[boosta]

Hi there

I have come across this website from car advice after reading about the i30.  On paper, the i30 is very promising + the safety features (which I’m keen), have not really decided on (Diesel or petrol, Man or Auto) – chances are it will be Petrol + Auto.  I do hope the i30 Wagon comes soon as it looks like the complete package.     

I have test driven these cars (except the i30, hopefully this weekend):
Yaris sedan auto - feels like a struggle with 3 adults with aircon on full swing) - not interested now

Mitsubishi Lancer 2006 – 2.4 litres, I fear the fuel consumption - not interested now

Toyota Corolla Sedan 2006 – so far my favourite but no ABS, dislike the New Corolla ‘Camry’ look

Have read similar thread to i30 as a family car, wife and I are planning for kid so will like opinion
1) if any owners have used their i30 as a family car in particular to “a young toddler with baby seat in the i30 hatch”.  I will also appreciate any opinions from other owners who don’t meet this criteria.

2) how is their fuel consumption for mainly city driving (auto + petrol / auto + diesel)?

3) is it a struggle with 4 adults and aircon on full swing (auto + petrol / auto + diesel)?   

I will be going through each thread re: fuel consumption this week. 

Our needs are really commuting from home to in-laws (10kms – 1way, 15-20mins drive), minimum drive in to work as we both bus to work for now.  My mileage check since last service in Aug till today – 6,000kms travelled.

Any recommendation for dealers in Adelaide as pretty much I have narrowed down to Stillwell Hyundai (Nailsworth) or Maugham Thiem (Port Adelaide)?

Cheers
boosta (Adelaide)

[Rubix]

wrong choice of car. Just kidding.

1) I've got a 5month old, truth be told it's nearly too smooth a ride for him... when he's restless, he preferred the bumpy 92 Charade a bit more I think. But as far as space, the capsule fits fine in the centre of the back seat with my seat holding it in solid (and I'm comfortable, enough leg room and back rest relaxed a bit), while the wife's seat is able to go down to lying position so she could nap on the drive from Sydney to Melbourne and back last weekend.
Special note about ANY car these days is that baby capsules dont fit as snugly on the contoured seats. They used to fit better on the flatback flatseat lap-sash only belts of yesteryear, and wobble a bit on all modern vehicles. That's something I tested on a few cars before I decided on the i30.

2) Fuel consumption for mainly city driving - I do about 15minutes to get to work each day, through side streets and traffic lights, only about 5-10km drive. It's still early days, but if I don't thrash the car because I'm running late, then I think I'll maintain about 9.5L/100km *I think*. I'm tentative on this because before my 2000km weekend trip, my car had done only 700kms and I was getting about 12L/100km for that same driving - but while on that 2k trip my consumption went steadily down as I drove 110km/hr (I was reseting the L/100 every hour for a bit, it went from 10 to 7.5 on the way down, ie the first 1,000kms)

3) Aircon I find absolutely perfect, I have climate control in my SLX, although I've only driven 2 adults and the baby, but it's been almost too cold at times, I turn it off rather than turning the climate up past 24*C because it uses petrol. Oh - special note, my fuel consumption figures are all while driving with the aircon-on, I don't really turn it off much. I point the centre console vents at me and the passenger seat, while the outer ones I point towards the windows so they go towards the back of the car - it cools the whole car down pretty quick: my wife did a stint sitting in the back with my son on that trip and had to ask me to turn the aircon off a few times. This is during 40*C temps so you should be fine - Adelaide afaik is about the same-ish.

[bumpkin]

My daughter has just had her 4th birthday and the i30 is admirably suited to the needs of a couple with children.

There is more cabin room than the old style Impreza, both for front and rear passengers which makes getting a child in and out easier and there is less liklihood of seat back scratching by little feet since they are further away.  Secondly even with all the extra stuff required to travel with a child, the boot simply swallows everything, with the Impreza I had luggage sharing the cabin with us which I hate, the i30 hides all the luggage away nicely.

[LuciferDarklord]

My boy is nearly 4.  Car is great for family needs, not quite as much room as the wife's Tucson but the fuel economy is a lot better so we can go for drives more often.  Just returned from a week away and all the luggage, toys, etc etc fit in easily.  I even had enough room to bring back around 50kg of mangoes packed in boxes for a family member.

