A little bit rough in the morning

THE
trend among car manufacturers of sharing common platforms and engines commenced
long before the current economic downturn began and if it hadn’t, the practice
would certainly have been introduced by now.

Sharing
technology saves money and obviates the need to produce a new platform if a
company does not have a huge budget to experiment with new cars. So we now get
a lot of cars with the manufacturers’ individual looks, but similar basic
designs to other models. Hyundai and Kia are part of the same Korean group, who
are now the fifth largest car manufacturer in the world. Last week I tested the
new Hyundai ix20, which is probably a first cousin of the Kia Venga which got good
reviews last year.

The
ix20 is an attractive-looking four-door motor and would probably be best
described as a mini MPV. It has a high driving position and I appreciated the
arm rest which is only supplied for the driver; there is none for the front
seat passenger. Inside there is plenty of room for five people and the back
seats can be moved or folded flat if you want more luggage space. On the dash
the air conditioning takes prominence over the radio dials. But both sets of
dials are well laid out and easy to use. I really like the decent button to
tune up and down the wavelengths. You also get slave controls on the
attractive-looking steering wheel. There is also an iPod, USB and Aux
connection.

There
is a decent boot and you do get a mini spare wheel rather than a repair kit. I
know repair kits were introduced to save space in the boot, but I still think
most people would prefer an old fashioned spare wheel if they are unlucky
enough to get a puncture. Thankfully I’ve never had to use a repair kit, but I’m
told they are fine if you get a simple puncture where a nail gets into the
tyre. But it will be no use to you if your wheel or rim is damaged.

I
drove the 1.4 diesel version and it was a bit noisy. It sounded rough in the
morning, but mellowed as the day went on. It’s also available in 1.4 petrol,
but I didn’t drive that version. While the diesel version was noisy, it was
also very frugal and the fuel gauge was the slowest moving item on the dial.
It’s not the fastest motor around and it will take you a leisurely 14.5 seconds
to get from zero to 100km/h. The top speed is 167 km/h. There is excellent
vision from the cabin and plenty of glass in your line of vision.

On the road the car handles
very well, but if you are carrying a few

‘well-built people’ you might need to
work though the gears a bit more. The ix20 gives excellent fuel economy, even
without the now popular stop-start technology. The 1.4 petrol model will cost
you

?¬17,495, while the 1.4 diesel is

?¬18,995. However, emissions are lower in
the diesel and road tax is only

?¬104, whereas the tax on the petrol version is

?¬156. You also get a five-year warranty for both models. Verdict: attractive,
very reasonably priced, spacious, but the diesel was a bit noisy.