Hyundai tucson

Hyundai hopes to score big with the introduction of its new entry-level 4X4, the Tucson. The Tucson is attractively priced and offers several choices of engines. The Tucson comes with a five-year warranty which is much longer than most manufacturers offer.

The Tucson has 4X4 capabilities and does what it was designed to do but not much more. It is not a flashy or showy vehicle, and it was not meant to be a fast car. It provides adequate 4X4 capabilities and a decent on-road driving experience. The Tucson is affordably priced and the buyer will get what he pays for.

The Hyundai Tucson cabin is much like everything else about the car; it is plain and uneventful, yet functional. The car itself is well equipped and provides decent value for money. The S2000 is a 4X4 and has a good road presence.

Hyundai offers some unique benefits that buyers will find hard to turn down. Aside from the five-year warranty, a full sized spare tyre comes with the car as part of the standard package. Another nice feature is that rear seats fold completely flat making the car even more versatile and increasing storage space.

Practicality

The Hyundai Tucson provides a great standard package. Factor in the five year warranty and the full size spare and it gets even better. The car should be reliable and servicing and maintenance should be minimal. All engine options are offer good fuel economy and the differences between the engines is only slight.

The Hyundai has maximized every inch of space. The car comes with storage drawers under the front seats, an overhead console, and various storage cubbies scattered around the cabin.

The Hyundai Tucson controls and instruments look cheap. They are large enough and easy to operate, but the cheap plastics are not exciting to operate and aren’t what you would expect to find in a 4X4.

A very comfortable feature that is included with the Hyundai Tucson is the ability to adjust the driver’s seat for height. When purchased new the car reeks of cheap plastics, but the car manages to effectively minimize road and wind noise. The cabin provides plenty of leg and headroom for all passengers.

The Hyundai Tucson ffers great accessibility. All five door apertures open wide and provide easy access to the cabin. The tailgate is large and light, and provides easy accessibility to the boot area. The boot can be accessed via the tailgate or through the window.

Life Style

The Tucson’s four-wheel drive capabilities automatically engage when rough terrain or poor conditions are detected. The driver can also turn on the four wheel drive system via a switch in the fascia. The Tucson is not an exciting ride, but it is dependable and quality built.

The Hyundai Tucson would make an excellent choice of family vehicles. It is spacious enough to accommodate an active family with reasonable comfort, and it has a good size boot as well. The interior design is durable yet not expensive so it would be great for withstanding the abuse that children can dish out on upholstery.

The Tucson would actually make a decent first car. It is inexpensive to purchase and it comes with a five year warranty. It may be difficult for a novice driver to judge distance in the larger vehicle, and it may be tempting for novice drivers to test the 4X4 system, which could be dangerous for a newly licensed driver. All-in-all the car is easy enough to drive and affordable.

The Tucson looks good given Hyundai’s somewhat bargain image. The company is known for putting out quality cars at bargain prices. The Tucson is priced right but doesn’t necessarily look like a bargain car.

Security and Safety

The Hyundai Tucson standard package includes remote central locking, an engine immobilizer, and an alarm system. The rear door design allows pedestrians a clear view of the items being stored in the boot.

The Tucson comes with a good safety package. The front seat is equipped with twin front airbags, side airbags, and curtain airbags. All five seats feature three point belts, and ABS, traction control, and EBD are also included. A really neat addition to Hyundai’s safety arsenal is the under body skid plate protector.

The Finishing Touches

The Hyundai Tucson stereo comes standard with a CD player and four speakers. The options list includes system upgrades such as sat-nav and a DVD entertainment system.

Among the choices available for the Tucson’s exterior basic black is the most flattering. Avoid some of the more creative colors because they make give the car a cheap exterior look and damage the resale value of the car.

Hyundai Accent

Style and glamor may have eluded the Hyundai Accent, but since its 1995 introduction, this economy car has quietly established itself as one of the better-built, better-performing choices at the bottom end of the new car market.

Although grouped with the subcompact cars in their price range, the Accent sedan and hatchback have always fallen under the EPA's classification for a compact car, which translates to a surprisingly roomy interior. Other Accent advantages include a nicely furnished cabin, a long standard equipment list and adequate acceleration and handling. Generous warranty coverage is another plus: Since 1999, Hyundai has backed the Accent with a five-year/60,000-mile basic warranty and a 10-year/100,000-mile drivetrain warranty.

