Top 10 Frankfurt show cars coming soon - Hyundai i30

Hyundai i30
• All-new 5dr hatchback
• Lower and wider
• On sale spring 2012

This is Hyundai’s new i30, which is designed to offer Ford Focus- and Volkswagen Golf-beating space, when it goes on sale in spring 2012.

The latest i30 gets a new, longer chassis that’s designed to free up cabin space. Hyundai has yet to announce precise dimensions, but the wheelbase has stretched slightly for the new generation. Luggage space has increased too, by around 10%.

The new i30 also looks lower and wider than the car it replaces. The front end is particularly dramatic, with a low nose and Hyundai’s hexagonal grille stretched wider than ever before. At the rear there’s a definite nod to the iconic Golf; the Hyundai boot badge pops up to reveal the reversing camera, just like the VW’s.

The cabin has a more stylish fascia, close in design to the i40’s, plus higher-quality plastics. There’s also more widespread use of double-stitched leather: cleverly, Hyundai has applied this material to the hood above the instruments, directly in the driver’s line of sight.

Hyundai has yet to release engine details, final spec and pricing for the car, but we'd expect at least one of the diesel engines to dip beneath 100g/km of carbon dioxide.

Although the i30 isn’t likely to undercut its rivals on price, we’d expect it to provide more standard kit.

Rivals
Ford Focus
Volkswagen Golf