Category: City Cars 
Price Range: £7,600 to £8,700
Well-equipped, cheap, roomy, economical, five-year warranty.
Looks dull, very slow with auto gearbox, noisy at high speeds.
Not fashionable, but a practical, cheap and usable runabout.
With just 65bhp/73lb-ft, the i10's not quick: 95mph and 0-60mph in 15.6 seconds with the manual box, and 90mph and 0-60 in 18.5 seconds with the optional four-speed auto. The manual is a viable all-rounder, but that auto is pretty dismal, with the power-sapping gearbox slow to react.
The manual version is sharp enough off the mark around town and can hold a good 70mph on the motorway, but has little in reserve for overtaking or sudden mid-range bursts of speed - you can feel vulnerable when pulling onto the motorway from a slip road, for example. It also struggles on steep inclines and gets noisy at high speeds - the fifth gear of the manual gearbox is set quite low, so the engine is revving rather high at motorway or fast A-road speeds.
However, at lower speeds and around town, it's easy to drive, with good all-round visibility and a well-set driving position. The large windows, snub nose and straight-cut tail make for easy maneuvering and parking: as the i10 is also narrow (1,595mm) it can nip through gaps in city traffic where fatter mini-cars won't fit. Despite its high roof and narrow width, it feels secure and stable on the road and its little tyres grip well.
Latest Readers' Drives About the Hyundai i10
wrote on 05 06 2008
wrote on 03 03 2008