If there's any reason you wouldn't want to buy the generally competent Hyundai Accent, it's the increasingly diverse selection at the lower end of the economy car segment. Competing import manufacturers have introduced new models with added style, personality and options availability. Another drawback is the Accent's typically low resale value (though this does make it quite affordable on the used market). For buyers who don't need all the glitz and plan to keep their car for more than five years, though, the Hyundai Accent is a sensible choice among budget sedans and three-door hatchbacks.

The third-generation Hyundai Accent sedan debuted for 2006, followed by the three-door hatchback version in 2007. Exterior styling is sleeker and more upscale than on Accents past (particularly on the hatchback), and inside, there's a clean, two-tone decor with straightforward controls. Materials are tasteful in appearance and solid in quality, with just a few cheap plastics on the console and dash. Interior room increased slightly over the previous Accent, and as a result, average-size adults will be able to get comfortable in the front or rear.
Driving the Accent offers no revelations in performance, but the brakes are strong, and ride quality and handling are fully acceptable for an economy car. The 110-horsepower, 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine provides ample power for driving around town, but acceleration can be sluggish at highway speeds on automatic-transmission models. We recommend getting the manual gearbox if you can. Another option during the 2007 calendar year will be a gasoline/electric hybrid model; it will have a 1.4-liter gas engine and an electric motor to deliver above-average fuel economy.

Although you won't find an iPod hookup on the equipment list, the Hyundai Accent delivers on all the essentials. The base GS hatchback starts you out with front seat-mounted side airbags, full-length side curtain airbags, a full set of three-point seatbelts, split-folding rear seats and AM/FM radio. Stepping up to the GLS sedan provides additional conveniences, including air-conditioning, a CD player and optional ABS. The top-line Accent SE hatchback has ABS as standard along with 16-inch alloy wheels and sport-tuned suspension and steering.

If you're shopping for a used Accent, you'll run across plenty of second-generation cars, which were sold in sedan and hatchback form from 2000-'05. Initially, this Accent was offered only with an 89-hp, 1.5-liter four-cylinder engine (horsepower varied slightly over the years). A 104-hp, 1.6-liter engine joined the lineup in 2001 and replaced the 1.5-liter altogether in 2003. Acceleration was adequate even with the 1.5-liter engine, however, and both the automatic and manual transmissions perform acceptably.

Handling and braking capabilities were modest on second-gen Accents, mainly because of the car's undersized 13-inch wheels and tires. Hyundai did offer the '04 and '05 GT hatchback with 14-inch wheels and a firmer suspension, but if you're buying any used Accent, it's a good idea to set aside some money for better tires. Unfortunately, antilock brakes were optional only on 2005 Accents. Front seat-mounted side airbags were standard on '03 GL sedans and hatchbacks, and on all '04 and '05 models.

Sold from 1995-'99, the first-generation Hyundai Accent was also available as both a compact sedan and a three-door hatchback; it replaced Hyundai's shoddily built Excel subcompact (1986-'94). All Accents of this era came with a 92-hp, 1.5-liter engine, except for the '96 and '97 GT hatch, which had a DOHC, 16-valve version of this engine good for 105 hp. ABS was optional on automatic transmission-equipped Accents sold from 1995-'98, but this safety feature was discontinued entirely for '99 and didn't turn up again until 2005.

Hyundai Santa Fe

If we were to pick the best redesigned SUVs for 2007, Hyundai's Santa Fe would be among the finalists. The overhaul gives new life to a model that was desperately in need of an update to stay competitive in the midsize SUV segment.

The new Santa Fe is larger and its engines are more powerful, but it also gets better gas mileage than its predecessor. The newly optional third-row seat increases the maximum seat count to seven, and the new cabin's overall refinement is surprisingly good. It also has numerous standard safety features and an impressive warranty.

Going & Stopping

The Santa Fe is offered with a choice of two V-6 engines. The base GLS has a 2.7-liter V-6 while the midlevel SE and top-of-the-line Limited — the trim level I tested — feature a larger 3.3-liter V-6. A five-speed manual transmission is standard in the GLS, but a four-speed automatic is optional. The SE and Limited have a five-speed automatic. Front- and all-wheel-drive models are offered. With the 3.3-liter V-6, the Santa Fe is swift enough to easily handle most drivers' power needs. It's a rather smooth engine, too. Whether it's accelerating hard when merging onto the highway or just making its way through traffic, the five-speed automatic transmission always seems to be in a sensible gear for conditions. Shifts are smooth, even those that occur under full-throttle acceleration. Both automatics include Hyundai's Shiftronic clutchless-manual mode that gives the driver control over gear changes.

