High Wycombe, England - Hyundai has fully revealed its refreshed i30 model range ahead of its debut at the Geneva Motor Show next week.
The i30 has been given a makeover to give it a better chance against the Volkswagen Golf 8, which is currently being rolled out, and the South Korean contender comes to the party with a sharper design, new connectivity features and a 48-volt mild hybrid option.
While the first two Hyundai i30 generations were sold in South Africa, the local importer has skipped on the third-generation due to pricing pressures, although it did recently introduce the i30 N performance hatch to our market. It doesn’t look too likely that the regular i30 models will make a comeback any time soon, but never say never.
So what are we missing out on for now? The i30 Hatchback, Fastback and Wagon models all receive a more daring ‘wide mouth’ design upfront and the sporty ‘N Line’ trim grade (which is not to be confused with the actual N performance model) takes things further with a honeycomb grille and racy aprons front and rear.
Things have been thoroughly digitised inside, where buyers will find a new 18cm digital instrument cluster and 26cm touchscreen, which will also soon offer wireless phone mirroring. There’s also a new range of Connected Car Services linked to Hyundai’s Bluelink technology, which among other things enables real-time traffic and parking information, cloud-based voice recognition and remote control of some of the car’s functions.
Driver assistance gadgets include Lane Following Assist, which can automatically adjust the steering to help keep the car centred in its lane, and Rear Collision-avoidance Assist, which can apply the brakes automatically when the car is in reverse.
The facelifted i30 also ushers in a new flagship engine, which is a mild hybrid 1.5-litre direct injection turbopetrol unit that produces 118kW. The mainstay of the range, however, is the carryover 1-litre turbopetrol unit with 88kW and this unit is now optionally available with a 48-volt mild hybrid system, and buyers also have the option of a 1.6-litre turbodiesel unit with 100kW.
The 1.0 petrol and 1.6 diesel engines can be mated to either a six-speed manual or seven-speed dual clutch automated transmission.