1998 Hyundai Atoz Reviews

The lambda sensor gave trouble to dealer who sold it to me, he replaced it, no problems since owning car.

Brake discs needed changing in 2005, modern asbestos free pads are the cause of disc wear.

Relatively high up driving position which my wife likes - she used to have Fiat Panda 4x4s.

Quite economical, we get 45 mpg on a run.

Quality of construction is pretty good for a cheap car.

Sufficient luggage room for everyday use.

Styling? Well it's not the prettiest car on the road, new Amica is better, but who cares!

The front headlights tended to loss transperancy gradually until it became dark it might be for the sun and heat of Egypt.

I changed the left front axle shaft at 80,000 kilometers, but I don't consider it as a bad thing because every thing has a life time.

Something I really don't like is that the fuel tank door doesn't have a lock so its very easy for anybody to open it...and guess what he can do??? (",)

It's a very nice & good looking car, you can rich anywhere you want easily, and parking without problems.

Something very useful are the two big door mirrors which can reflect a major area than others.

Its large inside, every one seating really enjoy himself with the free space for legs.

Something not to be forgotten is that it is a very economical car.

(Warranty) Noise on the transmission (I think) at 30000Km, I reported to the dealer, they said that the transmission was lubricated, but the noise didn't stop, eventually the problem went away without more service.

I bought this car new and I'm still driving it, I had no serious problems with it, always have been very reliable! I've made a road trip from Lisbon/Portugal to Paris/France only stopping for fuel (+-1800Km).

I adapted this car to run with GPL (propane) so is very economic on the fuel department, I had some problems with the propane kit though (Lovato) but I think is normal due to the use.

Performance... well this car has only 999cc/55hp/850Kg... is very normal it slows when you put more weight or when the road starts to go up, specially when running on propane (less power than gasoline), to get more power I replaced the factory intake with a direct intake with conic K&N air filter and replaced the factory spark plugs (NGK nickel) with BOSCH Super-4 (coper pole), only this gave my ATOZ the extra power it needed with an extra... I can make +-40Km more than before, specially if the air filter is clean! The down side is the engine is louder due to removal of the resonator box from the air intake, I don't mind thought, sounds and performs more like a racing car now :-), cars in the same engine/power segment (1000cc-1200cc) have no change now, even running with propane.

Delayed acceleration (fixed by cleaning the spark plugs). Not a nice experience when accelerating off from a junction.

Engine randomly cuts out at lower revs (fixed twice; now doing it for a third time, but not so often as before).

Shuddering at low revs.

Work done on the exhaust system.

Leak from the transmission oil seal (caused by oil grade change for 20,000 mile service). Required the use of a loan car.

Worn driver's door lock.

Salt corrosion on the alloy wheels.

Creaking front passenger door.

Brake pads needed replacing at 33,000 miles (£55 + VAT). Not a big deal perhaps, but previous cars (Hyundai X2, Proton, Nissan Sunny and Toyota Starlet) did at least twice the miles on original pads.

I dislike the lack of steering feel and spongy brake/clutch pedals.

I don't like the engine noise at speed.

Handling is not very good; feels unstable at speed and affected by cross winds.

Body panels very easily dented; some panel fits could be better.

Limited performance when using the air-con.

Not that pretty (inside or out), but at least it's different.

Good standard specification (power steering, air-con, and electric windows) and very spacious cabin.

Excellent fuel economy, low insurance and three-year warranty, but dealer service charges are high for such a small engine (999cc).

The level of service from dealer is excellent, despite the oil leak incident.

The Atoz is a disappointing car and it hasn't been very reliable. However, our family's previous Hyundai (a '94 X2) was excellent, and so has my dad's new car, a brand new Accent.

Most problems could be because it was one of the earliest UK spec imports.