[Doggie 1]

I picked up the i30 from the dealership early this morning before heading off to fill it up with BP diesel in readiness for the trip to Pinjarra. Upon delivery it only had about a third of a tank of fuel and the odometer was showing just 16 kilometres.

While the final necessities were being taken care of (like paying for it - I can't believe they remembered that bit), the salesman fitted the licence plates to the car and off I went, out into the world (and the rain). 

My initial impressions reinforced my perceptions from having driven a demo, in that I find the engine noise at idle and very low speeds to be a bit louder than I remember my FD being, but once up to 25-30 km/h you can't hear it.
When I left the city I headed south on the Kwinana Freeway and once out of the morning traffic was able to cruise comfortably at the speed limit of 100 km/h.

On the way down to Pinjarra I made sure I varied the speed (revs) and didn't thrash it, but otherwise drove it normally.

The GD is definitely quieter than the FD.

It just feels more refined, more insulated and road noise is (subjectively) considerably less than in the old car, even when driving on coarse bitumen.

The 6 speed manual gearbox is an absolute delight to use, light, positive and much better than my old 5 speed. Everything felt just  "right" with the possible exception of the steering, which is something I will reserve judgement on until I've clocked up a few more kilometres.

My impression today though was that the steering feels a little dead at the straight ahead position and a bit lifeless just off centre. Not quite as sharp as I remember the FD to be, a bit heavier and almost a little "sticky" if that makes sense.

I haven't as yet checked the tyre pressures and I wondered if they were correct so will check those when I get a chance. Once past the initial turn-in, the steering felt fine and positive to use, just a little dead on centre.
I fiddled with the adjustable steering settings (normal, sport & comfort) whilst on the freeway but to be honest I couldn't detect any difference between them, maybe because it was on a straight road. If I was driving in suburbia or on a twisty road it may have been different.

Overall though, I am very impressed with the car - beautiful to drive and it has a nice solid feel to it. The doors close with more of a quality "thump" than the old car.

The Bluetooth connected with my i-Phone immediately including all contacts and was great to use, with call recipients reporting no nasty feedback or echoing and the sound quality within the car was excellent.

I like the fact that amongst the steering wheel controls there is a "mute" button so that when those annoying ads come on the radio, one press of the button and they are muted. There are a couple of ads on the radio at the moment that drive me nuts so that is a handy feature to have.

Everything else to do with the audio/phone is controlled via the touch-screen and works well and there is even a "record" function so if a song comes on the radio that you like you can hit "record" and the system will record and store it for you.

Great.

One touch "triple turn" indicators are the norm these days but still a handy function that wasn't on the old car.
"Jean" now has 247 kms up on her first day and the trip computer is showing an average fuel consumption of 4.9 litres per hundred.

I took a few photos too because you've probably never seen an i30 before, especially a white one. 

[Phil №❶]

Lucky fella, but what's the brown on the hinge in the last pic

[Dazzler]

Thanks Dave.. Great news .. I like everything except the upside down steering wheel...

[Doggie 1]

Thanks Dave.. Great news .. I like everything except the upside down steering wheel...

It's the Australian version. 

Lucky fella, but what's the brown on the hinge in the last pic

Grease.

[Phil №❶]

 

[Dazzler]

  Good answer

[Shambles]

Sounds like you're a tiny bit pleased with her

I recall Alan (or was it Lester) reporting that the steering modes vary imperceptibly on straight roads, unlike in city driving, and also that the "normal" mode was most functional, all round.

[Doggie 1]

Sounds like you're a tiny bit pleased with her

I recall Alan (or was it Lester) reporting that the steering modes vary imperceptibly on straight roads, unlike in city driving, and also that the "normal" mode was most functional, all round.

Thanks, that makes sense.
And yes, I dream of Jean. She's a good ride. 

[Doggie 1]

Frames on, so she can now go out in public.

[Dazzler]

Nice .. like the personalisation at the top

[Doggie 1]

Nice .. like the personalisation at the top

Me too, but it would have been better if he'd read the order form correctly and not put a space between the db and the 08 

[Shambles]

The photos should look good in the Gallery 

[eye30]

My impression today though was that the steering feels a little dead at the straight ahead position and a bit lifeless just off centre.

Glad to hear you love the car.

On mine I can alter the steering fell to one of three settings.  Does yours have this feature?

