More bang for your buck
WE Brits spent years moaning about the price of new cars compared to those on mainland Europe and then never bought the cheapest ones anyway.
The prices playing field has levelled out since then, although, post-Brexit, who knows?
Had the Hyundai i10 been around in those recent(ish) costly car days there might not have been an argument to start with. Simply put, it’s a bargain.
No, more than that. Almost a steal, and you wonder if Hyundai hit the wrong computer keys when compiling the price list.
The recently revised range of i10 hatchbacks start at £8,995, and the higher reaches of the i10 range might make your eyes widen when you discover what comes with it.
As well as a car that performs well enough to need no apology when turned on to a motorway, and that takes four adults (five at a pinch) and a reasonable helping of luggage, the i10 Premium SE does an amazing job of being a much bigger car.
Bigger in the sense that it comes with the kit you’d expect only on something costing a great deal more, and perhaps not even then.
Heated steering wheel, anyone? Check. Ditto for heated front seats, electric opening sunroof, big screen satellite navigation, air conditioning, cruise control, electric windows all round and rear parking sensors.
Take a deep breath – there’s more. The techie types among us will approve of Bluetooth connectivity to quickly link a smartphone and Android Auto and Apple CarPlay to make the most of the link. And there’s a DAB digital radio.
On a deeply practical level the poshest i10 comes, like all Hyundais, with a five-year unlimited mileage warranty and sitting beneath the boot floor of the test car was a space-saver emergency spare wheel.
On the road it’s not bad at all. There is no hiding the car’s modest dimensions on a bumpy road, when the suspension turns firm and lets you and your passengers know about the poor surface beneath them.
You might also miss a sixth gear on the motorway, although the engine never feels too strained. The radio will need turning up a bit at the legal limit but this is a car to cope with hundreds of miles a day and not complain, although you’ll be changing down a gear or two on long uphill drags. You might find, though, that a 54.8mpg readout on the trip computer compensates for a lack of performance.