Hyundai Atoz/Amica

Going, going, and hopefully soon to be gone (see Getz below). Has to hold the accolade for being one of the ugliest small cars on the market, but that didn’t stop 1,000 people a year buying them in Ireland at its peak, though that went down to 300 units last year. Tall, short, and best used in a tight suburbia where a squeeze into a less than full-sized parking space is important. Certainly not recommended for pushing on around the roundabouts, where body roll will scare. The 1-litre is a four-pot, and thus sounds better than some of the three-potters coming from the Pacific Rim, and it makes the car a useful size if there’s a young person in the home looking to get insurance. And they won’t want to be driving it out to see their peers at the weekend. Stars: 4/10

Hyundai Matrix

The new Hyundai Getz supermini is targeted at the established heavyweights in the field like Ford’s Fiesta, Toyota’s Yaris and Opel’s Corsa. And the strategy of Hyundai Ireland is to give ‘more than you bargained for’ in the segment. There are 3- and 5-door cars, both powered by a 1.1-litre engine which is derived from the smaller unit in the Amica that this car replaces. Standard specification includes ABS with electronic brake force distribution. There’s also dual airbags, power steering, electric windows front and rear, and central locking. The Getz is planned as the brand’s best-seller in Europe, and is part of the Hyundai strategy to become one of the Top Five manufacturers globally by 2010. I’ve been impressed in my experience with the car so far. Stars: 7/10

Hyundai Matrix

Another contender in the increasingly crowded Spacestar/Scenic category, and it has a distinctive look all of its own. There’s just a 1.6-litre petrol engine vehicle, though a diesel version will become available next year. It should be very interesting in itself, as it is a 1.5-litre 3-cylinder unit. The car comes with a fairly decent specification, including four airbags, electric windows front and rear, a 6-speaker sound system, and slide-and-fold rear seats. Air conditioning is an option, as is a 4-speed autobox. Its advantage is that you get a lot more specification for the money against the top two players in the compact MPV segment. Disadvantage is that only a few people know about it, and it is vying to beat Fiat’s Multipla in sales figures, which places it in the low 200s for a year when those aforemention two sell almost 4,000 units between them. Stars: 6.

Hyundai Accent

There’s about a year before Hyundai changes what has been up to now a very basic piece of transportation that has its own neat charm. It comes in 3-, 4- and 5-door versions and no less than four different trim levels, including a ‘Sport’. All are powered by the same 1.3-litre engine. The Accent has been one of Australia’s biggest-selling cars, which must mean it has at least a perceived reliability in that country where a breakdown in some parts is a potentially fatal matter. Now in its second generation, with a more angular styling than the first soft-looking model, and the interiors are also better. It drives tidily and should not be dismissed for the driver who wants a car to carry five at the price of something smaller. It is best not to spend money on higher-spec versions, because the extra money is unlikely to be still there at trade-in time. Stars: 5/10

Hyundai Elantra

They sell more Beetles here than they do Elantras, which rather shows the weakness of the car’s perceived usefullness in the Irish market. Bluntly, there’s not much joy for it in a segment dominated by Toyota, Ford, VW, Renault, Nissan and Skoda. But it does give a large car opportunity in a small family car segment, and I still smile at the instruction in the handbook: 'if locked in trunk, it can be opened from the inside by pulling the red lever'. Do such things happen often in Korea? Anyway, the 1.6-litre petrol engine does provide fairly pokey performance, and there’s now also a 2-litre diesel. It is not quite as large inside as some of its direct segment competitors, but makes up for that by being a couple of grand cheaper. A 2-litre diesel is also available. It has one of those very fiddly radios, the kind we should all complain about. Stars: 6/10