[Dazzler]

My impression today though was that the steering feels a little dead at the straight ahead position and a bit lifeless just off centre.

Glad to hear you love the car.

On mine I can alter the steering fell to one of three settings.  Does yours have this feature?

Please try and keep up Lester ... (Dave does mention this) Mind you I am not very observant either 

I fiddled with the adjustable steering settings (normal, sport & comfort) whilst on the freeway but to be honest I couldn't detect any difference between them, maybe because it was on a straight road. If I was driving in suburbia or on a twisty road it may have been different.

[AlanHo]

I have finished up leaving the steering mode set to "comfort".

I much prefer the lightest steering setting - especially when manoeuvring at low speeds.

[rustynutz]

Congrats on finally picking up your new car, Dave.....  

And yes, White is the best colour! 

[Doggie 1]

Thanks Rusty.

Alan, I'll try comfort around town.

Thanks Lester!

And I'll put the pics into the gallery later today. 

[beerman]

Congrats, looks nice...


After all those years, I would have thought you would have been over driving white cars?

[Doggie 1]

Congrats, looks nice...


After all those years, I would have thought you would have been over driving white cars?

Thanks.
I find white cars good for daily drivers. Cool in summer, look clean even when they're not, easy to touch up should the unthinkable happen and a safe colour on the road too.

[Dazzler]

Congrats, looks nice...


After all those years, I would have thought you would have been over driving white cars?

Thanks.
I find white cars good for daily drivers. Cool in summer, look clean even when they're not, easy to touch up should the unthinkable happen and a safe colour on the road too.

and they work well with the fake police light you have too 

[Doggie 1]

Congrats, looks nice...


After all those years, I would have thought you would have been over driving white cars?

Thanks.
I find white cars good for daily drivers. Cool in summer, look clean even when they're not, easy to touch up should the unthinkable happen and a safe colour on the road too.

and they work well with the fake police light you have too 

   Yes but I thought the Santorini Blue would be good for that also.

[Doggie 1]

I've done some metropolitan driving today and I have to say I'm loving driving this car. 
I wasn't sure what difference there was going to be, and there's probably not such a marked difference between the FD U2/6 speed model, but because I've come from the older U1/5 speed model, I can really feel the improvements.
The gearbox is probably the biggest improvement, and although 2nd gear can still catch you out if you change too quickly, it is vastly superior to the old car and the added refinement of the GD is very noticeable in normal driving which just showcases the advances that Hyundai is making with each new model release.
My car now has over 400 kms on the odometer and the trip computer has increased the average fuel consumption slightly and is currently reading 5.0 l/100 kms.
My youngest daughter, Megan, drove it this afternoon and liked it a lot. I know she did, because she described it as "not bad."
Coming from Meg, that is a compliment. 

[Phil №❶]

So far, so good 

[Dazzler]

Even the 5 Speed in Trish's My11 CW was a vast improvement on the earlier Manual (smooth as silk) 

Great to see you are enjoying it Dave 

[Doggie 1]

Even the 5 Speed in Trish's My11 CW was a vast improvement on the earlier Manual (smooth as silk) 

Great to see you are enjoying it Dave 

That's interesting Dazz, they obviously got on top of that early. 
I certainly wasn't at all unhappy with my early build 5 speed, as you know, I loved it. I c an just feel the difference in this one.

[rustynutz]

My youngest daughter, Megan, drove it this afternoon and liked it a lot. I know she did, because she described it as "not bad."
Coming from Meg, that is a compliment. 

Maybe she's starting to regret buying the Mazda now.... 

[Doggie 1]

No, she's not, but she has said that she wishes she could have bought the diesel version for the fuel economy.

[tla]

One of the biggest changes between the FD and GD is the torsion beam rear suspension.

Have you noticed any big difference in relation to handling and how it responds to large bumps in the road?

[Doggie 1]

One of the biggest changes between the FD and GD is the torsion beam rear suspension.

Have you noticed any big difference in relation to handling and how it responds to large bumps in the road?

Early days, but I have been conscious of looking for any differences but I haven't been able to detect any.
I'm hoping it reduces the rear tyre wear problem though.

[AlanHo]

In my case I did detect a big difference in ride quality. The new car rides bumps much more smoothly and road noise is much less.

This may of course have a lot to do with the fact that my previous car had 17" rims - the new one is 16"