Motorweek is made possible by rock auto of praise lately as their sales surged without standing new generation cars like the genesis sonata and elantra and utilities like the tucson well now our attention turns to the smallest member of their american lineup the accents subcompact accent is a critical car in a segment with a host of fresh rivals both foreign and
Domestic so let’s see if hyundai’s good fortunes should continue hyundai’s 24/7 plan seven new cars in only 24 months is on track with the fourth-generation 2012 hyundai accent a foreign 5-door subcompact series that follows in the swoopy footsteps of the sonata and the elantra indeed the four-door accent gls we tested on our home roads in maryland does an excellent
Job of keeping hyundai’s fluidic sculpture design language intact this works even better with the two-point eight inches of added wheelbase and 3.5 inches of added length over last year up front hyundai signature angry eyed headlights and split drop jaw grille give this accent a newfound attitude optional fog lights are set deep into duck-like cavities starting
Points for sweeping body side creases that run all the way to the rear merging with a wraparound taillights in high decklid tail the accent comes equipped with a new lighter gamma 1.6 litre twin cam i4 with the combination of direct injection and variable valve timing a first for this segment it delivers a class-leading 138 horsepower at 123 pound-feet of torque
While a six-speed manual is standard our accent had the six-speed automatic transmission with manual shift mode he’ll hold and a shift in engine mapping active eco function according to government fuel economy ratings the hyundai accent delivers 30 miles per gallon city and 40 highway for both the manual and automatic that’s also class best we average to find 35
Miles per gallon of regular the energy impact score is a low ten point four barrels of oil consumed per year with a far better than average carbon footprint a 5.7 annual tons of co2 emitted our auto accent was also better than most sub compacts in a straight line zero to sixty and ten point three seconds the quarter-mile spins by and seventeen point nine seconds
At 80 miles per hour launch was a bit soft but the trans responds with firm ships we thoroughly enjoyed the accents ride and handling with a stiffer chassis and firmer tuning of the front strut and rear torsion beam suspension body roll was well checked and steering very responsive we kept pushing until screaming tires signaled approaching terminal understeer the
Accent has standard four-wheel abs equipped disc brakes a fade free 130 foot stopping distance from 60 is fine but it could be shorter there was a lot of nosedive and the brick hard pedal was devoid of feel our accent saw wide swing and driving environments from touring and clear sunny weather – just trying to reach home in hurricane driven rain both extremes were
Revealing in driving rain we found road and exterior noise to be excessive turning up the radio didn’t help either during quieter daily commutes however the accent delivered excellent comfort with agile traffic mastering response the roomier five passenger interior is even better thought-out than the already impressive sonata an elantra our gls automatic made the
Driver comfortable with six way adjustable seat tilt wheel and an easy-to-read gauge package with tachometers power locks windows and mirrors air conditioning 172 watt stereo with ipod jack and lots more come with the automatic transmission our cars premium package at steering wheel controls with bluetooth cruise and 16-inch alloy wheels materials look upscale
Except for the premium cloth upholstery that reminded us of hotel room wallpaper our all grey interior was a bit dreary as well three across in the rear seat is possible and legroom is adequate for six footers and under the seats fold 60/40 expanding the already generous 13.7 cubic foot truck the hatchback has over 50% more space and the price of the 2012 hyundai
Accent is more than right the 4-door gls manual has a base price of only thirteen thousand two hundred five dollars our far better equipped gls automatic starts at fifteen thousand nine hundred fifty five dollars five-door models begin with gs trim at fifteen thousand three hundred fifty five dollars if there is one thing that hyundai has to pay more attention to
It is small car road noise it was a problem for us in the elantra and now in the accent clearly hyundai knows the language that value conscious consumer speaks the 2012 hyundai accent is a stylish will made fun to drive and very affordable small car with a lot of class best including powertrain warranty so no matter where your accent is from boston atlanta st. paul
Or timbuktu this hyundai speaks a language that you’ll understand you
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Road Test: 2012 Hyundai Accent By MotorWeek