1988 Hyundai Excel GL Sport review from North America

Clutch cable kept on tearing until we found out that it would kink up at the tip of the pedal where it wouldn't fit in the groove, causing it to weaken. Prior to that, it went through 3 cables. The second time it tore, it happened on the freeway. We solved it (Or think we did) by taking off the clutch pedal and grinding off some of the groove where the cable sits when the pedal is depressed. That was the last fix we tried. Upon inspection, the cable looks fine so far. (About 3 months ago)

Oil pan gasket went bad. Still leaks oil from somewhere, though. Garage floor is spotted black.

Burns a small amount of oil too.

Previous owner broke drivers window crank, and the car's air conditioner takes Freon 12, which is now illegal, so during the summer months, the car can be pretty unbearable.

Gears grind when shifting into reverse and car is rolling.

Good basic transportation. The car has started each time I've cranked it. There have been times where I've left the lights on all day, and when I return to the parking lot later in the day, the car still starts. It's been pretty reliable--hasn't failed me once or left me stranded.

The downside: It's not the greatest looking car. It's noisy-- Hyundai engineers didn't believe in insulating the car I guess. It gets pretty hot inside. Handling isn't all that great, but it's a small car, so you can squeeze just about anywhere in it. It's the kind of car that you can park just about anywhere and not fear that anyone will bang it up.

I can get about 250 miles on a tank of gas. I fill it up once a week, and only pay around $25.00. Has a good sized reserve too.

Basically, if all one needs is cheap transportation, this is the car. You don't want to be involved in an accident with one of these, though.