Hyundai i30 i-BLUE Car Review

Facts At A Glance
Car: Hyundai i30 i-Blue
Prices: £13,155 – on the road INSURANCE GROUPS: 5
Emissions: 119g/km
Performance: 0-60mph 11.6s / Max Speed 117mph [est]
Fuel Consumption: (urban) 49.6mpg / (extra urban) 68.9mpg / (combined) 60.1mpg [est]
Safety: Twin front, side and curtain airbags / ABS with EBD, ESP
Dimensions: Length/Width/Height 4245/1775/1480mm

FOR BLUE, READ GREEN

Our Rating: 7.4 / 10

Hyundai is going green with its i30 i-Blue. Steve Walker takes a look.

Hyundai’s i30 i-Blue is a green special that isn’t really very special at all. The manufacturer simply fits longer gear ratios to the standard i30 CRDi. The good news it that the i-Blue is priced at the same level as the standard car but can deliver real cost savings through its lower emissions and improved fuel economy.

Hyundai is following the rest of the automotive industry in its headlong rush toward a greener future. At least, that’s the message behind it’s i-Blue initiative which was dreamt up to form a promotional blanket around the cleanest, most fuel efficient vehicles in the manufacturer’s range. i-Blue means green and for buyers that means cash savings as well as the warm fuzzy feeling that comes from doing the right thing for the planet. But just how green is i-Blue? A look at the i30 i-Blue model should reveal all.

First, a problem. Hyundai proudly announce that the 1.6-litre CRDi engine that’s offered in its i30 is so advanced that there’s no need to resort to the low rolling resistance tyres, stop start systems and aerodynamic modifications that rival manufacturers have utilised in order to dip their vehicles under the 120g/km emissions barrier. As a result, the i30 i-Blue does look affordable next to other efficiency-branded vehicles from rival manufacturers that employ such technology - but this also raises questions about the purpose of i-Blue.

If this is an environmentally-driven programme to lower vehicle emissions and conserve fuel for the greater good, you’d have thought some relatively inexpensive aerodynamic modifications, low rolling resistance tyres and weight saving measures would have further improved the i30’s green credentials. But then that would have meant the kind of price increase that Hyundai is anxious to avoid. Just as well the basic i-30 is so clean then. The 1.6-litre CRDi engine in the i-Blue is a common-rail injection unit with 114bhp. There’s torque of 255Nm between 1,900rpm and 2,500rpm which gives the i30 a hefty pull through the mid range. Spark up the engine and you’ll be pleasantly surprised at its lack of diesel clatter at idle and on the move it stays relatively refined. The powerplant is available in the standard i30 in exactly the same guise but in the i-Blue model, it’s mated to a longer ratio gearbox. This allows the engine to

The i30’s manual five-speed gearchange is a little clunky to use and there’s a fair amount of wind and tyre noise at motorway speeds but other than that, it generates a very favourable report card. The steering is very good, body control through corners is exemplary and the pedals are nicely weighted. Hyundai’s engineers appear to have surpassed themselves. The i30 has been designed specifically for the European market and benchmarked against class leaders like the Volkswagen Golf and Ford Focus. Like those two cars but unlike many of the other established names in the sector, the i30 has fully-independent suspension all round or at least a version of it. In fact, the rear suspension is a kind of independently suspended torsion beam, a kind of halfway house solution between proper independently sprung models and those that settle for an old fashioned torsion beam.

If there’s one area where the i30 comes up conspicuously short of the top family hatchbacks, it’s styling. The car is neat and inoffensive on the eye but there’s little to excite about its shape or detailing. A certain measured blandness never hindered the MK2 Ford Focus or the most recent Toyota Corolla however, and inside the i30 fares better. It’s still hardly what you would call avant garde design-wise but the quality of the materials and the construction is convincing. Nice touches include blue illumination for the dials that also extends to steering wheel controls and ignition key slot so you won’t be fumbling around at night. Dim the illumination and the wheel-mounted controls dim too, which is very slick. Space is plentiful for the rear seat occupants and the huge boot suggested by the car’s bulging rear end is only a mild disappointment. It’s a good size for the class rather than enormous, with 340 litres available. Fold the rear bench and this rises to 1,250 litres.

At £13,155, Hyundai is pricing this i30 at identical levels to its entry level Comfort model with the same 1.6 CRDi engine. This