Hyundai i10: Is this the best value car?

9:36am Friday 27th June 2008

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If you are looking for a bargain city car, then you will be faced with an increasing choice. But I think I've just driven the best value of the lot.

If you’ve got a budget of less than £9,000, you will still have a spectrum of manufacturers after your pounds. At less than £8,000, the choice gets a lot more limited. Below £7,000... well, let me introduce you to the Hyundai i10.

At this point you might be thinking that you will be sacrificing an awful lot in terms of equipment and comfort, but the i10 comes with air-conditioning, four airbags, an excellent audio system, central locking and electric front windows.

And the price? Only £6,745. Thought that might get your attention.

It also has a willing engine of 1086cc that feels surprisingly at ease at motorway cruising speeds, even if you will have to change gear quickly and often to get up there.

In a city environment, it is in its element, providing a supple ride in a slightly raised position that gives confidence to the driver and allows for ease of access to the seats.

I was left thinking that so engaging was the i10 in negotiating traffic obstacles that this would be the perfect car for a driving school, particularly when you consider the good all-round vision and ease of use when parking and reversing.

There are areas where Hyundai needs to sharpen its act: the gear lever, mounted high on the centre console, feels weedy, and the steering wheel - although just right in size - feels cheap between the fingers.

But the dashboard is well thought-out, the seats are comfortable The i10 is available with just one engine: a 65bhp 1.1-litre petrol that’s linked to either a five-speed manual or four-speed automatic gearbox. It feels at home in the cut-and-thrust of city traffic, offering sprightly performance, but you need to work it hard to get up to speed on faster roads.

The entry i10 is one of the cheapest new cars around, plus it comes with the reassurance of a five-year warranty and will cost you just £35 per year in road tax (unless you choose Style trim or the auto gearbox). Classic and Comfort specification models average a healthy 56.5mpg, the range-topping Style 54.3mpg and auto models 48.7mpg.

Rear knee room isn’t fantastic, but most adults should be able to sit in the back without risking deep-vein-thrombosis, and there's plenty of headroom. Although the boot is small, you get some useful underfloor storage in Comfort and Style spec cars. In all versions, the rear bench splits and folds flat in case you need to carry larger items.

Upgrading to the Comfort spec from Classic adds remote locking, alloy wheels and powered rear windows, while the range-topping Style features heated front seats, an electric sunroof and a spoiler.

The second model in Hyundai's new European-focused model line-up, the i10 is based on a new platform and shares only the 1.1-litre engine with Kia's Picanto.

It will cruise with barely a grumble at 70-80mph – even with a full load of passengers – although there is some noise to contend with at higher speeds. I carried three adults and a child from York to Whitby via Helmsley on a test run and the car coped well with the vagaries on Blue Bank and the long stretches of twisty, hilly roads roads that can make this journey both challenging and enjoyable. And there wasn’t a peep from the three passengers in the back.

But this is essentially a car for the city, and one that shows that Hyundai is now able to deliver a real contender in this sector at a price and with a warranty that will make the rivals squirm.

At a glance

Model: Hyundai i10 Classic Price: £6,745

Engine: 1086cc petrol

Transmission: Five-speed manual driving front wheels (four-speed automatic also available).

Power: 65bhp at 5,500rpm

Performance: 0-62mph in 15.6 seconds; top speed 96mph

Fuel economy: 56.5mpg (combined cycle) CO2 emissions:133g/km