Faults:

Bought it 4 years old; compared to my previous Kia Magentis from 2002 it felt modern and snappy (the Kia was breaking down fast by that time) despite being diesel. I haven't driven it much (had another car too) - 40000km - but it doesn't feel as snappy as before.

The maintenance and issues with it:

Valve chamber gasket replaced twice.

New belts.

All new filters (as required).

Coolant, engine and AT full ("dynamic") oil changes.

New brake pads and rotors.

Driver's side front shock absorber is rattling in potholes (can't be fixed according to dealership).

Weird crunching sounds occasionally when turning from driver's side rear wheel (shock or spring probably).

Negative battery wire needed reattaching (to body) as the car developed issues with starting (heavy corrosion).

At around 110000 turbo (Garrett IIRC) started whistling - one of the blades on the exhaust side had a small piece missing, replacing it was pain and quite expensive (~350€ for refurbished one, old traded in + work).

A/C keeps losing gas (specialists can't find a hole, I stopped refilling it as the weather doesn't get too hot around here).

General Comments:

But the car looks nice inside and out, at last I like it - restrained styling that ages well, body doesn't show rust (despite the weather), there's some rust underside, interior is holding up quite well (rust where front seats attach to floor, keeps coming back), quite nice fabrics and plastic (no shiny plastics). Really like the calm and functional interior design - dark colors, calming blue lights, plenty of cup holders and places to put things in, leather steering wheel and AT lever, CD+radio (+USB+line-in) with REAL buttons, flat-folding (99%) back seats, plenty of room in the back, well adjustable seating position (I like it higher). Goes through 5-6L of diesel per 100km (60% highway, more in the winter).

Minor gripes: no cruise control, huge pain to replace front bulbs (and they do go out; multiple screws to remove whole assembly), lack of power around 1700 rpm, under load AT bit jerky, front wiper arms keep rusting, bit noisy and sluggish nowadays when starting, specially in cold weather.

Faults:

Remote entry battery already dead.

General Comments:

I purchased every option except the sunroof and the 2.0L engine back in October 2008 for about US $12,500 (when the exchange rate was about W1,550 to $1.00). Now the car in US dollars is about $17,000 (current exchange rate W1,155 to $1.00).

I absolutely love my dark blue with black leather 1.6L automatic i30. It is very economical, reliable, comfortable (climate control is awesome), looks great, and the performance is fine for Korea.

Hyundai has come a long way since the days of the "Pony", and the new Sonota YF (along with the new Kia K7) is going to take the mid to large car market segment by storm (they are both sold out for months in Korea).

Faults:

Honestly, I can't report any problems with the car to date.

General Comments:

Terrific car, very good performance and comfort.

Fantastic fuel economy. It's all good.

Faults:

Nothing.

General Comments:

First impressions after 1100kms:

I bought the i30 for the five star safety of ESP and six airbags, five year warranty and the economy - the torque was an unexpected bonus. It zooms up hills, has plenty of power to overtake safely, yet the diesel engine is very quiet.

The radio and CD are both excellent, and it has so many storage places, even one for sunglasses. The front and rear wipers work really well, I love how it sprays instead of squirts on the windscreen.

I have driven it on wet and dry dirt roads, gravel roads, in torrential rain, in the dark, on freeways and in the city, and it handles really well in all conditions.

I easily did over 1,000 kms on my first tank, despite driving in lower gears than I normally would to help the running in.