The Santa Fe's all-disc brakes have no trouble stopping the SUV, and pedal feel is nice and natural.

Ride & Handling

The Santa Fe's very stiff suspension was probably the most surprising aspect of the SUV. It didn't help that most of my driving was done in the Land of Potholes — a.k.a. Chicago in the spring — where smooth pavement is hard to find. Even so, a little more damping would have been appreciated. The Limited's 18-inch alloy wheels wear lower-profile tires than the ones mounted on the GLS' 16-inch wheels, which might offer a little more ride comfort than the 18s. The Santa Fe steers just fine, but don't expect it to be a source of driving joy.

Other aspects of the Santa Fe's handling capabilities are certainly praiseworthy. The Santa Fe's manageable size feels stable on the highway, where it's surprisingly quiet even on concrete interstates adept at generating cabin noise. Wind noise levels are low, too. Body roll is noticeable through tight corners, but it's by no means excessive for this class.

The Inside

The Santa Fe's all-new cabin is a big improvement over its predecessor's aging design. The Limited trim level had a number of unexpected details, like dual sunglass holders, a woven headliner, thick carpeted floormats, rich bluish-purple lighting and active head restraints for the front seats that adjust forward and back as well as up and down.That's not to say it got everything right. While the silver-colored trim pieces in Hyundai's new Veracruz three-row crossover actually look pretty good, the treatment in the Santa Fe looks a little cheap; black plastic would have been fine instead. The brown faux wood trim is unconvincing, and the turn-signal stalk has a notchy feel. That said, other trim and dashboard plastic has nice graining, and the overall fit and finish is good.The cabin had a hint of the chemically new-car smell that's plagued a number of Hyundais we've tested, but it wasn't as bad as others, and it should fade over time. Cloth seats are standard and leather ones are optional. The leather front bucket seats have firm cushioning but offer a comfortable driving position. Even though the Santa Fe's side windows taper upward toward the rear of the cabin, overall visibility from the driver's seat is good.

The second-row seat offers just enough legroom for tall adults (my knees were touching the back of the front seat) but there's good foot room and generous headroom. As in the front of the cabin, the second row has extra details like air-conditioning vents in the B-pillars.

Reclining the 60/40-split second-row seats in our five-person Santa Fe meant lifting a handle at the top of the seat. While it works just fine, it's not as convenient as the low-mounted lever on the side of the seat cushion that some SUVs have. The optional Touring Package includes a 50/50-split third-row seat that increases the Santa Fe's seat count to seven.

Safety

In the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's frontal-offset crash test, the Santa Fe received a Good overall rating, the best possible score. As of this writing, the new generation hasn't been tested for side-impact protection by IIHS. All trim levels have standard antilock brakes, side-impact airbags for the front seats, side curtain airbags and an electronic stability system.

Cargo & Towing

The cargo area features a clean design that maximizes usable space thanks to minimal wheel-well intrusion and generous underfloor storage space in the two-row model. There's 34.2 cubic feet of cargo room behind the second-row seats, and folding those seats flat creates 78.2 cubic feet of total space. The inclusion of both a strap and handle to close the liftgate is a thoughtful touch. Three-row models have only 10 cubic feet of room behind the third row and lose the larger of the two underfloor storage bins.

The Santa Fe can tow up to 2,000 pounds without any special preparation, but pulling the maximum 2,800 (GLS) or 3,500 (SE and Limited) pounds requires a Touring Package that includes a transmission cooler, upgraded radiator and fan, and trailer wiring

Features

The SUV can be equipped with most of the comfort and entertainment features you might expect, including a power sunroof, a power driver's seat with power lumbar adjustment, an Infinity premium sound system and rear-seat video. Two notable options — a navigation system and a rearview camera — aren't offered. Most Santa Fe options are part of packages, which makes it impossible to pick and choose many features individually.

Santa Fe in the Market

With competitors constantly pushing the level of features, technology and refinement with each redesign, I can see how a product planner for midsize SUVs could have a lot of sleepless nights. After driving the Santa Fe, it's clear that Hyundai cares about getting the small things right in a vehicle, and it got enough things right in this SUV that those planners should be sleeping just fine these days . . . at least for a few months.