The i10 goes back to basics
EVERY day I am bombarded by survey results sent by companies flogging insurance or loans who are hoping to be name-checked in the paper. Most are completely fatuous or statistically doubtful, but sometimes they are worth a look and are thought provoking.
Yesterday one came in from Saga
(the service provider to the grey-haired population) that said the over-50s think car companies aren’t catering for them and are building over-complicated models with features they never asked for. Like keyless entry and lane-keeping assist.
I’m sure this is true and since the average age of a new-car buyer is around 54 it is a survey car manufacturers would do well to read themselves.
Which brings us to this road test of the new Hyundai i10.this is their smallest car and entered the UK buyers’ consciousness during the Government’s first scrappage scheme in 2009 in which motorists were given £1,000 for their old crock.
Many thousands bought the value-for-money Hyundai.this latest version of the i10 is new from the ground up and that includes completely revised styling.the new car is only 5mm longer than the old one at 3,670mm but it is
20mm wider which makes it look more squat and substantial on the road.
A more meaningful dimensional adjustment is the extra 40mm in the wheelbase which has resulted in extra legroom. So why the introduction talking about over-complicated cars and the mature new-car buyer? Because this small Hyundai is refreshingly simple and just the sort of car that someone who doesn’t want to be bombarded with technology would warm to.
W£14,995
Petrol – 1.2 80bhp 0 to 62mph in 12.6 seconds, 114mph top speed
E’RE testing the i10 in Premium spec with the more powerful 1.2-litre 80bhp petrol engine (the alternative is a 1.0-litre motor with 65bhp).an automatic version is available but ours is a five-speed manual. Price on the road is £14,995 to which we can add £550 for black metallic paint and a further £500 for a two-tone roof. Both make the i10 look much more stylish than its predecessor.
We get off to a good start by entering the car with a plipper and then starting it with a traditional key. No keyless here, or daft starter button.
In front of you is a blissfully simple dashboard which, although it has an infotainment screen mounted on top of it, has most regularly-used controls such as heating and ventilation plus audio volume and simple knobs and switches.
A sliver of silver trim in front of the passenger gives the i10 a more distinguished, stylish look and the quality of materials is more than adequate.
The new Hyundai i10 is not immune to the insidious creep of unwanted technology – it is fitted with wretched lane-keep assist. It’s possible to switch it off using a button on the lower dashboard but it comes back on as a default if you switch the ignition off.
This system, which no one I know likes
[in any car], is of use to people regularly distracted by fiddling with the infotainment system and who might veer out of their lane, but is an irritating interference to those of us who are always looking through the windscreen and concentrating.
In the i10 the system intrudes and messes with the feel of steering. Unfortunately, lane-keeping assist will be compulsory from 2021 for cars sold in Europe.
The extra wheelbase has improved rear legroom in the i10. It’ll be a bit of a squish for three adults but it’s possible.the boot holds 252 litres – not bad for a small car.
Hyundai says most customers will choose the smaller-engined i10 rather than this 1.2-litre version. For what is essentially a city or short journey car that’s a sensible move. Even this 80bhp engine runs out of puff on motorways and needs downshifting to lower gears when faced with gentle hills.
The little three-cylinder engine has character and will do the job.
This new Hyundai i10 is a simple and straightforward city car, not bristling with unwanted, over-complicated technology.
It doesn’t, however, have a CD player which is one of the items the respondents in the survey miss in new cars.
55.3mpg 117g/km Fiat 500, Toyota Aygo, Volkswagen Up!
7/10