Hyundai Creta's AC scores highest among SUVs and MUVs in India

By now, you've probably understood where we're going with our ultimate Indian automobile AC test. Yesterday, you read about how we conducted the tedious tests, and how the hatchbacks fared too.

Now it's time for the next segment â€" the SUVs and MUVs. Like we mentioned earlier, the vehicle which comes out on top is the one which managed to have the lowest temperature in the cabin. We've also rated five other major factors for every car's air-conditioning unit and here's what the ratings mean:

5/5: Very Good

4/5: Good

3/5: Average

2/5: Poor

1/5: Very poor

1. Hyundai Creta

Min cabin temperature achieved: 28.9°C â€" 3/5
Rate of cooling: 5/5
Circulation: 2/5
Vent temperature: 5/5
Blower speed: 4/5
Noise: 2/5

Coming out on top again is a Hyundai. With a lowest temperature of 28.9°C, the Creta has clearly trumped the other SUVs and MUVs in this test. However, the standards set by the i20 Active are clearly very high, which is why, the Creta only scores 3/5 for the minimum temperature achieved. However, what's really impressive is the rate of cooling and the vent temperature. The temperature of the air from the front AC vents dropped from high 66.1°C to a cold 15.7°C within the first two minutes. It went further down to 10.5 degrees by the end of the test run, which is almost half a degree cooler than in the i20 Active. The rear vent temperature dropped to 15 degrees by the end of the run, which is almost 1 degree less than in the i20 Active.

The Hyundai Creta scored poorly in terms of circulation because there was a difference of 1.85 degrees between the front of the cabin and the rear. However, what's interesting is that the rear of the cabin was actually cooler than the front. This is probably because of the larger glass area at the front of the car. Additionally, while the blower speed is pretty good, with the wind speed from the vent hitting around 31kmph, the Creta scores low in terms of how much noise the AC unit makes.

2. Volvo XC90

Min cabin temperature achieved: 30.4°C - 2/5
Rate of cooling: 5/5
Circulation: 4/5
Vent temperature: 2/5
Blower speed: 2/5
Noise: 2/5

The Volvo XC90 missed the 3-star cut by a little less than half a degree, with the minimum recorded temperature being 30.4°C. However, the XC90 does have an excellent rate of cooling with the vent temperature dropping from 63.5 degrees to 18.5 degrees in the first two minutes. However, the lowest temperature we recorded at the vent was 16.1°C, which is still not as good as the Creta's. The temperature of the rear vents didn't drop as quickly, but it too hit a temperature of 16 degrees during the test run. This means that the cool air passing through the ducts leading to the rear vents doesn't gain any temperature along the way â€" unlike in the Creta. This also means that circulation within the cabin is pretty good, with a difference of around 1 degree between the front and rear of the cabin.

However, the XC90 does have a rather low blower speed with wind speed from the vent reaching just 23kmph. Despite that, the cabin is quite noisy with the AC set to full blast.

3. Mahindra Bolero Power+

Min cabin temperature achieved: 30.6°C - 2/5
Rate of cooling: 4/5
Circulation: 4/5
Vent temperature: 3/5
Blower speed: 3/5
Noise: 2/5

Sitting in third place, just 0.2°C behind the XC90, is the Mahindra Bolero Power+ which doesn't have automatic climate control. It manages a pretty good rate of cooling and the vent temperature went from 66.2°C to 26°C in the first two minutes. It fell further to 15.7°C during the run. Despite not having rear AC vents, circulation was quite good, with a difference of just 0.8°C between the front and rear of the cabin.

Again, interestingly, the rear of the cabin recorded a cooler temperature, and this is again probably because of the larger glass area at the front. The blower speed was decent with the wind speed from the vent reaching around 26kmph. However, there was quite a bit of noise at the centre of the cabin, which is why it scored 2/5 in that aspect.

4. Toyota Innova Crysta

Min cabin temperature achieved: 32°C - 2/5
Rate of cooling: 2/5
Circulation: 2/5
Vent temperature: 1/5
Blower speed: 1/5
Noise: 5/5

Compared to the top-runners in this test, the Toyota Innova Crysta didn't perform too well in most aspects. What's worth mentioning is that the Innova Crysta's cabin is quite large and there's quite a bit of window area too. The lowest cabin temperature we recorded was 32°C, and the rate of cooling wasn't too good either. The cabin temperature dropped by six degrees in the first two minutes and then another three degrees in the next two minutes. However, from there it was slow progress.

The lowest temperatures we recorded at the vents were 19.9°C at the front and 19.5 degrees at the rear. The circulation between the three rows wasn't very good with an average difference in temperature between them being 1.55°C. One of the strong points for the Innova Crysta, however, is the noise level. It had one of the quietest AC units in this test, so it scores very well in that department. We've noticed that the bottle cooler next to the third-row seats makes the most noise in the cabin.

5. Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza

Min cabin temperature achieved: 33.2°C - 1/5
Rate of cooling: 2/5
Circulation: 1/5
Vent temperature: 2/5
Blower speed: 3/5
Noise: 4/5

Despite the Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza being smaller than some the other cars before in this segment, it only managed to drop its temperature down to 33.2°C during our test run. The lowest temperature we recorded at the front vent was 18.4 degrees which is still 5.4 degrees more than the Creta's lowest rear-vent temperature. The Brezza's rate of cooling was quite poor with vent temperatures dropping by just 28.1 degrees in the first two minutes. For reference, the Creta's vent temperature dropped by 50.4 degrees in the first two minutes of the run.

The Brezza's circulation was very poor too, with a difference in temperature of 2.2°C between the front and rear of the cabin. However, the blower speed was decent, with the wind speed from the vent hitting around 27kmph. Despite that, the Brezza scores well in terms of how low the noise level inside the cabin was.

6. Honda BR-V

Min cabin temperature achieved: 33.3°C - 1/5
Rate of cooling: 3/5
Circulation: 1/5
Vent temperature: 1/5
Blower speed: 4/5
Noise: 3/5

Despite having a significantly larger cabin and more glass area than the Brezza, the Honda BR-V's lowest cabin temperature was just 0.1°C more. Additionally, the BR-V had a better rate of cooling too with the cabin temperature dropping by 8.4 degrees in the first two minutes compared to the Brezza's 5.3 degrees.

However, the lowest vent temperature was quite poor at 21°C, and so was circulation, with an average difference of 3.7 degrees between the different parts of the three-row cabin. What was good in the BR-V was the blower speed, with the anemometer recording wind speeds of 30kmph from the front vent. Despite that, the noise level inside the cabin was decent.

7. Mahindra Scorpio

Min cabin temperature achieved: 34.1°C - 1/5
Rate of cooling: 3/5
Circulation: 4/5
Vent temperature: 3/5
Blower speed: 3/5
Noise: 3/5

The Mahindra Scorpio stands at just seventh in this segment with the lowest-recorded cabin temperature being 34.1°C. However, it's important to note that the Scorpio is a better overall performer than some of the other cars here. For instance, the rate of cooling is decent, with temperatures dropping by 7.8 degrees in the first two minutes.

The Scorpio's circulation is one of the best here with a difference in temperature of just 0.7 degrees between the front and rear of the cabin. The lowest front vent temperature we recorded was 15.9 degrees, which is just 0.4 degrees more than the Bolero. Additionally, the rear vent temperature hit 19.2 degrees which is better than in the Innova Crysta. The Scorpio's blower speed was quite decent too and so was the noise level inside the cabin.

8. Tata Hexa

Min cabin temperature achieved: 35.7°C - 1/5
Rate of cooling: 3/5
Circulation: 2/5
Vent temperature: 1/5
Blower speed: 4/5
Noise: 2/5

We've all heard that Tata's AC units are some of the best in the country. Which is why we were quite surprised with the results of the Hexa. With the lowest-recorded cabin temperature being 35.7°C, it is just 3.7 degrees warmer than its closest rival, the Toyota Innova Crysta. However, it is just 0.1 degrees warmer than the significantly smaller Ignis (which stood last among the hatchbacks).

The rate of cooling was decent, with the temperature dropping by 12.1 degrees in the first four minutes. But after that, the drop in temperature was very minimal. The lowest temperature at the front vent was very poor too at 21.2 degrees, while the lowest temperature at the rear vent was 24.2 degrees. Circulation wasn't too good, with the average difference in temperature between the different part of the 7-seater's cabin being 1.9 degrees. This, despite a pretty good blower speed, the wind from the vents hit around 32kmph.

9. Toyota Fortuner

Min cabin temperature achieved: 37°C - 1/5
Rate of cooling: 2/5
Circulation: 4/5
Vent temperature: 1/5
Blower speed: 3/5
Noise: 5/5

The Toyota Fortuner fared the worst in the whole test in terms of the minimum cabin temperature achieved. Its rate of cooling wasn't very impressive either, with the cabin temperature dropping by just 5.4 degrees in the first two minutes. Additionally, the lowest temperature we recorded at the front vent was 21.1 degrees, which is around 1 degree more than in the Innova Crysta.

However, what's worth noting is that the rear vent temperature wasn't very far behind, with a lowest temperature of 21.4 degrees. Circulation was pretty good too with an average difference in temperature between the three rows being just 0.85°C. The Fortuner's cabin was also among the quietest in this test despite having a better blower speed than the Innova Crysta â€" the anemometer read that the wind speed from the Fortuner's front vent was almost at 28kmph.

Also from OVERDRIVE:

Ultimate Indian automobile AC test: The testing parameters

Hyundai i20 Active's AC is best among Indian hatchbacks!

Then and now: When ACs were not common in cars

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