New Hyundai i20 review

As with Marvel movies, small cars like this Hyundai i20 aren’t quite as immensely popular as they once were but there’s still a big audience for them. Enough, in fact, for Hyundai to treat its second-smallest car to a mid-life facelift.

Looks wise, the refreshed i20 doesn't appear radically different to earlier versions. There's a tweaked front end, new wheels and a few other subtle exterior changes, but the interior is much the same.

The big news comes when we look at the engine specs. In what could be considered a rather odd move in today’s increasingly electrified world, Hyundai has rid the i20’s 1.0-litre petrol engine of its mild-hybrid technology.

Hyundai i20 video review

So is the 2024 – non-mild-hybrid – Hyundai i20 a worthy competitor to the best small cars out there, including the category winner at our Car of the Year Awards, the Renault Clio? Read on to find out...

The Hyundai i20 is available with just one engine: a 1.0-litre three-cylinder petrol engine with 99bhp. The 118bhp unit you could get with the i20 N Line is no longer available – in its place is the N Line S, which has the same 99bhp as the entry-level i20.

The engine (badged 1.0 T-GDi 100PS) is pretty peppy around 3,000rpm, and the 0-62mph sprint takes a respectable 10.4 seconds with a six-speed manual gearbox. That makes the cheapest i20 a couple seconds quicker than the Renault Clio 1.0 TCe 90.

Still, the i20 can feel a little lacklustre lower down the rev range, encouraging you to change gear a tad more than the Seat Ibiza 1.0 TSI 110. Fortunately, the gearshift, while not quite Ibiza slick, is easy and satisfying enough. You can also have a seven-speed automatic gearbox – although that results in a slower 0-62mph time (11.4 seconds).

To read about the hot hatch variant of the i20 see our Hyundai i20 N review.

The i20’s ride is firmer and less forgiving than that of some rivals – including the Peugeot 208, the Skoda Fabia and the VW Polo – but it remains generally comfortable and smooths out a bit at motorway speeds. 

What’s more, the i20 feels planted and well controlled on an undulating stretch of country road, and is less bouncy than the softer Citroën C3 Origin.

The i20 surpasses a fair few rivals in the handling department (including the Fabia and Polo), with its firm suspension helping create good agility and minimal body lean. The steering is mostly sharp and precise but there's a noticeable vague spot around the centre point. 

There’s plenty of grip to lean on, so fast and twisty roads can be tackled with confidence. The i20 can actually be quite fun through the corners, although the amazing poise and expert balance that makes the Ibiza so remarkable to drive isn’t quite replicated here.

Like pretty much every three-cylinder engine we’ve tested, the i20’s unit thrums a little and produces some slight vibrations, but it never becomes too coarse or annoying.

The accelerator and clutch pedals are pretty light and easy to use, with a brake pedal that’s easy to modulate.

Once you’re on a motorway, wind noise and road noise are noticeable, as they are in most of its rivals, with the exception of the hushed Polo.

“The i20 didn't blow me away but I found it to be a good midpoint between the sharper-handling Seat Ibiza and the cushier-riding Skoda Fabia.” – Steve Huntingford, Editor

There’s very little wrong with the essentials in the Hyundai i20. The seat, pedals and steering wheel line up nicely, and there’s plenty of space for your left foot next to the clutch in manual gearbox versions. The steering wheel also has enough reach and height extension to cater for most people, and the driver’s seat bolsters stop you spilling over your passenger in tight bends.

There are a couple of issues: there's no lumbar adjustment, even as an option (although, to be fair, the lower back support is pretty good anyway). The backrest angle is adjusted using a lever that has a set number of positions, which offers less adjustment than a wheel.

The digital driver's display is clear but – unlike in the Seat Ibiza and VW Polo – cannot display a navigation map. Unlike in the Polo, most controls in the i20, including the climate settings, are easy to adjust, because they’re physical buttons instead of annoying touch-sensitive ones.

Thanks to relatively slim front window pillars, forward visibility is great and you won’t find yourself struggling to see out at junctions.

The rising window line and relatively shallow rear window makes visibility to the rear a little less stellar, but fortunately you the decently sized quarter windows make life a bit easier.

Every i20 comes with rear parking sensors and a rear-view camera, as well as LED headlights.

The i20 gets an 8.0in infotainment touchscreen in entry-level Advance trim, rising to a 10.3in screen in higher trims.

The graphics on the smaller screen look dated, but the system is otherwise responsive and easy to navigate. The bigger screen features much sharper graphics, but swaps the smaller set-up’s physical shortcut buttons for a row of touch-sensitive ones, which are a bit more fiddly to use. 

Every i20 comes with DAB radio and Bluetooth, as well as Android Auto and Apple CarPlay functionality. The standard stereo has six speakers, but top-spec Ultimate trim adds a Bose system with a subwoofer, as well as wireless phone-charging.

The i20 feels generally solidly made but isn’t as plush as the Audi A1 and Peugeot 208. Unlike those rivals, it doesn’t have any soft-touch materials other than on its seats and armrests.

