One look at the Accent Hatchback is all you’ll need to realize that performance is part of the equation, but zipping away from
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| Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
stoplights and taking to the corners is only part of what Hyundai has on offer with this stylish five-door.
The Accent, whether in hatch or four-door form, is an impressive subcompact, easily capable of mixing it up with the bevy of Japanese and domestic entry-level offerings currently available. Along with its sporty styling and strong performance it delivers a nicely finished cabin with high style, good materials quality and better than expected refinement, not to mention the roominess of some compacts.
Make yourself comfortable in the sizable front seats, my GL tester covered in two-tone upholstery that combines woven black cloth on the sides and bolsters with a lighter patterned fabric for the inserts, the latter material adopted for the nicely
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| Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
finished door panel inserts as well. For me, the doors are this car’s design highlight, featuring attractive satin silver surfacing surrounding fashionably detailed, high quality power window switches, before the same satin silver trim wraps around the lower portion of each armrest. The satin silver treatment highlights more than just the door panels, but also the door handles just above, plus the multi-function steering wheel, centre stack surrounding trim and infotainment system’s interface, plus the automatic transmission gear lever panel.
Like the power window switches, the rest of the Accent’s knobs and buttons are of high
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| Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
quality, nicely damped and placed snuggly together for minimal side-to-side wiggle, not the case with many in this class or above, while the plastics aren’t hollow feeling like some competitors. Such attention to detail sets all Hyundai models apart, from this most basic of cars to what has now become a near complete line of true luxury models.
The sense of quality doesn’t just permeate the mid-grade GL model tested, but base L trim too and of course top-line GLS. That L can only be had with a manual gearbox, although it’s a six-speed manual, which is one more forward speed than most in this segment, while the car also features the same direct-injected, 16-valve, DOHC 1.6-litre four-cylinder engine that develops a soul-stirring 138 horsepower and 123 lb-ft of torque. My tester featured the six-speed automatic transmission,
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| Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
a more engaging set of optional gears than most others in the subcompact segment, with some competitors still using antiquated four-speed slushboxes.
Additional L equipment includes body-colour door handles and mirror caps, just like pricier trimmed variants, a rooftop spoiler, and the same 14-inch steel wheels on 175/70R14 Hankook Optimo tires as GL models, including the identical twinned four-spoke wheel covers that appear like aluminum rims from a few metres away. The only reason I’m a bit chagrined that alloys aren’t standard on the base car is that they’d more easily show off two of the base Accent’s most impressive standard features, rear disc brakes. All competitors include front rotors as standard,
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| Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
but few bind the rears with discs in standard trim while some either don’t offer them at all or leave them for fancier sport-trimmed models that are priced more than $10k higher than this little Accent Hatchback, which incidentally starts at a modest $13,899 plus $1,595 for freight and pre-delivery prep.
Additional standard safety kit includes ABS for those brakes, plus electronic brake force distribution and brake assist, as well as electronic stability and traction control that work together with Vehicle Stability Management (VSM) for optimal control no matter the weather or road conditions. Active front headrests protect against whiplash while three rear headrests do likewise for all passengers in back, whereas a full assortment of airbags make sure occupants are as safe as possible from potential impact.
On
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| Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
a lighter note, the Accent Hatchback L model comes with a number of standard convenience and entertainment features too, such as powered steering with tilt, power door locks, a driver’s seat height adjuster, front seatbelt height adjustment so your neck won’t get chafed, a four-speaker AM/FM/CD/MP3/USB/iPod audio system, floor mats, a rear cargo shelf, 60/40 split-folding rear seatbacks for better passenger/cargo flexibility, a rear wiper, and an Eco Shift indicator to remind you to go easy on the revs in order to maximize efficiencies.
On that note Accent Hatchbacks using the six-speed manual are rated at 7.5 L/100km in the city, 5.3 on the highway and 6.5 combined, whereas automatic-equipped models get a claimed Transport Canada rating that’s marginally thirstier in
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| Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
the city at 7.6 L/100km, a bit better on the highway at 5.2, and once again rated at 6.5 L/100km combined.
As inferred you’ll need to opt for GL trim to access that automatic gearbox, but the move upwards brings a number of improvements that will be welcomed by most despite its slightly higher price tag of $16,299 plus freight. Even before entering you’ll appreciate this model’s remote keyless access, which also combines with an alarm system, while additional upgrades include telescopic steering for better ergonomics, powered windows with driver’s side auto-up/down, heated exterior mirrors, air conditioning, steering wheel-mounted audio, cruise and phone buttons that actuate the Bluetooth hands-free phone connectivity and upgraded
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| Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
six-speaker stereo with satellite radio. Heated front seats will help you stay warm during the cold months of winter, while a deluxe centre console with an armrest improves comfort and adds storage.
