[tangiblewish]

Introduction:-

This is my first time posting on this portal and I am feeling extremely privileged to do so. I have been reading this forum since childhood and finally today, a car enthusiast in me will be describing my ownership experience in utmost detail and some of these details are not present even on youtube or any other forum. I will try to be as detailed and categorised as possible.

A bit of my car ownership history:-

The first car officially owned by me was a 2006 WagonR VXI facelift with a 4 cylinder 1.1 litre gem of an engine. Bought it from a known friend of mine in my society who deals in cars in his free time. I will cover it's unique story in another thread but after selling that car, I had a privilige to own a Hyundai Verna 1.6 CRDI Diesel automatic (4 Speed H matic as Hyundai describes it) owned by my another neighbour who was a lawyer and a senior citizen now. I got my car through the same guy (in my society) who showed me my previos WagonR and took a very hefty 60K+ commission on Verna which I came to know very late.

Details about the car:-

I bought the car this year in April. The car is 2015 manufactured and 2016 registered and I was assured from the guy that the kilometres were genuine and I trusted him despite my younger brother who is now 16 years old telling me to verify the history from Hyundai before buying (My first mistake). The odo read 82K kilometres and I was assured that all services were done in company till date which stands very true and explains the great condition of the car.

Since the model is SX Automatic, I have all 4 disc brakes as standard even though this is a Verna 4S! For me, 4S stands for 4 speed as it makes utmost sense to me lol. By the time Hyundai released this car and sold for almost 1.5-2 years, they have fixed almost every complaints they received from customers regarding Fluidic Verna. So I have tilt and telescopic steering, a damn good suspension setup surprisingly and a more fuel efficient 1.6 CRDI U2 engine with low friction coating on the pistons. I have it all except for rear AC vents but thats okay since the AC in general is super chilled. The supreme Harmon Kardon 6 speaker setup is a gem to have stock along with 6 Airbags.

A small thing to note is that Hyundai removed rear armrest cupholders and headrest in the 4S. Like seriously why would they do that. It makes zero sense to me but anyways let's not get distracted and enjoy the eye candies attached below
PS: I absolutely love the way this car looks and I am so picky about the little design details and overall proportions of a car and this car is just stunning. The thick black border between hood and grill still haunts me to this date tho.












Purchase price and my own expense till date:-

• 5.25 Lakh car price
• 13K transfer fee
• 5K for two missing parking sensors (Hyundai original)
• 6k Fluids change and general service
• 32K tyres (Continental UC6)
• 6K New Amaron battery (few days ago)
• Other expenses including repairs:- 15k which includes cracked hoses and fixing intercooler pipe. More on that later.

Some insights upon the choice of this car:-:-

I just wanted a fuel efficient diesel sedan because for some reason sedan is the only car type which I like. WagonR gave me 9KMPL in city with AC and that was so heavy on my pocket and I bought it for learning anyways. My options were Ciaz and City after ruling out germans as I wanted cheap repairability as well. And then out of the blue, I stumbled upon this beauty and was instantly convinced upon buying it.

Before buying this car from my village, my dad who is a Mechanical Engineer and a car enthusiast test drove it and was genuinely impressed with the performance and condition. I came from Ahmedabad (workplace) to my native place and drove the car myself. This was my first automatic car in life and I honestly wasn't even looking for one. When I felt the 128BHP power myself, I was willing to lose a bit of fuel economy for the power and convenience in city that this car offered. I was a bit disappointed upon hearing about the 4 Speed transmission tho but then turned into a fan of it.

Finally, the ownership experience with good and bad experiences so far (TRAMSISSION SECTION IS SUPER IMPORTANT):-

At the time of buying before the full payment was done, I drove it multiple times and noted that upon full throttle when the VGT spools up at max potential with a beautiful hiss that it makes at around 1800-2500 RPM, there was a very weird sound which nobody picked up till date. the best description would be that there was a scream at the full turbo potential just like a supercharged dodge challenger and this was concerning!! I got this checked with the mechanic and turns out that the intercooler pipe connecting to the turbo had some small oil leak and I got that pipe replaced and have never seen the leak again. Then beautiful hiss was restored without the whistle scream and the car returned to normal. AC vents were broken as seen on most of the fluidic vernas so got the side one's replaced and kept the centre one since it was too costly.