Some appealingly textured plastics, the slatted design (on the dashboard and doors) and softly damped switches go some way to making the interior inviting. However, that's not enough to bring it up to the standards set by small car rivals (also including the Seat Ibiza and Skoda Fabia).

“I like the design of the i20's interior, which looks sharp and modern, but it’s a real shame there are so few soft-touch materials.” – Lawrence Cheung, New Cars Editor

The interior of the Hyundai i20 is reasonably wide for a small car so you’ll have some elbow room to spare, and there’s no issue with leg or head room if you’re over 6ft tall. In fact, you’ll find you have about the same space as in a Seat Ibiza or VW Polo.

The front door bins aren’t huge, taking a large bottle of water and little else, but there are a few spaces elsewhere, including a large glovebox, cubbies by the gearlever and under the front centre armrest (with Premium trim and above), as well as a couple of cup holders.

The i20 isn’t quite at the level of the Honda Jazz for roominess in the rear, but it’s still super spacious next to most of its rivals. You can easily get two six-footers in the back seats, and adding a third person is doable (although shoulder room won’t be great).

The middle passenger gets more foot space than in many small cars because there's only a low hump on the floor in front of them. There’s very little in the way of storage space in the rear – just small rear door bins. They’ll fit a 500ml bottle but that’s all.

Again, the Jazz is the king in this regard, with flexible rear seats that offer many more options than any of its key rivals to help you fit things on board. The i20’s 60/40 split-folding rear seats are merely par for the course, and you don't get a ski hatch.

The front passenger’s seat doesn’t get height or lumbar adjustment on any version.

This is an area where removing mild-hybrid engine tech has actually improved the i20's performance – because it frees up some boot space.

You now get 352 litres on all versions, which is a close match for the Seat Ibiza (355) and VW Polo (351) but less than in a Renault Clio (391) or Skoda Fabia (380). We haven't done our carry-on suitcase test on an i20, but as a guide the Ibiza managed to take five cases.

The i20's standard height-adjustable boot floor adds an extra layer of usability, not just enabling you to create a separate storage area but also levelling out the boot floor when the rear seats are dropped and reducing the height of the internal loading lip.

“Upon sitting in the back of the i20, I was surprised by the abundance of space. It almost feels like a car from a class size up.” – Doug Revolta, Head of Video

Cash buyers will discover that the Hyundai i20 costs similar money to most rivals, including the Skoda Fabia and VW Polo. The Seat Ibiza is slightly cheaper in entry-level form, as is the Renault Clio and Suzuki Swift. 

Against the i20, the Audi A1 and Toyota Yaris are slightly pricier buys. The Honda Jazz is more expensive too, but the gap is even larger.

The i20 is predicted to hold on to a bigger chunk of its list price (after three years) than an Ibiza or Fabia. It should even hold its value nearly as well as an A1 does. That’s good news because it means PCP finance prices should remain competitive. You can check for the latest offers on our New Car Deals pages.

If you take it easy you should see around 50mpg from the i20’s 1.0-litre petrol engine, which aligns well with rival small cars. However, hybrid cars such as the Jazz and Yaris drink even less fuel. In fact the Yaris averaged nearly 60mpg in our Real MPG tests.

The entry-level i20 is called Advance and gets all the basics, including air-conditioning, a leather steering wheel and gearlever, automatic lights, cruise control, electric windows and mirrors, as well as 16in alloy wheels.

Premium trim – which is our recommended version – adds some desirable luxuries, such as heated front seats, a heated steering wheel, climate control, privacy glass and power-folding door mirrors. The wheels grow to 17in. 

Ultimate gets you keyless entry and a premium Bose sound system, while range-topping N Line S has all of the above plus sportier styling inside and out.

The i20 was absent from our 2023 What Car? Reliability Survey but Hyundai as a brand performed well, placing seventh out of 32 manufacturers featured. That’s a better result than Skoda and VW, although Toyota ranked even higher.

What’s more, you have the added peace of mind that all Hyundai car models come with a five-year, unlimited mileage warranty and five years of UK roadside assistance. That’s better than you’ll get with most rivals but it can’t match Kia’s seven-year cover or Toyota’s 10-year service-activated warranty.

When safety experts Euro NCAP tested the i20 in 2021, it was awarded four stars out of five. Looking deeper into the results, the i20 did well at keeping child occupants safe but didn’t score particularly well when it comes to adults in the front, especially in the far-side excursion test. 

The Fabia and Polo scored the full five stars, beating the i20 in every area. Still, it could be worse – the Dacia Sandero has a two-star rating.

Regardless, the i20 comes with plenty of standard safety equipment, including the all-important automatic emergency braking (AEB) with forward pedestrian monitoring, driver attention alert, eCall emergency assistance and lane-departure assistance. Top-spec Ultimate trim adds blind-spot monitoring and cyclist detection for the AEB. 

“The i20 is good on fuel, but some rivals are better. That pretty much sums up the i20 for me – it’s good but not quite the best.” – Will Nightingale, Reviews Editor

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