Hyundai Sonata

The Sonata upgraded about a year ago features new exterior styling and a restyled interior; as well as for the first time a 2.7 V6 engine and the H-matic automatic gearbox jointly developed with Porsche. Thethere’s also Electronic Brake Force Distribution and side airbags on all models as standard equipment. Also standard for the 2.0 CDX are anti-lock brakes, air conditioning, CD player, sunroof, alloy wheels, electric mirrors, and dual front and side airbags. The 2.7 V6 adds H-matic gearbox, traction control system, climate control, cruise control, AM/FM stereo radio/cassette with CD autochanger and RDS, electric seats (with memory setting for the driver), and leather faced upholstery. For the price of a base Mondeo, the base Sonata puts you towards a lot of little luxuries and a very good build quality. There might also be a rarity valueStars: 7/10


Hyundai Trajet

An MPV in the Ford Galaxy size which has managed to drive itself high to the top of the sales league in its segment, and helped bring Hyundai to its current position as the seventh-largest car manufacturer in the world. The outside styling is rather bland, but tidy. Same can be said for the interior, and add that it is comfortable enough. The really keen attraction is probably the price, because you’re getting a full 7-seater for very fair money indeed. The engines are 2-litre petrol or 2-litre turbo diesel. If you need the carrying capacity, it’s a must see, must drive, and though it won’t enthuse you, you will appreciate its middle-class, middle-of-the-road, steady performance. Purists sneer, but you can’t beat the sales figures. Stars: 7/10

Hyundai XG

The largest Hyundai on this side of the world comes in Ireland with a 2.5-litre V6 and a wish to tilt at BMW. Those who snigger at the thought find themselves rather astonished at the amount of specification they get on this one compared to an equivalently priced Bavarianwagen, though. OK, so maybe the dream is just that, but there’s a certain elegance in the lines of the XG, although the sense is purely American, particularly in that butch grille which retros back to 70s Cadillacs. It fills a slot in a car range list, and there are around a dozen of them out there, so there are fans for it. They’re probably enjoying the easy-driving experience, and aren’t thinking about what happens at the end of their threeor four years of ownership. Stars: 4/10

Hyundai Coupe

This is one of the areas where Hyundai are really cooking. This second-generation Coupe is longer, wider and taller than the previous model, and is available with three engine choices in this market: a 105bhp 1.6-, a 137bhp 2-, and a 2.7-litre V6 producing 171 bhp and sporting a 6-speed gearbox. The 2.0 is offered with the Porsche designed semi-automatic H-tronic gearbox. Standard equipment for all models includes driver, passenger and side airbags, ABS, and six-speaker radio/CD player and air conditioning. The 2-litre adds leather seats and cruise control. The styling is to some eyes less distinctive than before, but is a much more mature and therefore to my view inherently more sexy-looking. A little on the harsh side on the road, and I found the visibility to be poor enough. But looks are where it’s at in this niche, and the Irish company can’t get them out fast enough. Stars: 7/10.

Hyundai Santa Fe

Again, part of Hyundai’s winning team in Ireland, where it dominates the ‘soft-road’ SUV segment. The style grows on you, and key strengths are its comfort and drivability, and the build quality. Not to mention good value at the buying stage, and an arguable good case for reasonable depreciation. For those who never want to take it off-road, there’s a 2WD entry level, powered by a 2-litre petrol engine. Full 4WD is available also with the 2-litre petrol, and is standard with the 2-litre TD version and the 2.7 V6 petrol. There’s also a 2.4-litre petrol here, which you might as well have the benefit of now that the 2-litre is Charlie-mullocked. The specifications are high, as is the driving position, which, though, needs a little more rearward adjustment for the taller driver. There are, as far as I know, no dissatisfied Santa Fe owners. Stars: 7/10

Hyundai Terracan

The Hyundai Terracan is designed as a full off-road car with a traditional SUV body-on-frame construction and selectable full/part time four-wheel drive. A 2.9 litre common-rail turbo-diesel give this fairly handsome contender to the segment a decently powerful propulsion unit. Standard safety features include ABS with Electronic Brake Force Distribution (EBD) driver and passenger airbags, seatbelt pretensioners, variable ratio steering gear plus limited slip differential. It drives high and comfortable, and is an able contender in the class, though nothing as able as the leader-in-place Toyota Land Cruiser, the next generation which I drove recently and was mightily impressed. But see later. Stars: 6/10