Hyundai Exter: Second Long Term Report: 8000 km

The Exter joins us for a near 3000 km road trip, and has us pleasantly surprised

It’s unlikely that you’d take a city-focused car such as the Hyundai Exter for a long road trip. But we did just that. Spending so much time with the vehicle in a short, week-long trip gave us a few interesting insights on the vehicle. Let’s tackle them one by one

The Comfort Factor

For average-sized individuals, the seats of the Exter will feel supportive and comfortable. We’ve spent nearly 5 hours in one stretch, and had no aches, pains or numbness. That said, if you are XL-sized, you will find yourself ‘spilling out’ of the front seats. You would want slightly more support for your back and shoulder blades. Similarly, if you are tall, the integrated headrest on the Exter will not feel sufficient. You could consider investing in a neck cushion.

Over longer journeys, we did miss an armrest up front. This would’ve also enabled Hyundai to offer a little more storage. 

In terms of space, there’s absolutely nothing to complain about. A high seating posture and large windows mean you don’t feel cramped inside the cabin. 

Relaxed? Yes. Powerful? No! 

For the entirety of the trip, the Exter was more than comfortable doing 100 kmph constantly. It does have the capability to hold much higher speeds, but the engine feels stressed throughout. 

From an efficiency standpoint, it prefers if you lower the pace and cruise at 75-80 kmph instead. 

At these speeds, however, it genuinely struggles to make quick overtakes. We found ourselves engaging third or sometimes even second gear to overtake traffic. 

A silent engine and well-controlled road, wind and tyre noise make the cabin a comfortable place to be in. In Indian highway conditions, this will have you cover 50-60 km every hour, which is reasonable progress.

As far as fuel efficiency is concerned — a relaxed highway drive will fetch you 16-17 kmpl. Bump up the pace, and you’re looking at 13-14 kmpl. 

Tech Pack

The 8-inch touchscreen offered on the Exter is easy to use. It does get Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, but sadly, it’s wired. On a long trip, your phone is connected and constantly at 100 percent charge, which isn’t particularly good for the phone’s battery life. Wireless Android Auto/Apple CarPlay would’ve solved this. 

Between the wireless, two type-A, and type-C chargers, you can charge four devices. The wireless charger is a bit slow, and will just about sustain charge if you’re streaming music from your phone. Also, we wish it was the type-C port that enabled Apple CarPlay/Android Auto since most new phones now come bundled with a type-C cable. 

There’s an in-built dashcam in the top-spec version which is great both in case of an emergency or if you want to make memories. On a road trip, this feature is genuinely useful. 

Take It Easy! 

Another trait of the Exter is just how comfortable the ride quality is. At low speeds, it flattens out pretty much everything without too much movement in the cabin. High speed stability is also appreciable, it does not feel light and floaty at triple-digit speeds. However, hitting expansion joints or bumps at highway speeds will have the car feeling bouncy on the recovery. This feeling is amplified at the rear seats. 

On the whole, the Exter seems like a friendly road trip companion — even if it’s an unlikely one. It simply prefers to be driven in a relaxed manner. 

The Exter now goes back to base in Pune, where it shall be on support car duty for shoots. 

Positives: Comfortable Seats, Easy-to-use Infotainment

Negatives: Lack of power

Date When Received: October 10, 2023

Kilometres When Received: 3,974km

Kilometres Till Now: 8,300km