Hyundai Exter First Drive Review - Design, Mileage, Performance

If you prefer watching the review in Hindi instead of reading it in English, then you can play the following video:

Hyundai Exter - Exterior Review

Exter is a B1-segment car, and because of its stance and silhouette, it looks like a small SUV. Its front design is upright and its projector headlamps are integrated into the extremes of the high set front grille. Meanwhile, the turn indicators and H-shaped DRLs are higher up along the top of the front bumper. The low and high beams of the headlamps come from the single halogen projector unit; so it has a yellow beam.

The space between the headlamps and DRLs houses the spread-out Exter lettering similar to what some bigger SUVs get. I’m sure many people will like this kind of front badging. Underneath its wide grille, there is a thick faux skid plate with faux screws, giving it a rugged look from the front. This skid plate is integrated into the plastic cladding and continues to the side as well, where it thickens over the slightly rounded wheel arches, giving them a more squared-out appearance – this contributes to the rugged stance of the Exter's side design.

The top variant of the Exter comes with 15-inch dual-tone machined alloy wheels, and their design is quite attractive. For a car with SUV styling, I think its windshield is quite raked and aerodynamic, but the treatment of the rear half of the car is a lot more like traditional SUVs. It's worth noting that there's a bulge in its roof towards the rear, which is very evident when you view the car from the back, and it may look a bit sore, but it might end up providing useful headroom inside the cabin - which we will discuss when we get to the interior. For now, you can observe that the roof design is of the floating type, and there's a glossy black trim on the C-pillar with a diamond pattern, similar to the pattern on the black strip that connects its tail lamps.

Because of this strip, the large bumper with a thick skid plate, the big windshield, the bulging roof and the tailgate seem smaller compared to the overall exterior. Thus, it appears a bit compact, despite a reasonably proportional design. What are your thoughts about it – do let us know in the comments section.

Anyway, it's worth pointing out that its tail lamps are of the halogen bulb plus LED type, but like the front, the rear turn indicators are also regular bulbs and there are both a defogger and a wiper on the rear windshield. It has a 391-litre boot space – which is more than most of the SUV-like cars in its price range.

This space is from the boot floor to the ceiling, and according to us, it should easily accommodate the weekend luggage of 4 people. The boot also has a shopping bag hook and a light while under the boot floor, you can find a smaller 14-inch spare wheel.

Overall, we found the frontal design of the Exter attractive, but I think the rear is a little subjective. Now, let's have a look at its interior.

Hyundai Exter Petrol-Automatic (AMT) - Interior Review (Front)

The Exter comes with an all-black interior, and there's some patterned matte dark grey detailing on the dashboard and doors. The dashboard is all hard plastic, the quality of which feels acceptable for its price. But, the touchpoints provide a good quality feeling. The fitment of its centre console is also satisfactory. The glovebox has enough space to easily fit 2 water bottles.

Speaking of space, there is open storage just above the glovebox where you can keep a smartphone. Both front doors have bottle holders and there are 2 cup holders and some storage for small items between the front seats. Just ahead of the gear lever, there's a wireless smartphone charging pad, which draws power from the 12V power socket nearby.

There's a USB-C port and a full-size USB type-A port, above which are the controls for auto AC, air con vents and the 8-inch touchscreen. The layout of the dashboard, including the steering wheel feels very familiar as it’s similar to that of the Nios. However, its instrument cluster is digital, displaying not only tripmeters but the data from the tyre pressure monitoring system.

From the driver's perspective, notable features include:

• Steering-mounted controls
• Paddle shifters with AMT
• Tilt steering adjustment
• Power-adjustable & foldable outside mirrors
• Height-adjustable driver seat
• Keyless entry with push-button start/stop
• Sunroof with a thick cover
• Day/night inside mirror with controls for connected car features
• Side & curtain airbags
• Dual-camera dashcam

This dashcam not only records footage from the front but also displays cabin footage on the screen. It has some basic settings that are self-explanatory. You can insert a high-speed SD card to record footage from it.

Speaking about the driver seat – its cushion is firm, but it feels supportive. The driving position is upright, and I can see a little bit of the bonnet from here as well. The all-around visibility from here is good, which inspires confidence. With the driver seat adjusted to my height (5-feet 8-inch) and driving position, let's see how spacious the rear seats are.

