Hyundai i20 review

Hyundai has plainly worked on making the i20 more engaging. It’s a tidy car to drive, if not as amusing as a Ford Fiesta (not much is), with sharp (if largely feel-less) steering, good grip and precious little body roll. It feels agile and quick-witted and changes direction smartly. A big improvement over the car it replaces and very much in the mix versus rivals.

The only real concern we have is the ride, which is off-puttingly busy and overly firm on the 17-inch alloys. On these it’s quite crashy over any imperfections in the road and woe betide if you accidently hit a pothole. Lower trims get 16-inchers – we’d be tempted to stick with a lesser spec for a more comfortable time of it.

Is the engine any good?

It’s a good little engine, the 1.0-litre three-pot. Quiet, punchy up to about 4,000rpm and refined (even if it does transmit a few more vibrations through the driver’s seat than rivals at idle). Zero to 62mph takes 11.5 seconds in the manual or 12.8s in the auto.

The six-speed transmission is a good’un too, slick through the gears and with a short throw. We wouldn’t bother with the seven-speed twin-clutch – it adds £1,250 and you'll have less fun. Right, prepare yourself – we’re about to get nerdy…

Every new i20 comes with 48-volt mild-hybrid tech. Generally in cars with automatic gearboxes, this kind of system decouples the engine from the transmission when the driver lifts off the accelerator, so the engine can shut down and coast to save fuel. Hyundai’s “Intelligent Manual Gearbox” tech brings this fuel-saving functionality to a slick six-speed self-shifter... and saves three to four cent in emissions and consumption. Hey, it all helps.

So in Eco mode, to which the i20 defaults (there are Sport and Comfort modes too, but not much distance between them), the engine shuts down when you lift off. Prod the throttle, hit the brakes or dip the clutch and it’ll spring back to life. Simples.

The whole system is very smooth and unobtrusive – you won’t notice it working and there’s no need to adapt your driving style. The clutch pedal even feels pretty natural, which is an achievement because it’s not really connected to anything.

So it’s efficient, then?

Hyundai says just shy of 50mpg WLTP whether you go manual or auto – we saw 42mpg over a town/motorway mixed route. Sticking to mostly city roads? Expect mid to upper 30s. You’ll probably see high 40s on the motorway.

One other thing to note – you’ll have to put up with the EU-enforced driver assist systems, including speed limit and lane keep. Fortunately there are shortcut buttons on the steering wheel and below the main touchscreen that can be customised to take you to where you can turn them off.

Which you’ll want to, because the bonging from the speed limit assist is darn annoying, and the lane keep is very intrusive.