Hyundai i20

You don't have to go too far back in time to notice that interesting technologies and features were the sole fiefdom of expensive cars. The hatchbacks and sedans that the masses could buy, were given the "affordable" treatment, which meant they were basic, drab and pretty much to the point. However, things have changed considerably over the last year or so, because some rather geeky stuff is now coming preloaded on affordable hatchbacks and sedans - the cars that you can buy, without probably needing to sell a few limbs. It is good to see mainstream car makers now thinking along the lines of introducing never before seen features on newer models of their cars, and keeping them within the reach of the potential buyer.

Before the Ford EcoSport came along, the 2013 edition of the Hyundai i20 was possibly the most loaded car, in terms of technology and features. And yes, being an i20 owner (the 2011 edition), the upgrades do look rather significant. And we aren't even considering the visual updates!

The biggest element, when you see an i20 driving towards you during the daytime

, would be the Daytime Running Lights. These are the LED strips framing each redesigned fog-lamps on two sides. This feature is very rare in cars under Rs 20lakh, and till now were solely seen on the European luxury sedans. It is a visual feature, but primarily, DRLs are a safety aspect.

Keeping with the headlamps, the 2013 edition i20 also gets the automatic headlamps feature. The moment the ambient light goes below acceptable levels, the headlamps automatically switch on. For example, you enter an underground parking during the day, and the moment the car senses the change in lighting, the change is triggered automatically. You will love to show this feature off to a friend who just bought a Maruti Swift! But, this is a very good safety feature to have.

Rain sensing wipers is another safety feature, apart from being one that you can show off to friends. If there is a sudden splash of water on the windscreen, even when it's not raining, the wipers get into action immediately, and remain on for the duration depending on the quantity of water. The speed of the wipers also changes depending on the quantity of water and the speed at which it is falling.

A critical safety feature is the Smart Pedal, that is also added to the Hyundai i20. When the system detects heavy and emergency braking, the acceleration pedal is immediately overwritten, for the duration the brake pedal is pressed. This is to prevent accidental press of the throttle during that time from compromising passenger safety.

To keep wear and sudden load on the engine and transmission down, Hyundai has implemented the Clutch Lock as well, which is active when the engine is shut down. The next time you are starting the engine, you will need to keep the clutch pressed. This is to prevent a jerk start, in case the person driving the car forgets it is not in neutral, and pushes the start button. This runs a huge amount of stress through the chain - the starter, the transmission and the engine.

This final feature that we are talking about may be a minor thing, but the Electro Chromic Mirror is designed to reduce glare back into the driver's eyes, when driving at night. This is particularly useful when the person driving directly behind isn't very polite with headlight use. For the versions with the rear parking camera, there is the embedded display on this rear view mirror that can be utilized. Click on their website hmhid for more information.