Rental Car Reviews - 2018 Hyundai i10

"The Stig's Missourian Cousin" (zachelliott) 09/10/2018 at 12:57 • Filed to: None

2

13

!!! UNKNOWN CONTENT TYPE !!!

I just got back from a 7 day trip to the Emerald Isle, and decided to do the thing some tourist sites advised against, and see the island via rental car (most advised against due to cost and confusion regarding roads). We rented via !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! which offers fully inclusive rental cars for Ireland. Apparently, while base car rates are actually super cheap, there are all sorts of weird insurance things and coverages that can bite you in the ass if you make even tiny mistakes. I used Conn’s to get a car with everything covered so I didn’t have to worry. Which was great, since I knicked the mirror on something and scratched it and didn’t owe a penny. Anyway, I reserved a Class “B” which is Economy Manual. The website listed a VW Polo or similar. When I arrived at the Hertz desk, I did not receive a VW Polo. I received similar. Meet the Hyundai i10.

As in my previous review, i’ll give things a 1-5 rating. 5 Being love it, 1 being hate it. Total out of 30. So let’s begin.

Specs:

Model: 2018 Hyundai i10

Engine 1.0 Liter 3 Cylinder

HP/Torque: 65/70

Transmission: 5 Speed manual

Exterior: 3/5

I actually think this is a sharp little car. The fog lights in the front grill give it a sporty look, and it’s got enough little lines and curves to keep it interesting. It’s by no means a sexy car, nor as neat looking as some of the other cars we saw, but it could be worse.

Performance: 3/5

Let’s be honest. This is a city car, built for city driving in smaller, slower areas. Driving on the motorway was excruciating. This thing needs a 6th gear. Sitting at 120 Kph and it’s turning 3500-4000 RPM, it was annoying. Trying to pass at higher speeds was a chore, and terrifying sometimes due to the lack of power. Despite that it got good economy, around 55MPG (I found the trip computer only after filling up the first time, so I didn’t hand calculate the entirety of the trip. The computer as well as the odometer were all in miles for us Yanks). In town, performance is great. Pulling out in first gear is no problem and when you need to make an aggressive exit, it’s got plenty of go for a tiny engine. It would be a 2/5 for performance, but I give it an extra point because it’s a manual, and fuck yea manuals. Also, shifting with my left hand wasn’t weird at all, and I got used to it after about 5 miles.

Safety Features: 1/5

It had airbags, and seatbelts. About all we could ask for. No backup camera, no extra nanny tech, nothing. It did have fog lights which was nice for a few foggy Irish mornings.

Convenience Features: 2/5

Definitely lacking a lot here. Had power windows and power locks, but no keyless entry, so I had to use the key every time to unlock it. No cruise control, no air conditioning.

The wiper stalk had a place for an intermediate slider to go, but this car had none:

Storage space was weak, with our carry-on bags barely fitting in the boot area, and rear legroom was hilariously bad. Here’s what it looks like with my seat in a comfy position. There was virtually no room back here. Needs to come with a hacksaw for the rear passengers.

Rear Storage smaller than it appears

Infotainment: 1/5

What infotainment? No Bluetooth, no SXM (not that it would have been useful over here anyway) and the FM antenna was pretty weak, we had a lot of issues with radio reception in many places. We found very few FM Stations over there, and they all appeared to be Top 40 stations with Politics mixed in. I thought commercials were bad over here. Seems like every station was 20 minutes music, 40 minutes talk/commercials. It did have an Aux Port and USB Port, but it was my fault for not downloading tunes ahead of time and using it. I guess I was expecting a Polo, which has a much more robust infotainment system.

Driving Experience/Comfort: 4/5

Gotta say I was pleasantly surprised by the comfort level. The seats were comfy, and after 3 hours on the motorway, I wasn’t stiff nor were my legs cramping. Their was a perfect dead pedal next to the clutch, so my feet never got tired. Blasting around the tight roads was a riot. It handled great, turned nice and tight, and braking was excellent. I had multiple times where I met someone coming the other way on a 1.5 lane road and had no issues slowing down and even going into the ditch a few times to let them pass. Even on wet roads, it felt planted and never slipped.

Overall Score: 14/30 (F)

This seems pretty harsh given how much I actually really liked this car, but I have to be objective and rate it the same way I did the !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! 2 years ago. I would have preferred the Polo, as I’m a VW Fanboy, but for our trip and how many miles we spent in it (over 1000) I was very happy with this car. Having a tiny car on the tiny roads was the best situation we could have asked for. I saw plenty of people in much larger vehicles (Land Rovers, Rangers, Hilux, etc) and I would have felt a lot more stressed out in those. But this just felt natural, and the best way to see Ireland.

