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For The cabin is spacious, classy-looking and well-finished, while the diesel engines are frugal and relatively smooth. The Hyundai i30 rides well, and the standard spec is generous.

Against The steering is lifeless and frustratingly vague around the straight-ahead. The gearshifts can be notchy, too.

Hyundai i30 Hatchback
44 5stars

There’s a lot to recommend the Hyundai i30. It provides an extremely tempting mix of talents, and all for an affordable price. It’s worthy of serious consideration.

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The full Hyundai i30 review


There are 22 Hyundai i30 versions available

Hatchback 1.4 100 Active 3dr TBA
What Car? says:4 stars out of 5
Hatchback 1.4 100 Classic 3dr TBA
What Car? says:4 stars out of 5
Hatchback 1.6 120 Premium 5dr TBA TBA
Hatchback 1.6 120 Sport 3dr TBA TBA
Hatchback 1.6 120 Sport Nav 3dr TBA TBA
Hatchback 1.6 CRDi 110 Blue Drive Active 3dr TBA
What Car? says:4 stars out of 5
Hatchback 1.6 CRDi 128 Premium 5dr TBA
What Car? says:4 stars out of 5
Hatchback 1.6 CRDi 128 Sport 3dr TBA
What Car? says:4 stars out of 5
Hatchback 1.6 CRDi 128 Sport Nav 3dr TBA
What Car? says:4 stars out of 5
Hatchback 1.4 100 Classic 5dr £14,605
What Car? says:4 stars out of 5
Hatchback 1.4 100 Active 5dr £15,705
What Car? says:4 stars out of 5
Hatchback 1.4 CRDi 90 Classic 5dr £16,145 TBA
Hatchback 1.4 100 Style 5dr £16,705
What Car? says:3 stars out of 5
Hatchback 1.6 CRDi 110 BlueDrive Classic 5dr £16,895
What Car? says:4 stars out of 5
Hatchback 1.6 120 Active auto 5dr £17,105 TBA
Hatchback 1.4 CRDi 90 Active 5dr £17,245 TBA
Hatchback 1.4 100 Style Nav 5dr £17,825
What Car? says:3 stars out of 5
Hatchback 1.6 CRDi 110 Blue Drive Active 5dr £17,995
What Car? says:4 stars out of 5
Hatchback 1.6 CRDi 110 Blue Drive Style 5dr £18,995
What Car? says:4 stars out of 5
Hatchback 1.6 CRDi 128 Blue Drive Style 5dr £19,295
What Car? says:4 stars out of 5
Hatchback 1.6 CRDi 110 B'Drive Style Nav 5dr £20,115
What Car? says:4 stars out of 5
Hatchback 1.6 CRDi 128 B'Dve Style Nav 5dr £20,415
What Car? says:4 stars out of 5

Buyer's notes

Target Price team says:

Hyundai is a brand that usually competes on value, but the i30 is good enough to fight its corner on merit.

We’ve driven the two higher-powered diesels and the regular petrol, and we’re happy to recommend all of them. The diesel units are strong and smooth, and quieten down nicely at cruising speeds. The 1.4 petrol is quite refined, and also pretty efficient. Overall, though, we reckon that the lower-powered version of the 1.6 diesel is the best bet.

We’d avoid the automatics unless you absolutely can’t change gear yourself; they’re a lot less economical and, it can’t match the dual-clutch transmissions offered by VW and Ford for smoothness.

Hyundai’s five-year warranty is well known, but the firm’s care package also includes five years of breakdown cover and five years of free annual ‘check-ups’. The company has also recently opened a multi-million-pound dealer service training centre as it aims to improve its customer care in the UK.

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Hyundai i30 Hatchback

Read the definitive Hyundai i30 Hatchback review from the expert What Car? team. Check specs, prices and compare with similar cars.

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