|
By
EWAN KENNEDY
21 January 2008
Hyundai's latest model, the i30 hatchback is aimed fair and square
at the Euro market. Though it’s still built in South Korea, much
of the design work was done on the European continent. Why, the
Hyundai i30 even had some Australian design influence as our
market is very important to our Asian neighbours.
Well aware of the special desires of our drivers,
Korean and Australian engineers have tailored the suspension and
steering specifically to suit our conditions. So it comes as no
surprise that this Euro-Aussie setup means there are some special
on-road dynamics. There is good feel through the steering wheel
and the little car is more than willing to change direction mid
corner. And the i30 holds the road at much higher cornering speeds
that are every likely to be attempted by typical owners, resulting
in huge margins of safety.
That’s the good news, but there's bad as well,
at least in the minds of some owners. The good handling and
steering feel has resulted in a rather firm suspension. To the
extent that it can be harsh when on some rough surfaces. Having
said that, it works well on moderate roads and provides good
comfort and quietness on smooth ones.
Styling is sharp, with a touch of BMW, Mazda and
Subaru to its lines. In our mind the South Korean machine does it
better than the Germans and Japanese. Which is one reason why the
Hyundai i30 is already selling at
The only body is a five-door hatchback. The
Hyundai Elantra is sold as a four-door sedan. Though the two share
quite a few out-of-sight components you wouldn’t quite call them
brothers. Step-siblings might be a more accurate description.
Interior space in the Hyundai i30 is very good and
it could be used as a family car for those with a couple of
children who are well into their teens.
Quality of build is very good because the South
Koreans have been working hard at this important aspect of their
cars. Quality has improved from the somewhat rough and ready
finish of the 1980s to a standard that’s getting close to
Japanese both inside and out. High praise indeed.
Our test car for the last week was the Hyundai i30
SLX. It came with the 2.0-litre petrol engine with a power peak of
105 kW. Torque is impressive for a 2.0-litre unit, reaching 186 Nm
at a too high 4600 rpm.
The engine in our test car was teamed with a
four-speed automatic transmission and had almost too much punch
off the line. To the extent that it could take an inexperienced
driver by surprise. Throttle reaction once the car was up and
running was more reasonable and the petrol engine could make up
speed quickly for safe overtaking.
This 2.0-litre engine is a modern twin-cam,
four-valve unit, but surprisingly isn’t as smooth as that of
many of its competitors. The Japanese in particular are doing some
wonderfully silky four-cylinder 2.0 litres these days.
Fuel consumption from the 2.0-litre auto in the
Hyundai i30 was around the high sevens to mid eights on motorway
and flat country driving. This typically rose to nine to eleven
litres per hundred kilometres in suburban commuting. Expect a
five-speed manual to reduce consumption by about ten percent.
Being aimed at the European market means that
Hyundai offers the option of a turbo-diesel engine on that
continent. In an interesting move it has decided to also import
some diesels to Australia. Though only a 1.6-litre unit it puts a
reasonable 85 kW, and a strong 250 Nm between 1900 rpm and 2750
rpm. The turbo-diesel comes with a price premium of $2500.
The petrol is sold with both the five-speed and
automatic. The manual is typically Hyundai in its makeup in that
it isn’t always as precise in its movements as we like. Let it
proceed at its own pace and it works well enough.
Hyundai has been disturbed to find that only about
10 per cent of buyers of its Elantra four-door sedan are happy
with having to pay the extra price demanded by standard ESP on
that model. ESP is an important safety feature standard in all
Elantras. But the local importer has been forced to drop ESP from
the standard list of the entry-level $18,990 i30 SX and the
mid-range $23,490 i30 SLX. It does offer ESP and additional
airbags in a $1790 Protecz Pack on the SX. The Pack costs $990 on
the SLX as it already has multiple airbags.
On the whole the new Hyundai i30 is a most
impressive package, combining dynamic ability that’s close to
that of the typical European car in this class, with the latest
high level of build quality from South Korea.
AT A GLANCE
MODEL RANGE
SX 2.0-litre five-door hatch - $18,990
SLX 2.0-litre five-door hatch - $23,490
CRDi SX 1.6-litre diesel five-door hatch - $21,490
CRDi SLX 1.6-litre diesel five-door hatch -
$25,990
SR 2.0-litre five-door hatch - $26,490
FEATURES
ABS Brakes: Standard in all models
Air Conditioning: Standard in all models
Automatic Transmission: $2000 option on SX, SLX
and SR, not offered in CRDi
CD Player: Standard in all models
Central Locking: Standard in all models
Cruise Control: Standard in SLX and SR, not
offered in SX
Dual Front Airbags: Standard in all models
Front Side Airbags: Standard in SLX and SR, in
$1790 package option in SX
Stability Control: In $1790 package option in SX,
$990 option in SLX and SR
Traction Control: Standard in SR, in $1790 package
option in SX, $990 option in SLX
SPECIFICATIONS (Hyundai SLX 2.0-litre five-door
hatch)
ENGINE:
Capacity: 1.975 litres
Configuration: Transverse, four cylinders in line
Head Design: DOHC, four valves per cylinder
Compression Ratio: 10.1:1
Bore/Stroke: 82.0 x 93.5 mm
Maximum Power: 105 kW @ 6000 rpm
Maximum Torque: 186 Nm @ 4600 rpm
DRIVELINE:
Driven Wheels: Front
Manual Transmission: Five-speed
Automatic Transmission: Four-speed
Final Drive Ratio: 4.188: 1
DIMENSIONS, WEIGHT AND CAPACITIES:
Length: 4245 mm
Wheelbase: 2650 mm
Width: 1775 mm
Height: 1480 mm
Turning Circle: 10.4 metres
Kerb Mass: 1363 kg
Fuel Tank Capacity: 53 litres
Towing Ability: 500kg (1200kg with braked trailer)
SUSPENSION AND BRAKES:
Front Suspension: Independent, MacPherson struts,
coil springs, anti-roll bar
Rear Suspension: Independent, multi-link type,
coil springs, anti-roll bar
Front Brakes: Ventilated Disc
Rear Brakes: Disc
PERFORMANCE:
0-100 km/h Acceleration: NA
Standing 400 Metres: NA
FUEL CONSUMPTION:
Type: Petrol 91RON
Combined Cycle (ADR 81/01): 7.2 L/100km
STANDARD WARRANTY:
Five years/unlimited km
© Copyright
Marque Publishing Company
|
