Accent making right noises

By Michael Moroney

Hyundai knows how important the Accent model has been for the Korean car maker. It was the launch pad for the brand on the Irish market some years ago. Its value remains a key feature, as it continues to be favoured by family buyers.

Six generations after the launch of the original model, called the Pony, the latest version gets an engine upgrade, styling improvements and more safety features. I’ve had the new Accent on the road to get a feeling for the Hyundai offer, in terms of performance, features and value.

The Accent is rightly perceived at the value end of what is a competitive C-segment of the car market. It’s probably considered at the smaller or entry end of the market but it’s entitled to an upgrade in the mind of buyers because the new model just got a bigger and more powerful engine and the car is bigger too.

Hyundai claims that the new version has grown 20mm in length, 15mm in width and 75mm in height. It has also gained 60mm in wheelbase. Part of the Accent appeal is that it sits almost uniquely between B-segment and C-segment size rivals, while giving interior space that’s closer to what you expect from a C-segment car.

Hyundai has increased the engine size with this new Accent from a 1.3-litre to a 1.4-litre unit as the entry petrol-powered model. The bigger engine boosts power from 83bhp to 97bhp and engine torque is also lifted by an equivalent amount.

This new power output puts the Accent at the top of the 1.4-litre group in terms of raw engine power. That pushes it up to being among the fastest 1.4-litre cars in the group, with a 0 to 100km/hr acceleration pace of 12.3 seconds.

Believe it or not, that’s very marginally slower than the older 1.3-litre Accent which it replaces, but the new model has more features and carries more weight.

While some might consider the Accent 1.4 to not have racing car performance, it’s almost 2 seconds faster than an equivalent 1.4-litre Ford Focus. Across a comparison of 12 equivalent 1.4-litre C-segment cars, the new Accent delivers a very acceptable acceleration figure. So its value in a performance sense is not in question.

And the new Accent performs well in an economy sense too. With a combined fuel economy rating of 6.5 litres/100km (45mpg), it delivers the best economy figures among the 12 models that I examined. Nearest to the Accent is the Citroen C4, while the slightly bigger engine of the Kia Cerato delivered the poorest economy figure.

The new Accent has its compliment of safety and comfort features. The safety features’ list includes ABS braking with EBD, driver and passenger front de-powered airbags and side impact protection beams.

In terms of passive safety, the new Accent is claimed to be more rigid, with reinforced bulkheads, pillars and side impact structures all working together to provide a stiffer front sub-frame. Crumple zones and load diffusion paths have been further optimised.

In addition, standard passive safety features include front and side de-powered airbags, front and rear curtain airbags, active headrests, front three-point seatbelts with dual pre-tensioners and force limiters.

Active safety measures include the introduction of optional ESP with traction control and brake assistance. Larger diameter, 14-inch front ventilated disc brakes, with ABS and EBD (Electronic Brake-force Distribution) lift the Accent braking performance. Also, a high torque rear braking system is claimed to deliver up to 50% more braking power over the previous model.

The comfort factors are provided for in standard features such as air conditioning, CD player with RDS radio, trip computer, flexible roof antenna, tinted glass, front and rear fog lights. The deal is topped off with a three-year unlimited mileage warranty and three-year unlimited AA membership.

The new Accent is an easy and pleasant car to drive with enhanced styling. That gives the car a more modern look to the front and rear sections. But is it value?

The new Accent enters the market at €16,950 (stg£8,995 in Northern Ireland), which is by far the most competitive car in the C-segment, even if it’s at the smaller end of the segment. While that’s a price increase of over €1,000 since this time last year from the older 1.3-litre model, it still remains competitive.

With the new model you are getting more power, slightly better acceleration, but no economy improvements due to a clear engine to comply with EU rules. Most equivalent C-segment cars are closer to the €20,000 mark and do not offer too much more, apart from a brand image.

On the downside, the Hyundai Accent has no recent EuroNCAP crash test report. The last one dates back some years, despite all of the design improvements, so we can only believe in the claimed new safety features. Across the world the Hyundai brand has a good reliability record, especially the previous Accent models. So expect that to remain as part of the package – meaning that the Accent remains a value option.