There was no Miss Daisy riding in the back seat. Instead, there was Master Jack, my four-year-old grandson. Like Miss Daisy, he was a passenger with a wide range of demands and emotions.
As my sidekick, he helped color the review of today’s test car, a 2012 Hyundai Accent GLS. This is the four-door sedan version of the totally redesigned Accent subcompact lineup. The other two variants are five-door hatchbacks.
The car arrived on Halloween. So did Jack, a refugee from Connecticut, where his hometown was 99 percent without power.
Jack’s booster seat not only was an easy fit but gave us instant awareness that there was a lot of space inside the cabin. This four-year-old is at a point where he can fight off a daily nap unless he’s in a car at midday and nods off. So, any time he’d doze, we wound up taking the “long way” to the park, beach, restaurant, store, etc. The extra seat time and silence made it easy to appreciate how much of a quantum leap the Accent has taken in its fourth generation.
Here are half-dozen reasons to like the new Accent.
Price. The base price for the GLS sedan is $15,955 (including destination charges). Our test car had the $1,300 Premium Package, which added larger (16-inch) alloy wheels, remote keyless entry, cruise control, Bluetooth, upgraded cloth seats and black “piano” interior trim, a sliding armrest, and fog lights. A few other incidentals such as iPod cable, cargo tray, and carpeted mats brought the bottom line to $17,465, well under the $20,000 ceiling of many buyers.
Fuel economy. The Accent is one of four Hyundai vehicles—along with the Elantra, Sonata hybrid, and manual transmission version of the new Veloster—to achieve a 40-mile-per-gallon EPA rating for highway mileage. In this economic downturn, “40 is the new 30” when it comes to mpg. We had the onboard computer telling us that we were averaging a bit over 41 mpg for a good part of the week, but a flurry of local trips and cold-weather starts dropped that to 39.3, and leaving the Accent idling while setting up a photo shoot dropped it to 39.0 mpg. That was impressive, though mostly achieved under as close to ideal conditions as you’ll find in normal living.
Styling. Hyundai calls its design approach “fluidic sculpture.” Mrs. G says, “It has nice lines.” She also noted that the seats were comfortable on longer (one hour-plus) trips and rear visibility was good.
Ride and handling. Normally, we find this the weakest link in the Hyundai lineup, but our Accent was stable and predictable on the highway and competent over the worst quarter mile of local paved roadway.
Trunk space. A cargo space statistic of 13.7 cubic feet doesn’t tell the tale. There’s room for a lot of luggage or several sets of golf clubs or a month’s worth of groceries back there.
The powertrain. The Accent is powered by a new 1.6-liter direct injection engine and six-speed automatic transmission. The 138 horsepower doesn’t sound impressive in an age of supercars, but it’s class-leading, while offering an 11 percent improvement in fuel economy over the engine it replaces.
Generally, we poke a little fun when a mid-sized (or larger) vehicle is introduced as both larger and more powerful than its predecessor. In the subcompact realm, that’s a good thing. The Accent has good interior space and trunk room, though rear legroom wasn’t as accommodating as in the 2012 Nissan Versa.
We split the week between the Accent’s “Eco” mode and normal. This was one vehicle where driving in “Eco” didn’t leave you feeling underpowered in merging or passing situations.
Simplifying option packages as Hyundai has done is a two-edged sword. It helps cut manufacturing costs and keeps the price lower while reducing the number of variants dealers must stock. However, get the packaging wrong and buyers will look elsewhere.
Hyundai seems to have gotten it right with the Accent. There was no moonroof option, but the base model is adequate and the premium package adds just enough for a subcompact buyer.
Bill Griffith can be reached at WGriffith@globe.com.
THE SPECIFICS Horsepower: 138. Torque: 123 lb.-ft. Overall length: 162 in. Wheelbase: 101.2 in. Height: 57.1 in. Width: 66.9 in. Curb weight: 2,496 pounds.
THE GOOD Simple-but-adequate buying packages
THE BAD No moonroof option and no outside temperature display
THE BOTTOM LINE The new Accent takes a big step forward and can hold its own with its competitors in this class
ALSO CONSIDER Chevrolet Sonic, Ford Fiesta, Honda Fit, Mazda2, Nissan Versa, Toyota Yaris
*Invoice prices are made available by Cars.com and are not dealer advertising. All prices are subject to regional variations. Prices last updated 9/23/10. Click here for more information.