If you want to step the Accent Hatchback up a bit in style and luxury you’ll need to opt for GLS trim, which adds front fog lamps, side mirror-mounted turn signals, 16-inch alloy wheels riding on 195/50 tires, a leather-wrapped steering wheel, automatic climate control with an attractive digital display, and a powered tilt and slide glass sunroof for an asking price of $17,899 plus freight, while the automatic transmission adds $1,250 to either GLS or GL model.
My
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| Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
test car’s Ultra Black paint looks great, but you might want a less intense shade of grey, silver or white, or alternatively a little or a lot more colour. Classy looking Mocha Bronze or Boston Red would be good for those with conservatively colourful tastes, while those wanting to garner more attention will get a charge out of Marathon Blue or Green Apple. Altogether Hyundai offers eight exterior shades and colours, while the interior only comes in black (which is really a combination of dark and light greys). I should mention here that only GL and GLS models get such a wide variety of colour options, the base L only available in Ultra Black, Triathlon Grey, and Century White.
No matter what hue you choose the Accent Hatchback drives just as well. I’ve already
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| Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
spoken of engine power, which results in excellent highway passing capability, not to mention quick acceleration from standstill thanks to a curb weight at just a hair over 1,100 kilos in base trim. Of course the Accent’s six-speed transmissions do their part for performance too, while even base L and mid-range GL models with their smaller diameter steel wheels manage corners well, and ride quality is very good for this class of car. The Accent tracks well at highway speeds and is equally adept at maneuvering through congested inner-city turmoil, where its quiet passenger compartment is most appreciated.
All
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| Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
the better to hear the audio system, which while including a simple, straightforward display, delivers good sound quality for an entry-level hatchback, with clear, crisp highs due to my GL model’s two extra tweeters, and impressively resonant bass tones. Likewise the heating, ventilation and air conditioning system is straight-forward and easy to use thanks to three large dials for temperature, fan speed and air flow direction plus a single button for recirculation below, flanked by the two-way front seat heater buttons. The dials and buttons are all large enough to use with gloves, which is appreciated in the cold of winter.
As noted that passenger area is spacious, with lots of hip and shoulder room plus loads
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| Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
of fore and aft travel to optimize leg and headroom for the driver and front passenger, whereas rear occupants will have their legroom dramatically reduced if the front occupants are especially large. Even so, with the front seats fully rearward there’s enough legroom in back for most body types, whereas headroom should be ample for all but the tallest.
Under the rear hatch is a commodious luggage compartment measuring 600 litres (21.2 cubic feet) when the standard 60/40 split seatbacks are upright, while cargo carrying capacity expands to a maximum of 1,345 litres (47.5 cubic feet) when the rear seats are folded forward. It should be noted that they don’t fold completely flat, but rather rise up a bit from the load floor when laid down. This might pose a problem when carrying large items that need to remain perfectly horizontal,
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| Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
but Hyundai obviously felt more Accent customers would want the extra space of a lower cargo floor than a raised floor and ideally flat load surface.
While such details are important, at the end of the day styling sells cars and the Accent Hatchback is a great looking five-door. Hyundai’s familiar family look is up front and centre, starting with its unique trapezoidal framed grille, bisected by a body-colour bumper that places a chrome trimmed narrow engine vent at the top and a larger opening below, an attractive set of smaller openings at each side of the front valance looking like brake cooling vents, but in actuality simple plugs to cover where the optional fog lamps go. I’m torn between what I like better, the fogs or faux vents, but either way the Accent’s front end looks good. Its headlight clusters are intricately detailed, worthy of close-up photos on their own, whereas the
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| Photo: Karen Tuggay, Canadian Auto Press |
view from profile shows that the point at which these lights end is merely the beginning of a sporty fender-line that leads into the Hatchback’s collection of airy side windows. Below is a sweeping beltline that really ads to the car’s sporty character, finishing off in the middle of this model’s ultimately unique Arabian sabre-like taillight design. Multiple curves and folds in the rear metalwork and plastic cladding combine for a tail end that’s as attractive as its frontal view, resulting in a great looking car from front to rear.
Along with its attractive styling are the other Accent Hatchback attributes already covered, particularly its well designed and quality constructed cabin, intelligently packaged features, impressive performance, good fuel economy and better than average comprehensive warranty spanning five years or 100,000 kilometres. If you’re considering the purchase of a small efficient hatchback with big car roominess and functionality, make sure to test out the Accent Hatchback.
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