We had a green Exter with manual transmission for our long-term test but Hyundai took it back for the seventh edition of their Great India Drive, saying we would be reunited with the car in Coimbatore. As fate would have it, we were assigned this bright blue Exter at the flag-off but it was an AMT.
Over the next few days, we drove that car through two tiger reserves and then all the way back to Pune. On the forest roads leading to Bandipur, the Exter was the correct car to be in thanks to its compact dimensions. The narrow roads required most cars to slow down a fair bit when there was oncoming traffic but the Exter could squeeze through comfortably and the AMT spared me the task of shifting gears every now and then. I did not spend all my time in the automatic mode, though, because whenever there was a downhill section, it was better to use the manual option to make the most of engine braking. Overheating of the brakes, thereby leading to loss of brake pressure, is one of the most frequent causes of accidents in those regions.
Having spent nearly 2,000 kilometres behind the wheel of this car, I am quite pleased with the transmission. The fuel-efficiency figures for the manual and the AMT were quite close but the latter was easier to live with in Pune’s traffic conditions. So, we requested Hyundai to let us continue our long-term experience with this car and Hyundai obliged. More about it in the next update.
Also Read: Maruti Suzuki Brezza ZXi+ Auto Long Term Review
