Hyundai i10 car review

Auto Driven: Hyundai i10
Models tested: Hyundai i10 1.1 Classic
Price as tested: £6,495
Range price: £6,495-£7,895
Insurance group as tested: TBC
Insurance group range: TBC
Date and place tested: 29 February 2008, East Sussex, UK
Road tester: Adrian Higgins

Following the success of the Hyundai i30, the Korean manufacturer is hoping to win more converts with new city car the Hyundai i10.

The Hyundai i10 fulfils customer expectations with a competitive price and a reassuring five year warranty.

But now Hyundai is trying to broaden its appeal with neat styling and a raft of eye-catching features – including air-conditioning as standard.

View our Hyundai i10 slide show

Hyundai has established itself as a manufacturer of good, reliable, cheap cars.

A five-year warranty (most manufacturers offer only three) and wallet-pleasing prices has won the Korean manufacturer a place in European buyer’s minds.

But with budget car suppliers from India and China targeting the European market, Hyundai now needs to win our hearts too.

The Hyundai i10 is another step in the right direction taken by the Hyundai i30 and first impressions reveal a compelling, cute, canny choice for the blossoming city car market.

The snub-nosed five-door run-around is a well-designed little brother to the i30 and stands favourable comparison with its established rivals. We especially liked the near-vertical rear with central Hyundai badge doubling as boot catch embodying the neat integration of function and design.

Quality finish

Even given the car’s exterior attractiveness, the interior still surprises with materials, finish and features which belie the sub-£6,500 entry price.

A central white speedo dominates the information display and the central stack features CD/radio controls for the six speaker audio system and air-con controls plus an MPV-style mounted gearstick at its base.

There is plenty of room inside the five door i10 with my 6ft 2in driving companion comfortable in either front seat. Seating in the rear is a little more snug but good for this class.

The rear hatch is light to lift and reveals a practical, spacious boot with 258-litres of space. Cup holders between the front seat occupants are complemented by doorwells for in-car storage.

Happy at motorway speeds

The only engine at launch is a 65bhp 1.1-litre petrol model: available as a five speed manual or four speed automatic. We drove the manual, which covers 0-62mph in 15.6 seconds and has a top speed of 95mph, on a mixture of motorways, A roads and B roads.

It needs to be worked hard with revs kept up to exploit the power available but is perfectly satisfactory for the job of city car and is happy at motorway speeds, if a little noisy.

Few in the market for this kind of car are likely to be too concerned by the car’s leisurely acceleration but we look forward to the greater oomph to come from the forthcoming 1.2-litre petrol engine.

More patience will be required for the automatic model’s 0-62mph time of 18.5 seconds. Its top speed is 90mph.

Congestion charge free

The car’s 14-inch wheels mean drivers are best advised to avoid potholes and bumps in the road but Hyundai’s claimed longest wheelbase in class helps ensure a fairly comfortable ride.

The steering is responsive to minor adjustments at lower speeds and though the car’s performance doesn’t necessarily invite opportunities to display its handling ability it feels robust when the occasion arises

The Hyundai i10 is a cheap car which is also economical to run. The manual model returns 56.5mpg while the automatic covers 48.7mpg.

Both produce only 119g/km of CO2 which means an annual car tax bill of £35 (band B) and exemption from the London Congestion Charge from October 2008.

Hyundai expects the car to have retained 38 per cent of its value after three years’ ownership, thanks in part to the five year warranty.

Four airbags

Safety features include four airbags as standard as well as anti-lock brakes and electronic brake force distribution on all models.

The i10’s other big selling point is the amount of kit which is available with each car.

There are three trim levels: Classic, Comfort and Style. We drove the Classic model and it had a better quality feel and selection of features than one would expect from an entry-level city car, let alone one priced so keenly.

In addition to the safety features mentioned above, buyers also get a six speaker CD/radio, front electric windows, central locking, tinted glass and the feature Hyundai is billing as its unique selling point: air-conditioning on all models.

The Comfort trim adds rear electric windows, body-coloured handles and door mirrors, remote control central locking and height-adjustable driver’s seat while the Style trim adds 14-inch alloy wheels, heated front seats, rear roof spoiler and electric sunroof.

View our Hyundai i10 slide show