Driving 10 year Old Hyundai Accent Was Not As Bad As It Sounds

"3ch0" (UsedToBe3ch0) 09/06/2013 at 17:55 • Filed to: OPPODRIVE

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Well, hello there Friday Internet commenters! As promised on Tuesday, I am reporting back on this little experiment I ran this week.

To recap, !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! . !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! won that contest, kind of. As the jury, !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! but I still drove the crappy car. But only for two days. I am a car nut after all. And it's a smelly old car.

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But still, as I explained, I was also doing it as a selfless good-will gesture towards my mother-in-law who broke her right wrist and can't drive the car for close to two months. (Ok-ok, I really am just pilling-on the wife-miles.)

So, the car needed to run a bit, and I had vacuumed it pretty thoroughly to get old-car smell out. So I jumped-in for two days of basic commuting. Consider this a review of what most would call a crappy car.

First impressions

This car is rusty around the edges, but nothing alarming. I topped up the gas and tires, I gave her all the best odds here.

I am not used to long doors, so the car attacked me viciously immediately:

Dramatic recreation

I did not understand why, as my intentions were basically good, if a bit self-serving. I limped around the office the rest of the day.

Wow, that is a high seating position! I've got the seat adjusted all the way down to the floor in my daily driver 'Rex, so this is like being in a lifeguard's chair for me. I am not messing with her seat, so this is it. The seatbelt does not click but stays in place when I tug on it. Ok, sure.

Driving

The engine turns over, sounds like a small truck but beyond that, all is normal. All pedals work like intended. It is well maintained by a trustworthy mechanic, so this is no surprise. But then there's the shifter.

It's like blindly moving a large straw through a pitcher of sangria. Sometimes I hit what feels like an ice cube or piece of fruit, which indicates I am headed for some gear of the pitcher's choice.

(It's Friday and I am on vacation for two weeks starting now. And I am thirsty. So that's the analogy I've got)

I kid you not. Visually, there is no difference between 2nd and 4th. You just do what feels like an H-pattern and it seems to do the right thing, but no feedback is provided. Reverse gear is a whole other challenge, and it took me five tries to get it the first time. It would engage halfway and crunch gears. Sweet.

The ride is ... awesome! For a commute in a pot-holled city like mine, it's great! I never once purposefully avoided a hole, crevice or whatever these roads threw at me. I my car, I will avoid some of them for comfort. Ok, I avoid them because I care about my suspension and it has started to sound loose a bit. Lease is up in a month so...

That ride is not so great in the turns though: feels like I am driving a tractor set on top of the tiniest boat in the ocean. Rock and Roll!

This car has quite the surprising pickup off the line. It's a light car and the engine seems tuned for low end torque. Don't bother flooring it once going, as you are already using all available torque at 50% throttle it seems. Revving does not help at all. I got a bit pissed at another driver at one point and floored it to go and give him a dirty look. Yeah, that did not work.

Conclusion

Is it that bad of a car? No, it's not. It is a fine cheap commuter car. If that is all you need, and you do not have tens of thousands of dollars to spend on a brand-new sports car, this would be fine. Maybe get one that is not 10 years old.

But the real question is (for us here), can a car person/nut/geek survive in such a non-enthusiast's car? I say yes, for short periods of time. I actually enjoyed the change, and it made me appreciate my car a lot more when I got back in it today.

The car you drive does not really change to daily traffic run that much. You may have a better audio system, phone integration and whatever, but the car itself remains pretty much the same at 5-10 mph no matter what it is.

I would recommend it to any of you. Get your hands on a lower-rung car once in a while, and drive it for a bit. It will reset your expectations, and maybe you will not care that the car you want can't do the 'Ring in 8 minutes. I know that a race car driver would kick my ass around a track in the Accent even if I was driving the WRX. Come to think of it, I think I would love to take that little old Hyundai to a track so I could actually drive at the the limit in a car without worrying about crashing and dying a fiery death. I have with the WRX, and frankly, it's better than I am. I am humble enough to recognize that. An STI, or even a GT-R would probably not help me much. But I would probably learn a lot in the FWD Hyundai. Learning is not as giggle-inducing as driving like a tool with too much power for yourself, so this may not happen. You never know, once she gets rid of it, I could take it rallying or something. Or not, we'll see.

