A firm favourite

ANYBODY who has ever put
a bet on a horse will know that favourites don’t always win. And just because
the favourite you backed didn’t win doesn’t make your selection a bad horse –
it’s just that it was beaten by a horse in better form on the day.

Backing favourites came to mind last week when I
tested the Tourer or Estate version of the Hyundai’s i40, which was favourite
to win the Irish Car of the Year award last November.

On the day the majority of the Irish Motor Writers’
opted for the Kia Rio and while Hyundai’s connections were naturally
disappointed, but they knew that their spacious car will have another day at
the races as it goes before the Irish car-buying public.

First impressions are lasting and my first and abiding
impression of the i40, which replaces the Sonata, was the length of this
estate. Like the Jaguar a week earlier the test car was black and Henry Ford’s
favourite colour coupled with two neat roof rails gave the car an elongated
look. Naturally in a car this long there was plenty of boot space, there is a
useful luggage floor rail system and a

‘mini’ spare wheel. No parking sensors,
but you do get a reversing camera which is very cleverly located in the corner
of the rear view mirror.

The Jaguar had very attractive LED lights and while
the LED lights in the i40 were a different shape to the Jaguar’s, they were
also gorgeous. It looks like car designers are now working hard on giving us
very attractive designs for LED lights.

I don’t drive many cars with 1.7 engines, but this
diesel version was excellent and frugal also. Indeed Hyundai hope that their
thrifty engine will be one of their strong selling points and Hyundai’s Sarah
Hayes says they are very happy with sales of the Tourer and Saloon versions.
Although most people would think that the stop-start technology would mean
using of more fuel, it has been proved that this new technology saves fuel
instead. The stop-start technology also reduces C02 emissions and brings the
i40 into the lowest tax band, which used to be e104, but was increased to e160
in the recent budget. And if you find the stop-start technology annoying, you
can simply turn it off.

Inside the décor is predominantly black with a cream
roof. There is a very attractive curvaceous design on the dash which gives the
interior a spacious look. All the controls on the dash are easy to use and you
get plenty of slave controls on the sporty-looking steering wheel. The only
slightly annoying thing in the cabin was the electric handbrake, which didn’t
realise automatically when I drove off, but then I suppose it’s better to be
safe than sorry.

Prices start at

?¬26,495 for the Comfort model, while
the high spec Executive model I drove will cost you

?¬27,995. Normally in
Ireland we get the saloon version first, with the estate coming later, but
Hyundai did it differently this time and the saloon model is now available at a
starting price of

?¬24,995.

The i40 Tourer is a massive motor, but it’s competing
in a very competitive sector of Irish motor market. But I think it will be well
able to take on the opposition and in horse racing parlance the car will run
well on any kind of ground. And you won’t have to make many pit stops as it
seemed to go forever on a full tank of diesel.