[buringot]

swapped my swift with the i30, mainly due to the kids. what a big difference! kiddo number one used to kick the back of driver's seat, now she can't reach it 

[kinesiologykid]

Hi there

I have come across this website from car advice after reading about the i30.  On paper, the i30 is very promising + the safety features (which I’m keen), have not really decided on (Diesel or petrol, Man or Auto) – chances are it will be Petrol + Auto.  I do hope the i30 Wagon comes soon as it looks like the complete package.     

I have test driven these cars (except the i30, hopefully this weekend):
Yaris sedan auto - feels like a struggle with 3 adults with aircon on full swing) - not interested now

Mitsubishi Lancer 2006 – 2.4 litres, I fear the fuel consumption - not interested now

Toyota Corolla Sedan 2006 – so far my favourite but no ABS, dislike the New Corolla ‘Camry’ look

Have read similar thread to i30 as a family car, wife and I are planning for kid so will like opinion
1) if any owners have used their i30 as a family car in particular to “a young toddler with baby seat in the i30 hatch”.  I will also appreciate any opinions from other owners who don’t meet this criteria.

2) how is their fuel consumption for mainly city driving (auto + petrol / auto + diesel)?

3) is it a struggle with 4 adults and aircon on full swing (auto + petrol / auto + diesel)?   

I will be going through each thread re: fuel consumption this week. 

Our needs are really commuting from home to in-laws (10kms – 1way, 15-20mins drive), minimum drive in to work as we both bus to work for now.  My mileage check since last service in Aug till today – 6,000kms travelled.

Any recommendation for dealers in Adelaide as pretty much I have narrowed down to Stillwell Hyundai (Nailsworth) or Maugham Thiem (Port Adelaide)?

Cheers
boosta (Adelaide)

Hi Boosta,
I looked at Corolla, but the ESP and five year Hyundai warranty won me over.
Your Hyundai dealer should have a free video on ESP (Electronic Stability). Watch it and then decide!
Toyota could be bringing it out soon in their cars, you could check.

If you love your family, make sure you get the six airbags.

For short runs, get the petrol. I have a diesel and its great for long runs. The diesel economy really suffers on short runs.

The petrol i30 SX with six airbags and ESP would probably be the safest car for the price.

The i30 wagon would be the ideal package.

[Dazzler]

The diesel economy really suffers on short runs.

The i30 wagon would be the ideal package.

I've got a manual SLX Crdi and my economy seldom varies by more than about .3 ltrs per hundred kilometres between long and short trips (say 5.2 to 5.5 respectively)

A Diesel i30 wagon could very well be my next vehicle....

[eye30]

The diesel economy really suffers on short runs.

I disagree.

In my 1.6 crdi I average 50+ MPG mainly doing town driving.

Now the weather is  cooler this has droped to 49 MPG

[boosta]

Buying an i30 (CW)

Howdy, just a silly question - can I request to add the safety pack (side airbags) & reverse parking sensor if I bought a demo model or do I have to buy a brand new car (with the lot)?

Apologies as I didn't want to ring the Hyundai dealer because the last time I did, the dealer kept ringing me, so annoying!

Cheers
boosta

Buying an i30 (CW)

Howdy, just a silly question - can I request to add the safety pack (side airbags) & reverse parking sensor if I bought a demo model or do I have to buy a brand new car (with the lot)?

Apologies as I didn't want to ring the Hyundai dealer because the last time I did, the dealer kept ringing me, so annoying!

Cheers
boosta

I doubt air-bags can re retrofitted but parking sensors can certainly be, even if you have to get non-genuine.  Sensors will probably be cheaper to get done, after you purchase, from an outside source... unless you can bargain that into the deal for free or a very good price of course.

[MRH130]

Buying an i30 (CW)

Howdy, just a silly question - can I request to add the safety pack (side airbags) & reverse parking sensor if I bought a demo model or do I have to buy a brand new car (with the lot)?

Apologies as I didn't want to ring the Hyundai dealer because the last time I did, the dealer kept ringing me, so annoying!

Cheers
boosta

Hi Boosta,

Congrats on your choice, you'll love it.

Rear park assist can be done at any time in the car's life. Depending on how fussy you are about appearance, you can get aftermarket ones, although the genuine system works well and is colour matched properly and designed to fit the bar properly. You might be able to get the dealer to throw it in with the deal or at least not charge you retail for it.

