SA Road Tests

Welcome

This is the home of automobile road tests in South Africa. I drive South African cars, SUVs and LCVs under real-world South African conditions. Many of the vehicles driven are world cars as well, so what you read here possibly applies to the models you get where you live.

My most recent drive is on the home page. Archived reviews and opinion pieces are in the active list down the left side. Hover your cursor over a heading or manufacturer's name and search through the drop-down menu that appears.

Editor's note: SA Roadtests accepts multi-day vehicle loans from manufacturers in order to provide editorial reviews. All vehicle reviews are conducted on our turf and on our terms.

For out-of-province vehicle launch features however, travel costs are covered by the manufacturer concerned. This is common in the motor industry, as it's more economical to ship journalists to cars than to ship cars to journalists.

Judgments and opinions expressed on this site are our own. We do not accept paid editorial content or ads of any kind.


Nose job, butt-lift, new kit: Hyundai Creta revamped for 2022

Just sexier

Posted: July 20, 2022

Price range: R409 900 to R469 900
Tech stuff:
Engine: 1497 cc, 16-valve, four-cylinder, naturally aspirated, with MPI and HLA.
Head and block: Aluminium. Camshaft drive by silent chain
Power: 84 kW at 6300 rpm
Torque: 144 Nm at 4500 rpm
0 to 100 km/h: 12.0 seconds (m/t.), 11.8 seconds (a/t)
Top speed: 170 km/h
Combined cycle fuel consumption (claimed): 6.5 l/100 km (man), 6.3 l/100 km (auto)
Tank size: 50 litres
Luggage: 416 – 1384 litres
Turning circle: 10.8 metres
Ground clearance: 200 mm
Standard tyre size: 215/60R17
Spare: Full size
Towing mass: Not rated
Warranty: Five years, 150 000 km with additional two years and 50 000 km on drivetrain
Roadside assistance: Seven years, 150 000 km
Service plan: Four years, 60 000 km at 15 000 km intervals


One engine, two gearboxes, two trim levels, three choices. Apart from new a nose, bigger wheels on entry-spec’ Premium models, Tucson-like grille and reshaped headlamps, the derrière has been re-sculpted and given new tail lights. And the rear diffuser was highlighted in silver to make it ‘pop’ visually. The interior looks almost the same but sharp-eyed fans will notice the new electric parking brake installed to declutter the feng shui.

The 1.5-litre diesel and 1.4 T-GDi motors have been parked off, leaving only the naturally aspirated 1497 cc petrol engine from the previous lineup. Transmission choices are still six-speed manual (Premium only) and six-step Intelligent Variable Transmission (IVT) that’s fitted in both Premium and Executive models. In short: The three local models are now Premium manual, Premium with IVT and Executive with IVT.

Quick tells are black cloth upholstery on Premium and black leatherette for Executive that also offers a dark chrome grille finish, rather than plain black. If you know your headlamps, you’ll notice that Executive units are LED rather than halogen and the top model has LED DRLs and tail lights too.

Creta is now 15 mm longer, the same width as before and stands 10 mm taller. There’s a simple explanation for that. Ground clearance increased by that amount as well - from 190 to 200 mm - because potholes aren’t getting any shallower, are they?

Suspension, brakes, seats, manual air conditioner and eight-inch touchscreen infotainment kit, with wireless phone connectivity, are common across the range.  Common too, are tyre pressure monitoring, rear parking sensors, backup camera and speed-sensitive locking. On the other hand, hi-fi buffs might notice that Executive offers two more speakers. And its wing mirrors fold electrically.

Other differences include six airbags rather than two, jam protection and one-touch operation for the driver’s window, and a wireless charging pad for those who can’t afford a connecting cable (joke).

Creta comes in six colours; Magnetic Silver, Optic White, Titan Grey Metallic and three pearlescents – Midnight Black, Dragon Red and Galaxy Blue.

Put simply, it’s pretty much like last year’s Creta. Just sexier.

Information gathered at a manufacturer-sponsored launch event

We reviewed it here



What We Do

This is a one-man show, which means that every car reviewed is thoroughly researched, given my personal evaluation and receives my own seat of the pants judgement - no second hand input here.

Every test car goes through real world driving; on city streets littered with potholes, speed bumps and rumble strips, on freeways and if its profile demands, dirt roads or goat tracks as well. As a result, my test cars do occasionally get dirty. It's all part of the reviewing process.

I do my best to include relevant information like real life fuel economy or a close mathematical calculation, boot size or luggage space, whether the space is both usable and accessible, whether life-sized people can use the back seat (where that applies), basic specs of the vehicle and performance figures if they are published. In the case of clearly identified launch reports, fuel figures are of necessity the laboratory numbers provided with the release material.

If ever I place an article that doesn't cover most things, it's probably because I have dealt with a very similar vehicle already, so you will be able to find what you want in another report under the same manufacturer's heading in the menu on the left.

Hope you like what you see, because there are no commercial interests at work here. There are no advertisers and no “editorial policy” rules. I add bylines to acknowledge sponsored launch functions and the manufacturers or dealerships that provide the test vehicles.  And, as quite a few readers have found, I answer every serious enquiry from my home email address, with my phone numbers attached, so you can see I do actually exist.

Comments or questions?
Want to ask a question, comment or just tell me you completely disagree with what I say? If you want advice or have a genuine concern, I will be happy to hear from you. All I ask is that you write something in the subject line so I know which vehicle you're talking about.