Kamis, 22 September 2011

Hyundai Eon spied inside out

What you see here in this post are the clearest and best shots yet of the soon-to-be-launched mini car from Hyundai, the Eon. Thanks to a reader, who wishes to remain anonymous but says that he got these pictures from his friend who has close contacts with a popular automotive publication that test drove the Eon a few days back. The Eon is expected to slot in below the Santro in Hyundai's lineup and would be competing directly with Maruti-Suzuki Alto. In flesh, the Eon looks exactly similar to the official sketches released by Hyundai a little earlier.

Adopting the company's famed 'Fluidic Sculpture' design theme, the Eon, for the segment in which it is going to compete, is a stunner and there are no second thoughts about it. All the usual 'fluidic' design elements like the bold hexagonal grille with a horizontal chrome strip, the large and well-detailed head-lamps, steeply up-swept windowline and the characteristic curves across the body are all there in the Eon. These, combined with some aggressive detailing like the triangular foglamps, chunky wheel arches and huge taillamps matching the cuts and contours of the boot make the Eon look terrific. Having said that, there is no denying the fact that the Eon has been overstyled a bit and is not as clean a design as, say, a Punto or Polo.

If you are not impressed with the exteriors, you will surely be when you look at the interiors. These are the best interiors I have ever seen in a mini car. Period. The steering wheel, seemingly inspired by Hyundai's own i20, imparts a premium look and feel. The central console adopts the popular waterfall theme with silver inserts brightening up things there. The knobs and buttons look to be made of good quality and the black and beige combination make the interiors look a lot spacious. It's being widely reported that a lot of 'Indian' features like 1-liter bottle holders and storage spaces have been eked out in the Eon to make it that much more practical.

Most of the media have already driven the Eon and the reports suggest that the power, ride and handling are all on par or better than what the competition has on offer. If you do not know already, the Eon will be powered by a new 3-cylinder engine from the Epsilon family. Overall, Hyundai has done its homework pretty well and the result seems to be mighty impressive. So, has Maruti-Suzuki's long-held dominance of the A segment with the Alto under threat now? Well, yeah! Hyundai did that in the B segment with the Santro 13 years back and the rest is history. The Eon is all set to rewrite history, this time in the A segment. Watch out for the Eon!

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