Comments: 1-15, 16-20
Not a lot has gone wrong with my car other than the difficulty I have had with local Hyundai dealers on getting my first service done. The car has held together so far, but the tires that come with the "Se" model are more of a touring tire rather than a performance tire.
The car has a very stiff ride and often has lots of road noise. It is a fun little hatchback, but has room for lots of improvement. The 0-60 travel time is not too much of a pain, but the car does lack the ability to easily pass on the highway due to the 1.6 litre motor's cvvt system being managed by an electronic fly by wire pedal system. You get a lot of nice little features in the car, and the electronics are well done. The gas mileage is far worse than the EPA reports. I average about 25 miles per gallon. This is very common among Se owners due to the fact that you have to constantly hit CVVT in the car to accelerate to keep up with traffic.
The interior of the car isn't horrible, but the seats are very stiff and cause me to have lower back pain after driving for more than 20 minutes. I cannot take this car on long trips, but it is great for day to day city driving. For someone looking for a cheap hatch back with moderate performance just get a Mazda 3 rather than wasting your time on the accent. The 3 has more power, better handling, and overall better styling. I just wish I would have listened to the reviews rather than just running to the first place that approved financing.
A helpful review. I used to own a 2004 Santa Fe and also had a lot of trouble with the local dealer when it came to any sort of service. That was too bad, as I was very satisfied with the vehicle, but client service put me off to a considerable degree.
CVVT stands for "Continuously Variable Valve Timing" for those that don't know and were wondering. But you totally shouldn't compare a $15k Accent to a $20k Mazda 3. Of course the Mazda is going to be nicer! The fuel mileage is horrible on those for a small car though and they are very cramped. At least they look great. I think the Accent is good bang for your buck. It is the cheapest car in America after all.
I bought a 2007 Accent SE because it looked nice, drove fine and supposedly got good gas mileage. The truth is that it does look fine and drives nice, but the gas mileage is not near 28 city. It gets more like 24 in the city. Some tanks I only got 21, but I did get 35 on the highway. So if you do a lot of hwy driving, it would be a great car.
I'm not seeing bad economy with this car at all, contrary to what others are saying. I have a 5 speed manual, granted, but I have seen no worse than 28-29 mpg in the city. When I first got the car brand new it averaged 32! It's a SE hatchback by the way. Maybe some driving habits need to be modified a little. If you treat it like a hot rod then of course you'll get crappy economy.
The economy on this car like all others, varies greatly depending on how you drive it, I agree with the previous poster. If you take it easy and are not ripping around in town you'll get great mileage. But if you're trying to get the most power out of the engine, which face it, does not come to life until about 4,000rpm your economy with diminish rather quickly.
And to the previous poster, how is your highway mileage? I test drove both the stick and the auto, settling on the auto because I found the top gear on the standard too short, revving a considerable amount more than the auto at the same speed.
I don't know what's the ruckus about the gas mileage. I drive an '07 accent hatchback for work.. it's only at about ~3000 miles.. barely broken in.. and it gets the same mpg as my '99 honda civic EX.. mabye 1mpg better.. on the highway.
Not suprising since I drive a *base* model that weighs ~2300lbs. Car has good low end torque for a 1.6l also.. and the manual gearbox is good.
I would not drive one of these cars myself, but as a fleet car or for someone who wants cheap point A to B with no frills, these are great.
Can't say much about the reliability, but we'll see in due time.
Of course the $20k Mazda 3 looks better than the $15k Hyundai Accent. But don't let Mazda's cute shape fool you. Test drive the 1.6 model, and you'll realize it has more or less the same acceleration, handling, and gas mileage as the Accent. And despite the difference in price, the Hyundai easily beats the Mazda in terms of leg and head room, seat comfort, trunk space and overall ownership economy.
I just got the Accent(se), and the economy I've seen is right on what the sticker says, if you remember that just because it looks sporty for a sub-compact it is still a sub-compact. You can't go from a BMW 3 series like a previous poster and expect a 110hp car to be in the same class with acceleration. If you've never owned a sub-compact car then read the owners manual first. It tells how to drive the car to get the best fuel economy. you can't speed from red light to red light, or go 80mph tacked at 3000rpm or higher and expect 37mpg. treat it like sub-compact and it will treat you at the pumps. As for the car on a whole, I owned a 1989 excel which in comparison was a little red wagon. I think with all the features both safety and comfort, and with the look of a sporty little street racer you would normally pay twice the price building up to, this is the best, most economical car I've owned.
