A tyre-pressure indicator is a great feature. Until it starts beeping, that is. When it does, it means that things are no longer perfect with the world, if they ever were to begin with, and that I’d better tiptoe to the nearest saviour with an air pump. Of course, the i20’s tyre-pressure indicator had raised an alarm only because… well, I don’t even remember the last time I checked the tyres’ air pressure. And that’s because, as is to be expected in a second wave of a pandemic, I haven’t ventured out much at all. But if I absolutely have to, I will take the i20, that’s for sure.

I totally understand why people would want to buy more cars and bikes now, and even more people will do so in a few months after this second damned wave passes. I’m only saying this because so far 2021 seems to be a duplicate of 2020, only worse. The hope is that things will get even better after the worst. In any case, the i20 is reassuring in more ways than its frugal diesel or its excellent ride quality suggest. It also comes with Hyundai’s ‘Oxyboost’ air-purifier with an air-quality-indicator, and this one feature lets me breathe easy in more ways than one, even if it does nothing else but put my mind at ease. The power of staying positive in these times cannot be overestimated. In the mind, of course, not at the end of an RT-PCR test.

Every time I’ve panicked and gone to check if the i20’s battery has discharged itself, I shouldn’t have. It started right up, I drove it for a couple of kilometres to get everything warmed up and moving, and back into its parking slot it went. Heck, electricity’s even gone out in my colony a couple of times in the past few weeks. At some point, I want to check with Hyundai how it tests and manages the battery’s power. Little things like this go a long way in taking at least one worry away from your mind, and that’s what good quality means. Even if I still can’t find the correct driving position after all this time.