by Calvin Fisher
Meet the new facelifted Hyundai Creta and immediately you’ll notice that it gets the same front-end treatment as the recently launched Tucson. A very good thing, because we loved that car, as did the rest of the country.
What is it?
The Creta is a compact crossover positioned between the popular Tucson and the Venue. It’s the twin sibling of Kia’s Seltos, so plays in a very competitive segment going up against the likes of rivals such as the Mazda CX-30, Opel Mokka and even the Toyota Corolla Cross, if you can find one. Curiously the Indian-built Grand Creta won’t receive the facelift, giving it its own identity within the Hyundai catalogue. Or, a dated one – you decide.
How does it look?
In one word, great! That dynamic parametric jewel grille is a welcome update to what’s come before, then there are the striking lamps and pumped-up wheel arches lending it some extra road presence. The rear loses the old horizontal light bar that joined the lamp clusters, and has generally been tidied up and updated. Our test model wore metallic blue paint ala Galaxy Blue Pearl, and rides on 17-inch alloy wheels. Job done.
Life inside?
Our test car came with black cloth, and there’s a more premium artificial leather on the Executive spec. Dominating the dashboard you’ll find Hyundai’s infotainment system complete with Apple Carplay and Android Auto. There’s a multifunction steering wheel, and ahead of that a 3.5-inch Supervision instrument cluster. Also present, a rearview monitor, manual air-conditioning, a wireless phone charger (on the Executive), Isofix and six airbags. Safe and snug but, I hope you like dark plastic as the cabin is chock full of it, in flat expansive surfaces, especially around the HVAC controls. Which thankfully are still tactile knobs.
How does it go?
We recently drove a new turbocharged Kia Sonet and were reminded how forced aspiration is the way. With reduced fuel consumption and a less-stressed performance at higher altitudes, it’s easy to make an argument for it. Curiously, Hyundai has gone the other way. Cheers to the 1.4-litre turbopetrol and 1.5-litre turbodiesel engines, and all that remains now is the 1.5-litre naturally aspirated petrol. A bold move? Perhaps. Either way, here at the coast where we got to test the new car, its 84kW and 144Nm were fine. Adequate, but, it will suffer somewhat when you’re at the reef. Our route entailed a fair amount of soft roading (hello, all the mud) and even some downpour. The Creta took it all in its stride – again, it’s easy to see why South Africans love this brand.
Long story, short
With a price varying between R409k to R469k, with a 7-year/200,000km warranty, Hyundai can continue to brag about its class-leading after-sales experience. It remains one of the manufacturers whose cars we continue to recommend to potential buyers, they’re that good. And with this new Creta, despite the odd choice in the engine, remains ‘that good’.
Pricing
Hyundai Creta 1.5 Premium Manual R409 900
Hyundai Creta 1.5 Premium IVT R429 900
Hyundai Creta 1.5 Executive IVT R469 900