Hyundai Exter - Interior Review (Rear)

The rear seats of the Exter are not overly upright, so when you enter this car, you sit deep. Therefore, tall passengers might need to squat a little when getting out, but the process is still comfortable for people of (almost) all heights

In the back seat, I have adequate knee space here and plenty of room to slide my feet under the front seat. It feels so spacious from here, it feels like a much bigger car from here.

What you will also notice here is the scooped-out design of the roof, which – in addition to the deep-set seats – leaves lots of headroom for rear passengers. This also contributes to a great sense of spaciousness in this cabin – despite black theme of the cabin. Similarly, the rear windshield is also big. So, the slightly awkward-looking roof from the outside has a major positive impact on perceived cabin space. That said, we believe that only 3 adults can comfortably sit in its rear seat because of the limited shoulder room. But, 3 adult occupants in the rear seat is completely manageable for short distances.

Like the front, the rear seats also offer good under-thigh support, and even with firm cushioning, the seats feel comfortable. The rear seat back is comfortably reclined, and adjustable headrests, rear AC vents, power outlet, and power windows are some notable features for the rear seat occupants.

Overall, the Exter's interiors are spacious, and the seats are so comfortable, it gives the impression that you're sitting in a big car. Now, let's see how it drives.

Hyundai Exter Petrol-Automatic - Engine Performance And Drive Review

The Exter's 1.2-litre petrol engine produces a maximum power of 83PS and a peak torque of 114Nm. It is worth noting that this engine is compatible with E20 fuel, meaning it can also run on petrol containing 20% ethanol, and this will not have any negative effects such as rusting on its engine and fuel plumbing. This engine is available with both manual transmission and AMT but we're driving it with the AMT today.

We drove it mainly on 2-4 lane highways around Jaipur and on our approximately 60km drive, it showed a displayed fuel economy of over 13kmpl. We drove it quite aggressively, mostly in lower gears and even kept the AC running while parked during the shoot. We believe its actual highway fuel efficiency will easily cross 15kmpl in the real world.

This 1.2-litre engine is peppy and feels fairly responsive even at 1500rpm. This is much lower than its peak torque RPM. This engine stays around 3000rpm when cruising at 100kmph, and while it does that – it doesn’t feel very strained, and its overall NVH levels are also acceptable – so the powertrain feels refined even for expressway usage.

Now talking about the 5-speed AMT, there is a head nod feel at lower speeds, so the gearshift experience of this transmission is similar to most of the AMTs that we've driven until now. However, by shifting it to manual and using paddle shifters, you can be more prepared for the gear shifts. This way of driving improves the overall experience with this transmission.

We think the best experience of this car on highways comes from relaxed cruising, at speeds of around 80kmph where it feels planted and relaxed. As far as its ride is concerned, it was comfortable for the most part. Now, let's look at its prices.

Hyundai Exter - Price

The prices for the Exter start from Rs. 6.0 lakh (ex-showroom). All variants except the base EX, EX Optional and S Optional have the option for an AMT type automatic transmission, with an incremental cost of almost Rs. 70,000. The top SX Optional Connect Dual-tone variant of the Exter costs Rs. 10.10 lakh (ex-showroom).

The Exter's S and SX variants also offer the option for CNG with manual transmission, with an incremental cost of Rs. 97,000. The Exter S CNG costs Rs. 8.24 lakh and the SX CNG costs Rs. 8.97 lakh.

For the manual, AMT automatic and CNG buyers, the Exter’s SX variant is our top recommendation. It offers better value compared to all other variants and comes with almost all must-have features we expect from a car at this asking price. Besides, it also offers several good-to-have features to warrant an upgrade from lower variants.

Also Read: Hyundai Exter Variants Explained - Which Variant To Buy?

Hyundai Exter Petrol-Automatic - Verdict

The Exter is a car that has everything a buyer would expect at its price point. It looks modern, has a spacious interior, is comfortable and delivers satisfactory performance. It has multiple powertrain options and most importantly, it is priced very well.

So we think that if you're looking to buy a small car mainly for city commuting, the Exter is currently the best option - and we suggest you buy it now to take advantage of its introductory prices.