2018 Hyundai Accent: Quick Spin
CARS.COM — Hyundai recently gave its fifth-generation Accent the green light for U.S. dealers, and a quick drive near Cars.com’s Chicago headquarters left me with mixed impressions. The 2018 Accent is acceptable in many ways and impressive in a few, but that may not overcome shopper sentiment against a subcompact car class that’s under steady sales decline.
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Shop the 2017 Hyundai Accent near you
Available only as a sedan, the Accent comes in SE, SEL and Limited trim levels, all with a 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine. The SE offers a six-speed manual transmission or optional six-speed automatic; the SEL and Limited have only the automatic. At a local Hyundai press event, we drove SE and Limited grades, including the SE manual.
Outside and In
The redesigned Accent wears its scaled-down-Elantra styling well. Even SE models have painted mirrors and door handles, avoiding the budget-car giveaway of black moldings. Alas, the dashboard blows that cover: It’s an unremarkable dome-and-shelf routine with center controls slapped down the middle, a shape little different from any interior a decade ago. Styling is subjective, but the tiered dash in the redesigned Kia Rio — a corporate sibling that shares the Accent’s platform — has a subtle layered effect. That’s interesting; this is forgettable.
The multimedia system is generous, at least. SE models get a 5-inch touchscreen, while SEL and Limited trims have a 7-inch unit with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. Those are nice provisions for this class, especially because all versions have proper shortcut buttons plus volume and tuning knobs. All systems have Bluetooth phone and audio streaming plus the soon-mandatory backup camera with dynamic guidelines.
Most controls feel weighty and secure, and SEL and Limited trim levels have a padded center armrest, but quality is otherwise spartan. The seats have rough-hewn cloth upholstery even in Limited models, and a mess of hard, shiny plastics surrounds them. Shoppers on a shoestring need not accept such limitations: The Toyota Yaris iA and Ford Fiesta, for example, have notably higher quality.
Agreeable Road Manners
Like the Rio, the Accent has generous ride comfort on its standard 15-inch wheels and high-profile P185/65R15 tires. The 17-inch wheels and P205/45R17 tires on Limited trim levels introduce some busyness and road noise over uneven surfaces, but the effect is well short of harsh. It’s controlled, too, with little bouncing or floatiness over broken pavement.
The pint-size four-cylinder delivers acceptable power if you drive solo. The six-speed manual has medium throws, a large shifter and a light clutch. It’s a quick learn, and the four-cylinder (130 horsepower, 119 pounds-feet of torque) makes usable power from 2,500 rpm up. Steering is free of the prior Accent’s numb feedback, but modest body roll and early understeer dial back the fun factor. The optional six-speed automatic downshifts adeptly and avoids gear hunting on uphill stretches, but it becomes a ruckus if you rev the engine out — an area where the Rio sounds less taxed.
Final Thoughts
I suspect many shoppers will cross-shop the Accent with its Kia sibling, which comes in sedan and hatchback form. The hatch has a roomier backseat versus the Accent’s cramped bench, but the Accent gets more equipment. Limited models offer keyless access, heated seats, automatic climate control and a moonroof — all features unavailable in the Rio.
Not that most shoppers will benefit from that. Hyundai product planner Mike Evanoff told us he expects more than half of all Accent shoppers to buy the SE, while just 10 percent get the Limited.
The SE is reasonably equipped, as subcompacts go, and it has Hyundai’s excellent warranty to boot. Still, the automaker missed an opportunity to leapfrog the competition with forward collision warning and automatic emergency braking, important safety features that few competitors outside the Yaris include standard. Hyundai equips every Canadian-market Accent with it, but only the Limited has it in the U.S. Bah.
Hyundai is still finalizing prices as of this writing, but the outgoing Accent ran $15,630 to $18,380 including destination. The redesign has a pile of new features — some of them new to the base model, others new for any trim. Evanoff noted as much but said the automaker “can’t move too far” in pricing, so the 2018 model would “hopefully not creep too much.”
In a value-conscious segment like subcompacts, a lot will hinge on where those numbers land. Stay tuned for our review once we have pricing information and more time behind the wheel.
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