Faults:

Right wheel bearing replaced at 94K. Hyundai warrantied that repair and paid back in full.

100K tune up cost me about 750 bucks for new timing belt etc.

Cracked exhaust manifold went on 106K. Hyundai honored the repair due to a recall and I will be paid back in full.

General Comments:

This car was one of the better Hyundai's produced that year. I know of many people with this model that complained about the chronic problems they have. I still own the car and it drives very well. The entire is perfect and the paint job looks better than most cars with this millage. Buying a used Hyundai is always better than a new one. These cars are known for many defects on the start.

Faults:

My car was hit and the driver's side door was severely damaged.

My passenger side quarter glass was shattered.

General Comments:

I like the car and think it looks pretty sharp.

However it gets bogged down uphills and is not very quick except on flat surfaces.

Faults:

The only thing wrong that has happened with this car is that it needed new breaks when I bought it.

Everything else was and still is in excellent condition.

General Comments:

This car is awesome.

For a little car, it goes fast.

It handles great, too!

Faults:

The steering wheel lock does not engage.

One minor exhaust leak after off-roading.

Off-line performance is a little sluggish.

Built like a disposable. The interior is seriously difficult to disassemble for upgrades.

General Comments:

This car surprised me from the moment that I first gave it a test drive.

High quality for an affordable price.

The car handles very well and I found that the slight oversteer was easy to get used to.

I found the interior surprisingly comfortable for such a compact car. There is enough room inside for myself, my girlfriend and our camping gear to all fit comfortably.

Although I haven't had the car for very long, I can tell that this car is and will continue to be ultra-reliable. It starts on a dime and idles like it is running on nitrous.

The most impressive thing that I discovered about this car is its off-road capabilities. I'm not saying it is a monster truck ready to take on rivers and boulders and crush parked cars, but this baby can handle the dirt roads quite well. Hyundai uses a specially tuned version of the Accent for WRC Rally competition and I can see why. I took my '98 Sport on a camping trip and my buddies couldn't even keep up in their truck. The only problem I encountered was a small exhaust leak from a sharp rock that I had failed to avoid on my trip.

Faults:

In one word, my main problem is 'Paint'. When I bought the car it was in part based on my once having owned an Excel that lived up to my expectations beautifully. The Accent is not so lucky.

I first noticed last year that the paint was starting to show rust spots. I wasn't too worried at first and questioned the dealer and he said just a little surface rust. The car was out of warranty so I just covered the spots with a little Hyundai touch up paint and didn't think too much about it until this summer. The spots are back with a lot of extra ones thrown in. In fact, rust is breaking out all over the car, but the worst areas are under the front hood and inside the trunk where it touches the rubber. Also along the window seams on the doors.

I asked the dealer about it and again he said surface rust. I thought about it for a few weeks and started checking. Some of the spots are surface rust, but most are the early signs of perforation. My car is outside the surface rust warranty so I approached Hyundai on the perforation warranty which is 5 years with 'no' mileage limit. The service manager said they would not do anything until there were holes in my car from perforation. Needless to say, I am taking this to Hyundai. I am now convinced I am the victim of a poor paint job.

One more thing, overall performance is great, but the service is lousy and the car's front end rattles too much even though it does not need repair. I have bought my very last Hyundai.