Hyundai reveals and prices local i30 Sedan range

JUST a day after detailing its updated i30 hatch range, Hyundai Motor Company Australia (HMCA) has revealed its new i30 Sedan line-up, consisting of six core variants with the range kicked off by the $24,790 (plus on-roads) Active.

That opening pricetag places the Sedan $1370 upstream of the i30 hatch’s $23,420 entry price, however the hatch range is opened by the ‘i30’ with the Active nameplate applied in that context to the second-tier variant.

Comparing the Actives like-for-like (automatic) we find the bigger Sedan ($26,790) is actually $130 cheaper than the hatch, something HMCA attributes to some differences in standard equipment between the body styles.

Standard equipment on the Active Sedan includes an 8.0-inch infotainment touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, wireless smartphone charging, a 4.2-inch colour TFT display, leather-appointed interior, reversing camera, 17-inch alloy wheels, rear parking sensors, LED daytime running lights, dusk-sensing headlights and rear air vents.

Standard safety gear meanwhile consists of forward collision-avoidance assist, driver attention warning, lane keeping assist, lane following assist and smart cruise control.

Powered by the same 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine as the hatch, peak power and torque are down slightly on the hatch – 117kW/191Nm vs 120kW/203Nm – while the Active available with either a six-speed manual or six-speed automatic transmission.

Priced from $30,790, the Elite is exclusively available as an automatic and compared to the Active, adds a bigger 10.25-inch infotainment screen, Bose premium audio system, DAB+ digital radio, dual-zone climate control, rain-sensing wipers, 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster, power folding wing mirrors, keyless entry, push button start and remote start.

The standard safety kit has also been expanded to include blind-spot collision avoidance, rear cross-traffic collision avoidance and rear parking collision-avoidance.

Next up the i30 Sedan tree is the sports-flavoured N-Line which, just like with the hatch, dispenses with the Active and Elite’s 2.0-litre mill in favour of the Hyundai Group’s familiar 150kW/265Nm turbocharged 1.6-litre four-cylinder petrol engine.

Sending its power to the front wheels – like all i30s – via either a six-speed manual ($30,290) or seven-speed dual-clutch automatic ($32,290), the N-Line is down on equipment compared to the Elite but still builds on the Active’s kit list, adding more aggressive styling, sports suspension, bigger brakes, LED head- and tail-lights, dual-zone climate control, rain-sensing wipers, power folding wing mirrors, keyless entry, push button start and remote start.

At the top of the range lies the automatic only N-Line Premium ($37,290) which combines all of the standard kit from the Elite and regular N-Line as well as adds a few extra goodies including a sunroof, solar control glass, heated and ventilated front seats, 10-way power driver’s seat, auto-dimming rearview mirror and sun visor extensions.

As with all HMCA products, the new i30 Sedan’s suspension has been tuned specifically for Australian road conditions, making it noticeably different to drive than in other markets.

“Our target was to deliver that safe, practical ride and handling Australians now expect from a Hyundai, as well as mixing in the surprising dynamic and playful behaviour that all of our cars possess,” HMCA product planning and development specialist Tim Rodgers said.

“We’ve revised almost everything – the springs are different from the donor packages and because of that we’ve revised the damping.

“In the N-Line it’s quite a big difference to what you would experience in other markets,”

In terms of sheer packaging, the HMCA says the i30 Sedan offers 20 per cent more cargo space than the hatchbacks, with the official figure pegged at 474 litres.

HMCA chief executive officer Jun Heo was proud to be launching the new i30 Sedan and said the new model would bolster the i30’s position towards the top of its class.

“With its sleek, progressive styling inside and out, futuristic, integrated virtual instrument cluster and multimedia system, and powerful, driver-focused N Line variants, i30 Sedan is a fitting new flagship for our popular small car range,” he said.

“The expansion of our i30 family with all-new i30 Sedan complements our recent Good Design award for i30 Fastback N to reinforce the model line’s position as a leader in the small car segment,” he said.

On the topic of sales, HMCA has sold 15,260 i30s so far this year ending September, making it the second best-selling vehicle in the sub-$40,000 small car segment behind the Toyota Corolla (18,649).

The i30 Sedan’s predecessor meanwhile, the Elantra, has not enjoyed the same success with just 1382 sold over the same period.

2021 Hyundai i30 Sedan pricing*

*Excludes on-road costs