New Power Generation

Economical, smart-looking, practical and good value. The Hyundai i10 ups its game

The Hyundai i10 may not have been on UK car buyers’ radar until the scrappage scheme of 2009. Giving prospective new car owners a discount of £1,000 when they traded in cars of 10 years old or over, the little Hyundai became the one of the most popular cars at the time. The Korean company sold almost endless quantities of the then two year-old city car to drivers who wanted an affordable, economical car to replace their aged vehicles.

Simple and stylish
Launched in 2007 to replace the awkward‑looking Atoz, the first-generation i10 set the template for the ‘new’ Hyundai. It gave way itself to the New Generation i10 earlier in 2014, which shares some parts commonality with the Picanto, the i10’s sister car made by partner company Kia. Longer, wider and shorter than the model it replaces, the New Generation i10 brings with it Hyundai’s updated design direction and certainly looks the part. With hints of first-generation Mercedes‑Benz A-Class in its rear window line, it’s simple, stylish and undoubtedly modern.

The looks play to Hyundai’s aim to increase its share of the European city car market to 6.6 per cent this year. Before the arrival of the new car, the i10 was Hyundai’s biggest‑seller in the UK and accounted for almost one third of the company’s 74,000-unit sales figures during 2013. In line with most of its competitors such as the Volkswagen Up, the new i10 is only available with petrol engines. A 1.0-litre 64bhp three-cylinder starts off the range which is topped off by a 1.2 four-cylinder unit with 84bhp. The smaller‑capacity engine should account for the majority of buyers in the UK. It’s this engine which features in the most eco‑friendly version, the 98g/km SE Blue Drive.

Sizeable kit list
Three trim levels are available – S, SE and Premium – and it’s the mid-range SE with the four-cylinder engine which is tested here. For £9,795, the i10 SE comes with a whole host of standard features. As well as body-coloured door mirrors and door handles, there are also electric front and rear windows; electrically-adjustable and heated door mirrors; USB and AUX-IN connections; an electronic stability programme; front, side and curtain airbags; remote central locking; and air-conditioning. A sizeable kit list by anyone’s standards. The Stardust Grey test car also featured stylish blue upholstery which matched a dashboard insert the same shade, lending the interior a colourful air. The cabin itself is simple in its design but everything works as it should and feels like it will last.

With the exterior and interior featuring a new-found modernity, you would expect the mechanicals to be up-to-date, too. And so it proves. The new i10 is both easy and fun to drive thanks to its all-new platform which was designed and engineered in Europe. The small Hyundai handles with verve, while the ride soaks up imperfections with ease. It’s grown-up too, with a sense of maturity which may at first seem a little at odds with the new-found sense of fun, but both these attributes sit well together.

It’s true, the 1,248cc engine has to be revved and stirred with the slick five-speed gearbox to get the best out of it, but get it up to speed and it’s a refined motorway cruiser. With refinement and mechanical noise isolation being worked on so much, there is very little external noise at all.
Hyundai quotes a combined cycle miles per gallon figure of 57.6. Our real-world tests resulted in a tally of 53.0mpg, which is one of the closest-to-quoted figures we’ve yet found. This 114g/km 1.2-litre engined car is expected to take at least 40 per cent of total sales.

Practical and good value
Contemporary small cars fight in the smallest, yet one of the most demanding sectors of the market. City car buyers look for models which are affordable to buy and to run, offer plenty of space, are fun to drive and easy to thread through the city landscape. The New Generation i10 is well up to the task. It’s practical, smart-looking, good value and enjoyable to drive. Add in a generous standard equipment list, a five-year unlimited mileage warranty plus a 15 per cent BIK rate, and there’s now much more to like about Hyundai’s newest small car offering than just plain good old-fashioned value.

Hyundai New Generation i10 1.2 SE
ENGINE: 1,248cc, four-cylinder petrol
CO2: 114g/km
MPG (combined): 57.6
VED: Band C, £0 first year, £30 thereafter
BIK: 15%
PRICE (OTR): £9,795 (including VAT, £10,425 as tested)