Finally after full purchase, me and my dad drove the car to my workplace around 300 KMs away and this was the first long run of this car for us. Since the tyres were old, we didn't push the car to limits but the car comfortably did triple digit speeds on an empty stretch without breaking a sweat with least efforts but that speed was soon diminished when a BMW X7 flew by us at that speed and disappeared in thin air and then we slowed down and were cruising at around 120 ish KMPH. All of this testing and we still got 17+ KMPL average which is commendable considering the very heavy foot driving.

Fast forward a few months and a new sound started coming on full throttle when turbo spooled at max potential. This time it was different. It sounded like AC vents blowing at full potential when you press the pedal and get into turbo range. I got this checked from a local mechanic and he told me this can be a gearbox issue. Even though I am an IT engineer, I wasn't convinced by that since my gut feeling told me it was something else and I felt the behaviour of the car is only noticeable at full turbo range. I told him to check all the main rubber hoses and turns out the main fat hose connecting to engine which is right beside the engine cover had a small crack because of the age. Got that replaced and the sound disappeared. The replacement part was from Lakhani (yes the shoe company) since the part wasn't available with Hyundai and I wanted urgent replacement.

A special mention to the 4 speed auto box which feels like 5-6 speed:-

The gear shifts are silky smooth and very aggressive if pedal is pressed down because of the torque converter automatic. I use the tiptronic function to shift early in city traffic because of the very tall gearing. It auto shifts at second gear at the speed of 20 at around 1500 RPM, 3rd gear at the speed of 40 at around 1850 RPM. Now the magic begins. Up until now, the RPM increases very linearly and no unusal RPM drop is found between gears. But once you cross the 3rd gear at 40 KMPH, the RPM increases till 1500 till you cross 50KMPH and suddenly eases the engine and drops the RPM to 1200 even though the throttle is pressed constantly and no gear is changed!! Now you reach till 65 KMPH and the gear shifts to 4th at around 1800 RPM and increases linearly till 80-85 KMPH then drops till 1300 RPM and linearly increases till 2000 RPM at the speed of 100. The drop of RPM feels like there are two pseudo/ghost gears for better efficiency and drivability. Do note that this car does 0-100 in 9 seconds and there is no loss in acceleration when the RPM drops, it pulls very nicely with a very soothing hiss at around 1800+ RPM

I have never seen RPM drop between gears at constant throttle but nonetheless it is very awesome to have a 4 speed behave like 6 speed. There is no mention of this transmissions details anywhere on web as far as I searched. Even wikipedia has a list of Hyundai transmissions but all torque converter 4 speeds are rated for a very less torque output and not for this engine output. IDK what Hyundai is using. Any details of this transmissions functionality would be gladly appreciated.

Talking about fuel economy, I filled the tank and headed home 8 kms from the JIO-BP pump at midnight where there is less traffic on city roads and see what I got with AC on city roads, 26 KMPL!!! but in reality with bumper to bumper traffic, it's more like 14 KMPL and easily 22+ on highways and even better if driven at 80-100 speeds which is the cars sweet spot in terms of efficiency.
Notice that the MID is of different colour than rest of the speedo? That's because initially the MID was blue and now it's not. More on that later.



