Hyundai Accent GLS Review
For the many years they have been selling cars, the once small Korean manufactuarer Hyundai, has been growing. Once it was the purveyor only of low-budget entry-level subcompact sedans. Today’s Hyundai lineup includes the upper-middle class Azera sedan, the popular Tucson and Santa Fe SUVs, and the quick Tiburon sports coupe. All of those cars are considerably farther up the socioeconomic scale from Hyundai’s humble beginnings, but there is still a Hyundai for people with small budgets. That is the Accent, an inexpensive and economical subcompact sedan. The Accent is not exactly an afterthought in the Hyundai lineup, either, as the newest generation debuts for model year 2006.
The third-generation Accent shows how far “entry level'’ has come over the years. It’s larger than before, especially inside, where it can hold four people reasonably well, yet it’s still small enough for easy parking. Power is from a new 1.6-liter, 110-horsepower twincam four-cylinder engine with continuously-variable valve timing. Safety equipment is comprehensive, and much greater than expected in the entry-level class, with four-wheel antilock disc brakes and six airbags as standard equipment. The 2006 Accent four-door sedan has recently been joined by a two-door version, an early-release 2007 model.
Don’t look for sleek, sporty styling here. In common with most of the other current subcompacts, maximization of the passenger cabin in both length and height and a short hood and trunk gives the Accent four-door sedan chunky proportions. Think of a puppy that hasn’t grown into its head and feet. The wheelbase has grown 2.3 inches, but overall length is only up by 1.8 inches. Height has grown by three inches.
As for confort, the Accent’s large passenger cabin pays off for passengers. There is more interior room than in some cars a class higher. A two-tone dark-over-light color scheme mimics that of luxury cars, and both tight tolerances in fit and finish and improved fonts on the controls improve the interior experience, as does full and well-designed instrumentation. Front seat comfort is good, and the high roofline allows an upright seating position with a high eyepoint for both front and rear passengers. The driver’s seat adjusts, manually, eight different ways. Rear seat head and legroom are better than expected, with width the limiting factor for three-passenger comfort.
In terms of safety, there is no reason for an inexpensive car to be less well-equipped for safety than an expensive one. So the Accent protects its occupants with a full suite of standard active and passive safety features. Four-wheel, four-channel antilock disc brakes with electronic brake force distribution ensure quick stops to avoid an accident. Five mile per hour bumpers help reduce the cost of low-speed incidents. If a crash occurs, passengers are protected by a safety cage around the passenger compartment, aided by front and rear crumple zones and side reinforcement. All seating positions have three-point safety belts and adjustable headrests. There are six airbags, dual front, front seat side, and full-length side curtain.
Structurally, the new Accent’s increased rigidity not only improves its crashworthiness, it also improves its ride and handling. Although of typical layout for a small sedan, with its engine mounted transversely and driving the front wheels, independent front suspension by MacPherson struts, and a semi-independent torsion bad rear suspension, the Accent is well-executed and more refined than earlier small Hyundais. The suspension calibration is fairly soft but a front stabilizer bar reduces body roll and well-matched spring and shock rates ensure good comfort and compliance over poor surfaces and good handling. Engine-speed sensitive power steering allows light steering when parking and a more solid, stable response on the highway or at speed on a secondary road.
As a final conclusion i high-rate the Hyundai Accent GLS, for it’s small cost, confort and safety.
Written by admin on June 13th, 2006 with
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