I'm glad to read that so many people are pleased with their '07 Accents enough to defend them. I was considering buying one, but was given the chance to get a great deal on a used '97 Mercury Tracer wagon with very low miles, so I opted for that instead. My experience sounds similar to what people are saying about their Accents. Fuel economy isn't as great as expected, but not horrible. Just got 35mpg on a recent trip to FL, doing 70-80mph with one passenger and luggage in the truck. Not bad compared to what these new economy cars get. I just saw a lime green '07 Accent hatchback (my favorite color on it) and I felt jealous. Maybe it'll be my next car.
Just yesterday, I test drove two '08 Accents. There isn't an '08 Accent review on here yet, so I figured I'd post a comment here. I'm buying a compact very shortly here, and this is the first one I drove; considering the Accent/Yaris/Versa, not sure yet. This seems to be a great little car for the money. I have only one complaint, someone stated earlier too; why WHY did they set up the standard shift so that the car revs 3000 rpm's at only 60 miles per hour? I really want the stick shift too, because I like driving them and the gas mileage is better, but I can't have this thing running over 4000 revs at 75 or so on a long trip. Hyundai needs to change this.
Just bought an '08 Accent hatchback a couple weeks ago. Seems to be a good little car. It's not a Honda of course, but neither does it have a Honda pricetag.
I have the stick shift and am getting around 33 miles per gallon, and it's hot here now, so that kind of mileage is excellent considering that I'm running the A/C about 90% of the time I drive it.
If you expect to accelerate fast, and shift at 5 grand every time, yeah, your mileage isn't going to to be that good. But, if you realize that it's an economy car with a small engine, and drive it like one, the Accent will perform on the high end of the EPA mileage estimates. I'm hoping for 34 or 36 even, once I stop running the A/C and the engine breaks in a little. Only have 900 miles on the car.
Hyundai definitely deserves credit for making HUGE strides in quality, reliability and performance in ALL their product lines.
As a car enthusiast and staunch defender of domestic vehicles, I am hesitant to endorse an import, but the Hyundai has proven itself worthy. Unlike Honda and Toyota, Hyundai has won over the buying public by actually building GOOD cars, not spending billions brainwashing a gullible and uninformed public with ad hype. I'd opt for the Hyundai over a Honda or Toyota any day.
In 2006, Car and Driver chose the Hyundai Sonata over the Camry. Hyundai now has a couple of vehicles on several "10 Best" lists. I think instead of having an attitude of "Well, it's not a Honda or Toyota", the Hyundai owner should instead say "THANK GOD, IT'S NOT A HONDA OR TOYOTA". The Hyundai of today IS a better car, and a far better value.
Wow. You must be a big fan of Hyundai's. Look, I just bought one, and it's pretty good so far, but like I said, if I could have spent a few grand more, I most definitely would have gone with the Honda Fit. Honda makes the best 4 cylinder engine on planet Earth. Plain and simple.
I'm not putting down MY new car, but I wouldn't argue that Hyundai can match up to Honda. Or Toyota. Yeah, the Yaris IS ugly, but it's still a Toyota, which = quality.
07:25.
I fully agree with you - hyundai is simply not in the same league as honda or toyota. Maybe the previous comment works for hyundai?!
My wife has a 2008 Accent. I have an 88 Ford Festiva which was a Kia car with a Mazda engine. Kia made a better cars than Hyundai back then. That's why Hyundai bought Kia, & is one of the reasons Hyundai is pretty good right now.
With 8400 miles my wife's Accent has no squeaks, creaks or rattles. With bad stop & go, city, country & highway driving, she is averaging 32.4 MPG. With more highway driving on some tanks, her MPG is 35+MPG. I drove her car up to Mt. Rainier & 5500 foot Chinook Pass & back, getting 42.6 MPG! Yes, drive it easy & Accent will treat your pocketbook easy.