After a few months, I finally got my tyres changed. I had options of Yokohama earth (Japanese) and these Continental UC6 (German) and the Japanese had longer lasting rubber and 5 years of unconditional warranty whereas germans had 2 years unconditional plus 3 years manufacturing defect warranty but had much more comfort and grip on offer so went with the Germans for better grip considering my heavy foot. Got the stock size 195/55/R16 at 8K per tyre. Japanese were of same value as well




The dashboard was also a mess since the half side of dashboard was sticky and permanently damaged by sunlight and cheap polish by previous car care centre, so I visited AutoBros near Sanand circle Ahmedabad to fix the mismatch and he was the only person to successfully fix it for few months with the help of expensive polishes. I visited many other studios as well and everyone said my dashboard is permanently damaged by heat. here is the picture of dashboard after new polish. The texture difference was hard to pick on camera and spoilt the interior look and feel so did not add a picture of it but I permanently fixed it witha plush cushiony dashboard cover from elegant and I have been so happy with the soft fur material on my dashboard. It is easy to wash as well and is super premium to feel. It is as soft as a fur jacket or a soft toy in real!! Attached a pic of that as well below




Now comes the part where I realised I got betrayed:-

Remember when I said I bought two parking sensors which were missing from Hyundai at 2.5K each, I thought the instalment was done and it worked fine since this was the first car with parking sensors that I drove. Later realised that out of the two already existing old sensors, one was non-functional and I went to Hyundai service center for another sensor and just casually checked for the service history with full confidence about originality that I had in mind and the guy confirmed that from 2016 till 2022 all service was done at Hyundai including mandatory transmission oil change and the last service was done at 123000 KM!!! I was in denial and told him to check again since I told him the transmission oil was changed early in my case at around 70K kilometres as said by the guy selling me the car. The ASC guy confirmed that the AT oil change was on time at 1 lakh kilometres and not early. I was shocked and felt super betrayed. But nothing that I could do since this was my trust and ignorance on this matter. The metre tampering explains the MID discolouration since it might have been opened and damaged while dialling back the kilometres.

There was an insurance claim as well which I was already aware of and it was front and rear bumper, headlights and minor stuff with re-painiting which I was okay with and ASC guy assured me this is very small and common thing and no concerning part is replaced or damaged. The bonnet insulation cover was missing so I got it fitted with a nice damping material. I was not affected by the diesel sound since this is the most silent diesel motor I have ever heard and the insulation was barely needed but I did it anyways and it looks cool now.



It has been 4 months and still haven't got the parking sensor from Hyundai as they said the sensor will be shipped from Korea and told me to look for old one in kabaadi!

Acceptance and future plans with my beauty!

Even after all of this, I am supremely happy with the car and this can easily gap any car on road (which does not cost a fortune to buy) and all of that with acceptable to good feul economy. I would request people to share their experiences of this model and if they know any trusted mechanic who has good knowledge with this car, please share details of the garage. I have mild tuning plans in few years and some cosmetic changes since the grille is too white for me, so black plus chrome would be nice and some more suggestions for subtly improving the car's stance would also be greatly appreciated. I have noticed a single tick sound on turning a steering sometimes. Not of Axle, I know that sound and I also have the rare sound of thudding suspensions on bad roads so I need some expert who can figure out the issue and dosen't unnecessarily break my pocket. I am planning to keep this car till the RC expires since I have my known people who has this exact same car going strong even after 2 lakh kilometres with the same auto box without any major repairs.

If someone has any contacts of reliable mechanic and tuners in Ahmedabad, please let me know. Since I am very new to owning cars in real life, some tips and tricks for maintaining an old diesel automatic with high odo would be great as well.

PS: I have also upgraded the headlights and fog lights to blinding LEDs but i keep on low beam and drive responsibly. Let me know if you need details of the upgrade. Upgrade cost was 10K. the black door guards on white car was bugging me so I changed it to white door guards. 200 RS from Flipkart

Cheers

[vaibhavyagnik]

1 Lakh Kms is just a physcological number for us Indians who drive the car very less compared to people in the west and east. 2-3 Lakh Kms run cars are common in the west and engines are designed to run the distance with regular maitenance. I am not trying to justify the seller's dishonesty, but saying to calm your mind. Enjoy the car till the time you decide to keep it and do not worry too much about the KMs.
The bonnet has a kink on both sides which is visible in the last photo. That seems structural in nature. Get it changed if your wallet permits it.

[tangiblewish]

Hi Vaibhav!! Thanks for mentioning the bonnet kink. I just noticed after you highlighted. I will get it changed soon.

