2003 Hyundai Getz GLS review from Netherlands

Interior light worked intermittently.

Electric mirror switch replaced.

I bought the getz because we needed something reliable and cheap to run. The car itself was definitely reliable with only a couple of glitches to report. The car is pretty solidly built with absolutely no rattles from the inside but the outer trim on the passenger door and boot vibrates nastily when you close them. You also get a four star euro NCAP rating which isn't bad for the class.

I was surprised at how comfortable the car was for its size but this was at the sacrifice of any driving entertainment and overall the driving experience was a pretty numbing one. The dynamics therefore aren't great but this is compensated to some degree by the ammount of extras you get for a low price (electric windows, aircon, electric mirrors etc). The space inside is also surprising. However, this never really won me over as the car lacked character (not much visual design flare).

The car is designed to be easy to use with very light power steering and good brakes and would appeal to somebody with really little interest in cars who just wants to get from A to B with little drama.

The main problem with the car was its petrol consumption which is why, finally, we decided to sell. It was doing, at absolute best, about 14km/l driven gently, which isn't good for such a small car. This is probably due to the old engine technology (newer getzs have an updated engine) and the bodyweight. The car was also slower in comparison to our new citroen C1 which has a 1.0cc 3 cylinder engine compared to the getzs 1.3cc 4 cylinder.

The car therefore was pretty average for me but it depends what you look for in a car. The new C1 costs peanuts to run, is just a safe, quicker and very likeable (if a little smaller - don't buy it for boot space!).