So, it was a good week, and a bit of an eye-opener. But man, was it good to let the turbo loose for those 10 seconds of highway before the exit to the office!

BaconSandwich is tasty. > 3ch0 09/06/2013 at 18:05

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As someone who learned to drive on a 1990 Ford Festiva without power steering (or any sort of power, really), I can also say that driving a sardine can can be fun. I've heard that it is more fun to drive a slow car fast than drive a fast car slow, and I'll second that.

3ch0 > BaconSandwich is tasty. 09/06/2013 at 18:27

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Agreed. Most of us learned on econo-boxes, and they can be quite fun.

I'm still getting another WRX because I've got the disease...

trynthink > 3ch0 09/06/2013 at 18:51

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Don't get me wrong, the WRX is most excellent, but you mentioned that its lease is up soon. Why not try something else (esp. if you're leasing again)? You can still stay in the hot hatch space with a Focus ST or a Speed3. What is it about the WRX that you like so much?

3ch0 > trynthink 09/06/2013 at 21:08

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If I were one of the more rabid fanboyz, I would have my may with you for even suggesting that. But I'm just a fanboy, no hate.

I am in the northern climes of Canada, and absolutely love the AWD in the winter. I would never go back, at least not for a while. The MSP is always high on my list. I have a non-rational anti-Ford bias, but I gotta say they look pretty badass! Saw a black one with tint, and I am impressed.

But I am going for a post-'10 WRX that has the exhaust audio track missing from my MY'09.

3ch0 > 3ch0 09/10/2013 at 05:10

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This made Best of Oppo. Sweet! Score one for effort!

iThinkergoiMac > 3ch0 09/10/2013 at 08:59

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I understand when you say that a skilled driver in an Accent could beat you in your WRX, but I think a GT-R would bee too much of an edge to overcome in an Accent. I've driven basically that exact car (same color and everything, except it was automatic) and so I know well what it can (and can't) do. While I haven't driven a GT-R (I wish!), any car that can do 0-60 in less than 3 seconds will have such an edge over one that does that in about 8 that I have a hard time imagining that someone in the Accent would be able to keep up, unless the course has LOTS of turns and the person driving the GT-R is AWFUL and negotiating turns.

That being said, I would LOVE to see that kind of matchup. It would be very interesting to see the results, I think. Perhaps I'm completely wrong.

Dest > 3ch0 09/10/2013 at 09:34

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I was in a ~5 year old Accent when the driver stomped on the gas. It made some noise but didn't seem to accelerate. I couldn't help but laugh.

magman007 > 3ch0 09/10/2013 at 11:09

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I agree with your assessment, I enjoy driving the wifes 07 malibu from time to time.

Local Miata Bro > 3ch0 09/10/2013 at 22:21

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I'm a little late but i own an 04' Accent and you hit it on the dot. The doors are so damn long you have to "Dukes of Hazzard" it in my garage. But is it "light," Hell no that thing weighs 3300 pounds without a driver. It also handles like a boat which makes some corners interesting. I also seem to find the driving position quite low for a economy car. I would Recommend getting a Short Throw Shifter for it. It helps the feel between gears and majorly reduces shift times, but great article.

3ch0 > iThinkergoiMac 09/11/2013 at 04:43

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Maybe to all of the above! I went to the track with the WRX, and the instructor took turns taking us around in the school WRX: wow, I felt so slow. So I may be exaggerating a bit, but on that short track I went to, pretty sure I'd be overmatched by the cars, and a pro driver could lap me no matter what I drive.
That is is my observation from the real world. It has a tendency to reset your expectations. I would need to go to a track more than once. That is why I say that we all put a little too much emphasis on on-track performance. Fun is more important! I'm still getting another WRX, because it's fun.
Sadly, I haven't gotten close to a GT-R either. :-(

iThinkergoiMac > 3ch0 09/11/2013 at 12:07

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Makes sense! I like to think I'm good at driving, and my friends tell me I am, but I realize that I'm nowhere close to that kind of level. One of these days I'll have to take some lessons and actually learn something.

Closest I've ever come to a GT-R is having one drive by while walking around in downtown historic Annapolis. But, for a special treat... it drove by again a couple minutes later. Just listening to the thing was impressive.