Also, regarding the kilometres, I completely agree with your point and I have seen the same car run flawlessly even after 2 lakh plus kilometres without major repairs or overhaul in my own friend circle.

But this Indian mentality goes a bit deeper and is a strong catalyst for these dealers to reduce the kilometres in the odo so that people buy with confidence and they can get more money for the same car. So, if we change this mentality, these dealers won't get praised to do such things.

Thanks Again!

[akshaysawant]

Hi,

I had October 2012 purchased diesel sx(o) verna, which we sold in October 2019. The odo read 1,65,000 kms. I exchanged the car with Kia showroom (name of showroom undisclosed purposely) and fetched Rs. 3,00,000/- and got a GTX+ diesel auto kia Seltos.

Next day of my exchange one of the executive told me the car was rolled on to some other re-seller and he immediately tampered the ODO which then read just 70,000 kms. I think 70k is their favourite number for tampering

The car is still running with some corporator in Panvel. How I know this? I still get traffic violation tickets in my name as the mobile number has not got changed in the data base i suppose.

So i guess it’s okay if you forget it quickly. This car should easily run more than 2 lakh kms with some repairing and regular maintenance. You might only have to bother about the turbo as the turbo gets clogged with carbon sometimes. That with steering problem can make you worried sometimes.


Regards,

[gaurav.kokra]

As it is known, torque converters are known to be reliable. It's good that the oil has been changed of the gearbox, but if it is not costly then I'd recommend changing it again in front of your eyes just for peace of mind and you'll be good to go for another lakh kms.

Don't feel down about the new found discoveries about the car. Another 40k kms isn't a big deal for this car. Just make sure the timing belt/chain has been changed for another peace of mind.

This engine is a gem. Hold onto it while it is there on the earth.

The combination of power and mileage this engine offers is just nowhere to be found these days.

[Vernafied]

Congratulations buddy.
Forget about other things. Just remember the smile 1.6 CRDi puts on the face when accelerator is floored. We are the last few one's revving this gem of a engine. Wish you many more happy and safe miles.

[Aviator_guy]

Originally Posted by tangiblewish

I got my car through the same guy (in my society) who showed me my previos WagonR and took a very hefty 60K+ commission on Verna which I came to know very late.

I went to Hyundai service center for another sensor and just casually checked for the service history with full confidence about originality that I had in mind and the guy confirmed that from 2016 till 2022 all service was done at Hyundai including mandatory transmission oil change and the last service was done at 123000 KM!!! I was in denial and told him to check again since I told him the transmission oil was changed early in my case at around 70K kilometres as said by the guy selling me the car. The ASC guy confirmed that the AT oil change was on time at 1 lakh kilometres and not early. I was shocked and felt super betrayed. But nothing that I could do since this was my trust and ignorance on this matter. The metre tampering explains the MID discolouration since it might have been opened and damaged while dialling back the kilometres.

This is quite shocking, coming from someone in your known circle. You should convey your displeasure and the betrayal you felt to the person. I'm sure if the truth was known to you, deal would have been different.

You trusted him almost blindfolded and nothing can be done now but I hope your strong feedback would deter that person to not pull the fast one on someone else.

[ahmad.007]

Originally Posted by tangiblewish

It auto shifts at second gear at the speed of 20 at around 1500 RPM, 3rd gear at the speed of 40 at around 1850 RPM. Now the magic begins. Up until now, the RPM increases very linearly and no unusal RPM drop is found between gears. But once you cross the 3rd gear at 40 KMPH, the RPM increases till 1500 till you cross 50KMPH and suddenly eases the engine and drops the RPM to 1200 even though the throttle is pressed constantly and no gear is changed!! Now you reach till 65 KMPH and the gear shifts to 4th at around 1800 RPM and increases linearly till 80-85 KMPH then drops till 1300 RPM and linearly increases till 2000 RPM at the speed of 100. The drop of RPM feels like there are two pseudo/ghost gears for better efficiency and drivability. Do note that this car does 0-100 in 9 seconds and there is no loss in acceleration when the RPM drops, it pulls very nicely with a very soothing hiss at around 1800+ RPM

I have never seen RPM drop between gears at constant throttle but nonetheless it is very awesome to have a 4 speed behave like 6 speed. There is no mention of this transmissions details anywhere on web as far as I searched. Even wikipedia has a list of Hyundai transmissions but all torque converter 4 speeds are rated for a very less torque output and not for this engine output. IDK what Hyundai is using. Any details of this transmissions functionality would be gladly appreciated.

