October 24, 2022
Over the past three months, Mike Simon, creator of the YouTube channel Dirt Perfect, has been testing out our HX210AL in a series of videos on his channel. Recently, his demo period ended, and he was faced with the decision to purchase the machine or return it to the dealer. In his most recent video, Mike explains his favorite things about the HX210AL and the few adjustments he would like to see in the next series. Ultimately, Mike decided to keep the machine in his fleet. Read below to find out the top reasons why Mike couldn’t let go of the HX210AL.
When operating a machine, organization is especially important in making sure the machine can be easily serviced and maintained throughout its lifetime. Mike appreciates the convenience and organization of the machine, allowing for easy serviceability and daily maintenance checks.
“Nobody on the market does a better job of laying out their machine, keeping them organized and keeping them easy to work on,” Mike says. “Everything is just so neatly routed, so neatly placed, easy to feel, easy to access, easy to check. They have never disappointed me in that department.”
As with any piece of equipment, the engine is important in giving the operator the power they need to efficiently and effectively complete the job. All of Hyundai’s A-Series machines are equipped with a Stage 5/Tier 4 Final Cummins Performance Series engine, providing it with power and performance.
“The 210 and the 220 [HX220AL], which is the next size up, are very, very similar machines. There are a few differences, but one of the major differences is the engine package in them. This machine here, the 210, has the 4.5 liter Cummins engine in it, which is a four-cylinder. The 220 has the 6.7 liter engine in it, which is a six-cylinder. Now here’s the kicker, this engine right here, the 4.5 liter, that guy’s rated for 170 horse continuous, 190 horse peak. If you look at the spec on the 220, horsepower ratings are the exact same,” Mike notes. “This engine is designed to do exactly what it’s asking it to do. An excavator application is very easy on an engine because it pretty much runs a constant rpm… and with these emission-style engines, they need heat. The more heat, the better they work so why not have this little guy in here, maybe working a little bit harder, producing more heat to keep everything working efficiently?”
Mike emphasizes the importance of fuel efficiency when it comes to the machines he runs for his business.
“You need to be as fuel efficient as you can. That was one of my major concerns with going with a bigger machine: the amount of fuel I was going to burn. This machine here has been averaging between 3 and 3.1 gallons per hour, and that’s running on the highest setting and that has continued to come down as the engine has gotten broken in,” Mike adds. “Other competitor machines that are on the six-cylinder engines, they are around 5 to 5.5 gallons per hour. Two gallons per hour savings is huge over the lifetime of the machine, especially the fuel costs going up.”
“The visibility out of this cab is absolutely superb without the use of any mirrors, cameras or anything. I’m a little bit old school; I like to put visuals on stuff, kind of know where my boundaries are and I just feel very, very comfortable sitting in this seat and having all my sight lines,” Mike says. “I’ve set in a lot of different machines, and I don’t think anybody even comes close to the sight line visibility from the cab of what this thing does. It is absolutely incredible.”
As a seasoned operator, Mike has seen his fair share of monitors. He knows the importance of having a user-friendly monitor to manage the machine from the comfort of the cab. Mike particularly likes that the monitor comes with several different options for control: the 8″ touchscreen, manual buttons and our innovative haptic control.
“One thing I’ve always mentioned I absolutely love is the Hyundai monitor. It is absolutely awesome. It is so user-friendly,” Mike mentions. “You have all kinds of different options about how you want to go about doing stuff, whether you’re comfortable. Some of the newer operators might be more comfortable with the touch screen; some of the older operators maybe, like Jerry, one of my operators, likes to use the buttons. [The haptic control] is a cool feature right here because you can kind of stay kicked back and not have to reach for anything.”
Mike raves about the cab comfort offered in the HX210AL. Spending many hours in his machines, he finds it especially important to have a comfortable cab with features like deluxe air ride seats, Bluetooth compatibility and effective heating and air conditioning.
“You guys have probably seen me in some videos sitting back with my legs crossed, just as comfortable as can be. I find myself very comfortable, very cozy in this machine. Hyundai has come a long way in the last four or five years with creature comforts and amenities in the cab. It is absolutely awesome,” Mike says.
Throughout his videos series of videos on the HX210AL, Mike continues to mention how impressed he is with how quiet the machine runs.
“It is very, very impressive. It makes communicating on the job site very easy, conducting business, phone calls, etc. very easy. I’m super impressed with how quiet it is, especially if you close up the cab, you can hardly hear this thing run at all, which is absolutely awesome,” Mike points out.
“This thing has got brute force out the wazoo. It has continued to impress me time and time again with the strength the breakout force. The balance of the machine is absolutely superb. The feel of operating this machine, like I said, it is probably one of the easiest machines to learn how to operate. It is very, very user-friendly. It is very easy to be smooth and natural on this machine. Anybody can pick it up really quick,” Mike notes.
