Photography: Vaibhav Dhanawade
As an automotive journalist, I am a well-travelled man. Work has seen me travel a lot, but work trips are usually touch-and-go. Our tight schedules see us fly in, drive and fly out, which means I almost never get to explore the cities I travel to! This time though, I decided to make an exception and explore Ahmedabad, one of the most unique cities in our country. It boasts a very distinctive mix of all things old and new and is also India’s first World Heritage City recognised by the UNESCO for its historic monuments and structures.
My choice of wheels for exploring Ahmedabad, which is also one of India’s fastest developing cities, was the Hyundai Venue N Line. To draw parallels, the Venue is one of the fastest growing products in Hyundai’s line-up. Launched in 2019, the Venue has been quick to become one of Hyundai’s best-selling SUVs and is also one of the best sellers for Hyundai in India. It’s brilliant mix of design, comfort, space, features and also powertrains that make it exciting to drive and efficient both is what has helped the Venue find favour with lakhs of buyers. And the Venue N Line takes things a notch further with its added sportiness.
Inspired by Hyundai’s successes in global motorsport, the Venue N Line is Hyundai’s second N Line model in India. Many do not know that Hyundai is a huge name in the world of motorsport and the Venue N Line here is a good reminder, bearing testimony to Hyundai’s legacy in motorsport, especially its multiple WRC titles. The ‘thunder’ blue colour with red accents and dual tone black roof make it look hotter. And the updates the Venue received last year mean the N Line gets a smattering of dark chrome on its grille which adds a sense of grandeur, while the N Line wheels adds to its racy looks. The rear end is my favourite though – the ‘H-pattern’ for the tail lamps and their connected design makes the Venue look very premium, while dual exhausts finished in dark chrome are yet another reminder of the SUV’s sporty genes.
The star of the show though has to be the 1.0 Kappa Turbo GDi engine, putting out 120PS and 172Nm. The engine makes the Venue N Line one of the most powerful SUVs in its segment and given the outputs, the Venue N Line is also more powerful than many SUVs sitting in the segment above it! The engine is mated to the second generation sevenspeed DCT automatic gearbox with paddle shifters. And as I hit the road early morning, I couldn’t help but smile from behind the wheel. The dual exhausts make for a sporty exhaust note, while the peppiness from the engine and quick gear changes help the Venue N Line deliver smiles, as do the steering wheel and suspension that are tuned to make it a driver’s car.
Ahmedabad is split into two parts, old and new by the river Sabarmati. The newer parts are home to excellent roads with a smooth surface and while the city is notorious for its traffic, the roads were empty early morning, helping me make the most of the Venue N Line’s nifty performance. As the soft early morning light sieved through the sunroof, I couldn’t help but notice the Venue N Line’s cabin too. The fully digital instrument cluster compliments the N Line steering well, while the 8.0-inch touchscreen boasts a crisp resolution and looks bright and also packs in a lot of information. The seats look very sporty – finished in black with red accents, while the dashboard’s black theme adds to the cabin’s sportiness with the red ambient lighting.
The Venue N Line is a feature-rich SUV like every Hyundai product, but one of my favourites here is the factory-fitted dashcam with dual cameras that both record full-HD videos. This is a very good safety feature to have as it lets you record all your drives. The Venue N Line also one-ups other compact SUVs with its driving modes – Eco, Normal and Sport – which alter the driving experience. Effectively, the Venue N Line isn’t just a sporty SUV, it’s also one of the most feature-rich offerings in its segment and the only compact SUV to be equipped with ADAS, which adds to its safety quotient further.
Ahmedabad was just about waking up and the sparse traffic meant I was able to enjoy the feel and feedback from the steering, which coupled with the smooth and strong engine performance helped round off the Venue N Line’s suitability as a compact, quick and fun to drive urban SUV. My first touchpoint in the city was the Sabarmati Ashram, to pay homage to the father of the nation, Mahatma Gandhi. This is the place where Gandhiji started the Dandi March, almost 100 years ago in 1930 and given its historic importance, the Sabarmati Ashram is recognised as a national monument. It sits next to the river bank and is home to a lot of artifacts and Gandhiji’s belongings and being there made for a very serene experience.
I then decided to cross over into the old parts of the city. Old Ahmedabad has a lot of heritage with its old structures and monuments that have helped it get recognised by the UNESCO, while new Ahmedabad is where you’ll find new buildings with brilliant architecture, corporate offices, high rises and more. As you would expect, older parts are also known for being chaotic which as I realised, proved to be an acid test for the Venue N Line! Not only are the roads narrow, the traffic is unorganised and it almost felt like every two- and three-wheeler around was out to pounce onto my Venue N Line!
Despite the chaos, the Venue helped me stay calm with its ease of driving though. Its compact dimensions meant driving through the narrow roads was a piece of cake and I was able to negotiate through traffic easily. This, besides the fact that the Venue offers a brilliant view of the road ahead and also the edges of the bonnet, which add to confidence in tight spots. The Venue N Line is equipped with electric adjustments for the driver’s seat, helping you find your sweet spot easily. Another thing to note is that Ahmedabad tends to get hot at this time of the year and the in-car temperature gauge was showing 35 degrees Celsius, but the Venue’s climate control was quick to cool the cabin with its strong blasts of cool air.
As I passed some of the monuments in the city like the ‘Jhulta Minara’ and ‘Teen Darwaza’, I got a peek into Ahmedabad’s past. The city is steeped in history and is an interesting melting pot of all things old and new, besides being famous for its street food and local snacks. I mean, who hasn’t heard of Gujarati snacks like the Khaakra, Faafda and more! I then ticked one more thing off my bucket list, savouring local snacks at a popular eatery that’s older than I am, before heading back to the newer parts of the city. Recognised as one of India’s leading ‘smart cities’, Ahmedabad has witnessed a sea of changes over the past decade or so and has evolved to become one of the most modern cities in India.
The roads in the newer parts were a delight to return to and complimented the Venue N Line’s sporty nature well. I drove around exploring the city’s architecture and beautification, realising how much it has in common with the Venue N Line that has been quick to become popular, especially with younger SUV buyers looking for a sporty SUV that’s also equipped with cutting-edge features. Like most large cities that have a science park to promote general awareness about the subject, Ahmedabad also has its own ‘Science City’ that is home to a space centre, robotics park and also, India’s largest aquarium that houses thousands of different species of fish from across the world.
As the sun was going down, I also visited one of Ahmedabad’s newest structures, the Atal Bridge. This is a massive foot bridge built across the Sabarmati river and is a visual spectacle and an engineering marvel. Watching the sun go down by the river bank and then watching the bridge get lit up was an experience, before heading to one of Ahmedabad’s night hotspots, Manek Chowk. Located in a small, chaotic part of the city, Manek Chowk is foodie heaven and comes alive at night once the shops in the market shut down. You get to relish some of the craziest fusion foods here and I can confirm, it’s all lip smacking!
As I called it a day, I couldn’t help but reflect on the city of Ahmedabad and the Venue N Line both. As a modern, feature-rich and sporty compact SUV the Venue N Line feels perfect for the young and restless SUV buyer looking to spice up his daily commutes and also venture out on road trips. It had been quite the day driving the Venue N Line through Ahmedabad, exploring the old and new sides of the city. As much as the city boasts a rich heritage, it also has a very cosmopolitan and vibrant feel to it and the Venue N Line proved to be the perfect set of wheels to explore it all with its ease of driving, compactness and of course its sportiness.