The rpm drop that you are talking about is basically a characteristic of modern torque converters.

Torque Converters as you know have a fluid coupling. That is, the engine is not directly connected to the wheels, but through a viscous fluid connection.

So engine speed may or may not be linear to expected speed of car at any particular rpm/gear.

The rpm drop you mention about is the moment this fluid coupling is bypassed and the torque converter makes direct connection or "locks up", and behaves like a direct drive transmission.

This lockup usually only happens at higher gears and when vehicle speed is above 50 kmph.

I see this happen all the time in my Cruze which has a 6-speed AT.

In 5th gear at 50 kmph, the rpm is around 1300-1400, but if I hold the accelerator pedal steady it'll drop to 1000 rpm after a few seconds. Or if I engage the cruise control, it'll try to lock up the TC to ensure efficient operation.

TC locking up is very important for highway fuel efficiency.

For this reason sometimes my car can give a better fuel efficiency at 70 kmph with TC locked up in 5th gear at 1500 rpm, rather than in 6th gear, where the TC isn't locked up and the rpm is a variable 1300 rpm.

[tangiblewish]

Originally Posted by akshaysawant

I had October 2012 purchased diesel sx(o) verna, which we sold in October 2019. The odo read 1,65,000 kms. I exchanged the car with Kia showroom (name of showroom undisclosed purposely) and fetched Rs. 3,00,000/- and got a GTX+ diesel auto kia Seltos.

Hi Akshay, I completely agree. Their fav figure is around this 65-80K to seem more genuine to the buyer. Talking about the turbo and steering, I am looking for a trustable mechanic in Ahmedabad who has good knowledge of these issues and this car. Apart from this its so good to know that this engine and gearbox are supremely reliable for at least 2-3 lakh kilometres if maintained well.

Originally Posted by gaurav.kokra

As it is known, torque converters are known to be reliable. It's good that the oil has been changed of the gearbox, but if it is not costly then I'd recommend changing it again in front of your eyes just for peace of mind and you'll be good to go for another lakh kms.

Truly said man! So grateful to have this car. I will definitely get a major service done including the AT oil change since the car has done almost 9K kilometres since I bought

Originally Posted by Vernafied

Congratulations buddy.
Forget about other things. Just remember the smile 1.6 CRDi puts on the face when accelerator is floored. We are the last few one's revving this gem of a engine. Wish you many more happy and safe miles.

Thanks Man! Same to you!!

[speedfreak77]

A lovely car you have there, I have to say the current Verna which I own is my fourth Verna. I have owned a 2008 Verna, the fluidic 2012 Verna, the 4S fluidic 2015 verna and the one which I currently own is the 2019 Verna. All diesels, 4S and Current are Automatics. I have to say, Hyundai did a great job with the 4 speed gearbox, I never felt that I was driving a 4 speed automatic car. The car was refined and I loved it to bits and pieces but sadly had to part ways with it due to an accident. Attaching her photos below. Kudos to you, this is one amazing car. One piece of advice, if the car clatters a lot, you can drop down to any hyundai service station and replace the engine mounts which will bring the clatter down by 60-70%. Happy Miles my friend!

[tangiblewish]

Originally Posted by Aviator_guy

This is quite shocking, coming from someone in your known circle. You should convey your displeasure and the betrayal you felt to the person. I'm sure if the truth was known to you, deal would have been different.

You trusted him almost blindfolded and nothing can be done now but I hope your strong feedback would deter that person to not pull the fast one on someone else.

Yes. I did. I called him with a low tone full of dismay and confronted that guy regarding this. His simple reply was that he does not know anything about it and the previous owner may have done it themselves.