Unfortunately the Protectz pack can only be fitted at the factory. If the car doesn't have it now, it never will. It involves different seats for the side airbags and a lot of reworking to install the curtain airbags, so it's not really practical to fit it to an existing vehicle. Protectz isn't that expensive, but if you're doing a deal on a particular vehicle it's a value judgment for you to make as to whether you want to go with the demo or order one with the exact spec you want. 

[boosta]

Thanks for the replies!

No point getting demo then as I want the side airbags.

I will try my luck this weekend at the dealers, just don't like this new pricing thing - drive-away prices which includes the dealer fees etc.

[magicRob]

Not sure I can recommend anywhere in Radelaide but I can give you this advice, which I've posted elsewhere.

Go to the Hyundai website. Get the drive away price from here (put in your postcode):

http://www.hyundai.com.au/Offers/default.aspx

You should also notice the $500 Myer giftcard bonus for cars purchased this weekend!! Don't let that factor into the pricing of the vehicle. It is a bonus after all

If you want the old RRP pricing these two press releases give that information up:

http://www.pressportal.com.au/news/206/ARTICLE/4616/2009-03-18.html
http://www.pressportal.com.au/news/206/ARTICLE/3449/2008-10-10.html

My bet is that you can land a car, with some options for this RRP or below, rather than the official Hyundai drive away price. Hell I got my car for $26.5 when initially they were telling me it was $27.8 drive away base model nothing extra.

Push them hard. If they don't want to deal, go elsewhere. It took me 3 dealers to find somewhere I was happy buying from. The first two I went to were bloody muppets who had know interest in selling me a car what so ever.

The Hyundai site will point you at various dealers. Radelaide isn't difficult to get around, so you should be able to get to any dealer in the metro area Ring ahead and make sure they have exactly the car you want to drive/look at. Otherwise tell them to rack off

[MRH130]

As magicRob says, you can obtain the standard drive-away price from the Hyundai site, and then try and grind a bit more out of the dealer. The margin on these cars isn't as big as some people think, but there is some wriggle-room. The distributor will also be keen to get as many cars out this month as possible, as they are required to do so by HMC is Korea, as well as the End of Financial Year stuff that everyone goes on with. That means that if the dealer rings the distributor and asks for some help on the price you might get just a little bit more. The only caveat to that is that the car would have to be delivered to you before the end of the month. If that doesn't happen, then the sale goes in to next month's figures and you're not likely to be able to grab quite as much of a discount. They're already amazing value for what you get anyway.

The Myer card can be exchanged, in most cases, for another $500 off the price of the car. If you'd prefer the voucher, just say so. Most dealers don't care either way.

Good call on the airbags, I would have done the same thing.

Some people say you don't buy a car to crash it, but I just like to know there are a couple of extra pillows in the car to protect my supple body

[boosta]

*** Sorry should have posted buying an i30 CW as I didn't want to stay a new thread****

Hello all,  since my 1st post in Jan, I have been researching any information regarding the i30 (CW) and the reviews have been great.  I also finally convinced my wife that Hyundai is not as bad as the Excel days and we need a wagon for our purposes. 

We were originally going to hold off buying a new car until Dec 09 (hence I ended up not test driving any car since Jan) but my mechanic just advised me yesterday to stay looking for a new car, so I’m a bit stressed having to visit the car dealers and trying to study for an exam next Tuesday.

All the reviews seemed to point towards the Diesel however the summary I get is diesel from long drives and petrol for city/ short drive.  Our situation remains the same (short drives within the city, ie shopping centre is like 5 minutes drive), we won’t be driving to Melbourne or Sydney, I did some estimation and the consumption (www.greenvehicleguide.com.au):

CW SX Man + Petrol = 9.7litres / 100km (Urban) - $20,890
CW SX Auto + Petrol = 10.2litres / 100km (Urban) - $22,890 (both Auto + Man Petrol- not much diff in Urban consumption)
CW SX Man + Diesel = 5.7litres / 100km (Urban) - $23,390
CW SX Auto + Diesel = 7.9litres / 100km (Urban) - $25,390

worst case (if been posted to another location) – travel ~250kms per week (13,000km a year)

best case (based in city) – travel ~ 120km per week (6,240km a year)

Based on the distance travelled, does it justify for the diesel engine?

