by edges

I am planning to buy i10-lpg or wagonR-lpg or eon-lpg....
Coming to the lpg kits in the these cars.please update(deehunk,aaggoswami,esteem lover) which car should i buy?

Thanks

I would say consider Spark LPG. It's reviews were very good. And GM as a company has come ahead many miles from their recession-time hardship. In India especially, Chevrolet is well settled as a brand, as can be confirmed by numerous Taveras running around as taxis!

I have heard not so good things about WagonR LPG, but whoever owned Spark LPG was all praises for it.

[deehunk]

Closed loop systems are an improvement only over the open loop system used in early days. It uses a single point mixer and vaporiser similar to open loop system, the difference is the mixture is controlled by a mixture controller. The mixture controller reads mixture information from the vehicle's Oxygen or Lambda sensor mounted in the exhaust. The actuator in the form of stepper motor a type of valve, which moves in and out to vary the amount of gas allowed into the engine. This is the only improvement it has over an open loop system. In a MPFI vehicle it uses an emulator to switch off the Petrol injectors and 'fool' the ECU into 'thinking' that those injectors are still working.


Sequential injection kits as the name tells has the ability to inject gas in a sequential manner, similar to new petrol vehicles. This system has its own ECU and also uses data from the vehicle's Petrol ECU and works in conjunction with it enabling the driver automatic fuel switch over system.

I used a Spark LPG earlier and was happy with the performance in LPG mode. GM was the first company to introduce the sequential injection kits in India in Spark and the car had passed Euro crash test norms in 2009 itself. There is automatic swich over from LPG to Petrol and vice-versa so no worry of getting stranded on road if gas gets empty. There was no special service required except replacing parts like Fuel filter, Solenoid valve and Spark plugs at 15k km interval. I used it for 2 years and now my friend is using it from 1 year performance has remained same. In fact BEAT LPG has much more advanced safety features than any LPG vehicle in India.

[shivkumar19]

Originally Posted by blueblooded

My bad ,I am really shocked to learn this that i bought a vehicle which is not what I expected it to be .Now I regret my decision of buying a Hyundai LPG .Moreover I made a unwarranted haste in my buying decision without proper research and it has really backfired I warn the potential buyers to be really fastidious in spending their hard earned money
regards
praveen singh

My dear friend, do not worry I have been driving Wagon R LPG past 5 + years and initially too felt the same way you are feeling. But as time passed got used to the little jerks and the low initial pick up. But think on the brighter side LPG is cheaper than petrol and diesel.

[blueblooded]

Originally Posted by shivkumar19

My dear friend, do not worry I have been driving Wagon R LPG past 5 + years and initially too felt the same way you are feeling. But as time passed got used to the little jerks and the low initial pick up. But think on the brighter side LPG is cheaper than petrol and diesel.

Dear Shiv,you have been using a maruti -with legendary performance all along .So Hyundai has to learn hell lot ,despite so much of flamboyance and high pitch advertisement
So I erred on the wrong side ,lets see how the whole affairs turn out to be.
Moreover has anyone gone through similar problems in EON LPG earlier,in that case his opinion would be very helping.
Well ,there is no point in crying over spilt milk ,so I would be doing my bit to get my car in best of shape .
regards
Praveen Singh