Both the seller and the previous owner are my neighbours and I had a conversation with both of them. Owner said they handed the car to this guy for selling at 4.6 Lakhs only!!! And this guy kept the car with himself and sold to some other guy as well but that other guy did not like automatic and the transfer was yet to initiate so he returned the car back to the seller who is my neighbour and then I was looking for a car and he gave it to me in pitiful condition in 5.25 lakhs excluding transfer fee of 13K. Pitiful condition means oil leaking intercooler pipe, broken AC vents, missing parking sensors and few other things. I got the car ready for my use in about 6.1 lakhs but super happy with it now once I accepted the kilometres mentally.

Considering the kind of commission he took, the car could be in a much better shape from what I believe. But okay, since he was a friend, I gave him a benefit of doubt and moved on from this story for better and learnt my lesson.

Thanks for shedding light from this perspective bro!

Originally Posted by ahmad.007

The rpm drop that you are talking about is basically a characteristic of modern torque converters.

Damn!! That is so insightful. I searched a lot for this behaviour and heck I even call up hyundai technical person and he said there is no such thing as an overdrive gear and I only had 4 gears and he was not aware of this type of behaviour and told me not to worry about it much. Now I finally know how this works!! Thanks again!

Also cruze used to be my dream car at one point. Epic car. In the facelift it had 166BHP as well!!! No sedan even in 2023 of it's segment can match the performance it had at that time. Cheers for that!

[tangiblewish]

Originally Posted by speedfreak77

A lovely car you have there, I have to say the current Verna which I own is my fourth Verna. I have owned a 2008 Verna, the fluidic 2012 Verna, the 4S fluidic 2015 verna and the one which I currently own is the 2019 Verna. All diesels, 4S and Current are Automatics. I have to say, Hyundai did a great job with the 4 speed gearbox, I never felt that I was driving a 4 speed automatic car. The car was refined and I loved it to bits and pieces but sadly had to part ways with it due to an accident. Attaching her photos below. Kudos to you, this is one amazing car. One piece of advice, if the car clatters a lot, you can drop down to any hyundai service station and replace the engine mounts which will bring the clatter down by 60-70%. Happy Miles my friend!

Hey that's so good to hear!! I am curious if there is any difference in the pick up or power delivery of the 4s and 2019 verna automatic since both have different gear boxes. Is the 6 speed quicker in terms of power delivery and better in efficiency?

Noted about the engine mounts. I will see in the service history if that has been replaced last year. If not I will son get them replaced.

Thanks

[Voodooblaster]

Originally Posted by akshaysawant

I still get traffic violation tickets in my name as the mobile number has not got changed in the data base i suppose.

Do check if RC transfer to new owner has been effected. If not, you might be held responsible for any and all actions carried out using the vehicle.

The traffic challan messages seem to indicate the RC has not been transferred to the new owner

[tangiblewish]

Originally Posted by Voodooblaster

Do check if RC transfer to new owner has been effected. If not, you might be held responsible for any and all actions carried out using the vehicle.

The traffic challan messages seem to indicate the RC has not been transferred to the new owner

Nice catch bro! This reminds me of my situation where the WagonR which I sold earlier is still under my name. The buyer told me that the transfer will be done within 4 days and that he has a Govt job and seemed trustworthy but now he does not respond to texts and the car stays in my name. I have a notorised affidavit which states no responsibility of mine after that day but IDK how valid is that today. Is there anything I can do in this case?

[speedfreak77]

Originally Posted by tangiblewish

Hey that's so good to hear!! I am curious if there is any difference in the pick up or power delivery of the 4s and 2019 verna automatic since both have different gear boxes. Is the 6 speed quicker in terms of power delivery and better in efficiency?

Noted about the engine mounts. I will see in the service history if that has been replaced last year. If not I will son get them replaced.

Thanks

The 4S has a muscle car delivery, The low end is great. The 6 speed is more smooth and refined but the 4S felt quicker to me always. Efficiency is of course better by 1-2 kmpl. On highways the 6 speed shines, in the city 4S has no competition.