Cheers
boosta

Based on the distance travelled, does it justify for the diesel engine?

My take would be that you have asked the wrong question.  You need to drive both petrol and diesel and buy the one you want to drive... any distance.

[ivana]

*** Sorry should have posted buying an i30 CW as I didn't want to stay a new thread****

Hello all,  since my 1st post in Jan, I have been researching any information regarding the i30 (CW) and the reviews have been great.  I also finally convinced my wife that Hyundai is not as bad as the Excel days and we need a wagon for our purposes. 

We were originally going to hold off buying a new car until Dec 09 (hence I ended up not test driving any car since Jan) but my mechanic just advised me yesterday to stay looking for a new car, so I’m a bit stressed having to visit the car dealers and trying to study for an exam next Tuesday.

All the reviews seemed to point towards the Diesel however the summary I get is diesel from long drives and petrol for city/ short drive.  Our situation remains the same (short drives within the city, ie shopping centre is like 5 minutes drive), we won’t be driving to Melbourne or Sydney, I did some estimation and the consumption (www.greenvehicleguide.com.au):

CW SX Man + Petrol = 9.7litres / 100km (Urban) - $20,890
CW SX Auto + Petrol = 10.2litres / 100km (Urban) - $22,890 (both Auto + Man Petrol- not much diff in Urban consumption)
CW SX Man + Diesel = 5.7litres / 100km (Urban) - $23,390
CW SX Auto + Diesel = 7.9litres / 100km (Urban) - $25,390

worst case (if been posted to another location) – travel ~250kms per week (13,000km a year)

best case (based in city) – travel ~ 120km per week (6,240km a year)

Based on the distance travelled, does it justify for the diesel engine?

Cheers
boosta

hey boosta

i too was looking for a car under duress as my reliable old excel died on me. (lost a piston and was about time to upgrade anyway)

i drove both the petrol and the diesel models and found the diesel to have more torque or "oomph"

and i paid only a month ago: 21 900 for a 5 dr diesel sx. which was only about 500 dollars more for the i30 than a toyota carolla. i figured that diesel is cheaper and having to refuel less often would offset that cost.

additionally the dealer had an 18 mth old slx in midnight that was a demo/used and they were asking 23 000 for it, and it only had 20 000 kms on the clock (used as a company car by a local disability support group)

so it holds its value well.

the choice is up to you, but id drive both first before making a decision.

once i had made my decision i visited a couple of hyundai dealers in the area and got the best price by playing off two dealerships owned by the one company. That is the only way ill ever buy a car again- do your homework, know what you want, get an offer and go to another dealer and get a better price. Put the pressure on them, and shop around is all i can recommend.

[MRH130]

Horses for courses, boosta - I have a petrol and I drive it long distances (about 60000km per annum) and I'm very happy. We have 2 diesels and 2 petrols in my immediate family and everybody is stoked with their cars.

Take them both for a drive and see what you think. If you're only doing small mileages the lower fuel consumption of the diesel is less of a benefit but it is still there. The danger of putting petrol in the diesel by mistake and getting a large bill for the damage is a worry if you share the car with others who might be absent-minded when it comes to cars.

If you really want an auto (which I, personally, can't stand) you would definitely be better off with the diesel, as it's torque characteristics suit an auto better than the petrol which is torquey for what it is, but doesn't mind a rev either.

For a manual, I think it's a dead heat for driving enjoyment so it comes down to whether you think that the extra purchase price and servicing costs of the diesel will be offset by the fuel savings over the mileage you will do in the car.

Just my 2 cents. 

[hayseed]

The torque on the diesel was one of my main reasons for deciding to go with it over the petrol. Before I made my purchase, I only drove the petrol and found it to be somewhat gutless - I was going from having driven a 3.8L V6 Commodore for the last 8 odd years and the 2.0L petrol i30 just didn't cut it.

So, I went with the diesel (mine's an auto) and I find it amazing to drive.

[Dazzler]

The torque on the diesel was one of my main reasons for deciding to go with it over the petrol. Before I made my purchase, I only drove the petrol and found it to be somewhat gutless - I was going from having driven a 3.8L V6 Commodore for the last 8 odd years and the 2.0L petrol i30 just didn't cut it.

So, I went with the diesel (mine's an auto) and I find it amazing to drive.

I think I'm in love *****