Would I buy one here in the states? Absolutely not! The tiny engine would no way keep up on our fast paced commutes, and the lack of safety features would make me nervous driving amongst all the brodozers that make up 90% of any midwestern city traffic. For example here is the i10 next to an F-250 Harley Davidson edition. They were from the Netherlands and said it was a bit of a chore driving it over here.

But for some people, a small city car like this makes absolute sense. If I didn’t have a long commute and lived near work, a city car might be a good idea. I’d probably go with something like a Fiesta, or if VW would be smart and bring the Up! over here.... But this just doesn’t have enough power for us Americans.

If you visit Ireland and are considering renting a car, don’t let the small cheap cars scare you or discourage you, they’re an absolute blast, and the best way to see a beautiful country.

Bonus car pictures

I found some neat things.

Saw lots of neat Caravans like this

A 2CV and an UP! in a harbor parking lot

Great News!

A most Superb automobile

Ford Kuga ST. A slightly less boring Escape

Mmmmmmm

Svend > The Stig's Missourian Cousin 09/10/2018 at 14:59

0

You’d of loved the legroom in the back of the Superb, and the boot is massive.

BlurpleToyotaDishwasher > The Stig's Missourian Cousin 09/10/2018 at 15:02

0

They’ve stitched you up a bit there; the i10 normally comes under ‘A’ not ‘B’

The Stig's Missourian Cousin > BlurpleToyotaDishwasher 09/10/2018 at 15:05

0

Yea the Polo or Similar was group “B” and the VW Up! or Similar was Group A with Hertz. After doing the i10 there was no way I was going with the “ Mini” class

The Stig's Missourian Cousin > Svend 09/10/2018 at 15:06

1

Hnnggggg

Svend > The Stig's Missourian Cousin 09/10/2018 at 15:29

0

Lol.

Sorry. Rear mats have lounge mats on mine now.

Little mats that go on top of the other mats to make it easier on the lower leg muscles. 

thejustache > The Stig's Missourian Cousin 09/10/2018 at 16:30

0

This is relevant to my interests. I’ll be back in Ireland next month and have also rented a group b “polo or similar” in manual from the Dublin airport . My wife and I were there last year for our honeymoon and also rented similarly. That time we got this Opel Corsa

I actually really loved the Corsa and it s 99hp of fury . A small manual car is definitely the way to go (I’d argue in general, but especially around Ireland). While an i10 wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world, I am kind of hoping we don’t get one ... this time we’ll have my wife’s friend with us and as far as I know her legs are not removable . The Corsa had fairly normal rear legroom for a small car.

The Stig's Missourian Cousin > thejustache 09/10/2018 at 16:35

1

Yea I was kinda worried when we got there that we would be “upgraded” to a Golf, a Jetta, or a Focus. Something we have in America. I really wanted to experience a vehicle we don’t have here in the states. So i’m happy we got stuck with a car that no one in the US has heard of, even if it is a brand we have here. I saw plenty of Corsas over there, they are definitely sharp little cars. I also saw a few people with Dacia Sandero rental cars. My inner James May was breathing heavily and I was peaved I didn’t get one.

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > The Stig's Missourian Cousin 09/10/2018 at 17:40

0

...I wish I could buy something like that car here! I like basic, cheap, small cars with a stick and they are a dying breed in North America....cars like that i10 are my jam!

The Stig's Missourian Cousin > RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars 09/10/2018 at 20:56

2

I mean, it starts at 13k Euro, which is about 15k USD. So it’s not quite as cheap as it may seem. For that you can get a Versa, Spark, Mirage, etc.

RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars > The Stig's Missourian Cousin 09/10/2018 at 21:29

0

True, but for some reason European small cars always cost more from their market converted to Canadian or US I find. If they were legitimately brought here, I find the price goes down a bit.

Nick Has an Exocet > The Stig's Missourian Cousin 09/10/2018 at 21:41

0

I’m surprised by your comment on the dead pedal. R HD cars rarely get that right.

The Stig's Missourian Cousin > Nick Has an Exocet 09/10/2018 at 21:50

0

Oh yea it was great. Very comfy. 

duurtlang > The Stig's Missourian Cousin 09/12/2018 at 13:27

0

You did get downgraded though. The i10 is in no way comparable to a Polo/Fiesta/208 and whatnot. It's a VW Up competitor. The Hyundai i20 is the Polo competitor.