30th Jan 2009, 15:42
Rented an Accent this January 2009, in Louisiana. No real climate adjustment was required, I think I may have had it on low a/c. I am a very conservative driver (60 mph), and with mostly highway mileage I achieved 42-47 mpg.
Loved everything about it, except the lack of cruise control, and the fact that I could not find the reset button for the tripometer. What a pleasant surprise.
3rd Feb 2009, 21:39
10:56 I'll agree with you that Hyundai MIGHT be on par with Honda, although Hyundai still has a LOT to prove, and their cars would have to hold up for decades, just like Honda's do. But the domestics? Ford?!? Please... Ford is not in the same class as Toyota or Honda, it's that simple.
That said, my new Accent almost didn't turn over yesterday morning. It's cold here, and I washed it and sprayed off the undercarriage to remove the salt. I'm guessing I got something wet that froze, and I had to try three times before it started.
Now... speaking of Hyundai in relation to Toyota: I've owned three consecutive Toyota's before this Hyundai, washed them all in the same weather as this, and put them through a hell of a lot worse than that. Never once, with any of the three Toyota's, did they fail to start on the first try, every single time. So, this new Accent will have to impress the hell out me for many years to come before it can be considered, by me, to be on par with Toyota or Honda.
5th Feb 2009, 22:17
The original poster is convinced that the Hyundai Accent is the best sub compact car. If he thinks this, good for him. All I can say is that the 08 and 09 Cobalts are rated 37 mpg. The Cobalt has 155 hp and 150 lbs torque. Your Accent has 110 horsepower LOL!! The Accent is rated at 34.
Personally I can't even compare the 2 cars. The Accent looks like a bug, and the Cobalt looks like a car. The Chevy Aveo is a rebadged Daewoo piece of junk.
If driving an Accent makes you feel like you're the "man", good for you. When I see a Hyundai that is older than 3 years old, it looks tacky and about to fall apart. Koreans make good TV's not cars. Oh BTW, Consumer Reports get their info from calling consumers, and asking them how many problems they had in the first year of service.
Anyways my GM's have gone well over 200,000 miles without any major issues. I'm not jumping on the import band wagon because Consumer Reports said so.
6th Feb 2009, 16:08
Cobalt = modern day Vega. No one with a Shabrolet is qualified to criticize another make. I said adios to GM and their plastic four-wheeled crates a long time ago. Horsepower does NOT make a car superior either.
6th Feb 2009, 17:37
22:17 The Cobalt is a piece of junk. Because GM makes it. My Hyundai gets around 38 or 39 mpg. It'll be a cold day in hell when a 155 h.p. piece of junk Chevy Cobalt does that. Plus, the Accent is far better built.
Just like a domestic owner..."I don't care what Consumer Reports says, I'm driving a junk Chevy". OK, you go ahead and keep believing that the Cobalt is a good car. I'll actually be driving one.
9th Feb 2009, 17:20
Yes, the GM compacts get much better mileage than virtually ALL non-hybrid cars (and better than some of those). Although the Accent is a very good car (MUCH better in reliability than Toyota) it is nowhere NEAR the car that GM compacts are. GM's compacts are warranted for 100,000 miles, just like Hyundai. They are far more plush and comfortable than the Accent, as well as heavier and better handling. As a mechanic, I highly recommend both the Accent and the GM compacts, but you get much more car for your money with GM, as well as better fuel mileage. My best friend owns a 2005 Accent and it has been a great car, but to compare it to a car with the quality of GM's compact cars is like comparing the imported Aveo with them. Hyundai is more comparable to the Korean built Aveo.
As a loyal American I would not buy a Hyundai or any car not made or sold by an American company, even if the cars WERE better (and they aren't). I'd rather help my fellow citizens and build our own economy rather than contribute to foreign industries, and especially at a time like this.
10th Feb 2009, 22:01
17:20 Are you kidding? The Aveo is the lowest rated, most cheaply made go-cart of the bunch. It truly is a sad attempt at making a compact car. Not to mention, my Accent has a sporty look and the hatchback Aveo looks completely ridiculous.
I've driven both, and one of my aunt's has a brand new one. Not only does my gas mileage top hers by a good 5 mpg, the Aveo just looks and feels like typical cheap GM crap, as usual.
I only said the Accent was rated as a best buy in the subcompact market. It is. There are better ones. The best one by far is the Honda Fit. The Toyota Yaris is just as good. Toyota's 1.5 liter engines have always been the best of the best, as with my Tercel from years ago. But the Aveo? Please. It's a joke. Not even comparable in any way.
11th Feb 2009, 11:23
I had to stop laughing long enough to reply to comment 22:01.
I know most import owners aren't very savvy about cars (or they wouldn't buy imports), but the idea just keeps popping up that the AVEO is GM!!! It is KOREAN, just like the Hyundai, using many Hyundai parts!! It is basically the SAME CAR as the Hyundai Accent.
As for the "best" small car including YARIS??? PLEASE... This car has made several "10 WORST" lists. Again, I guess I should not be surprised by such comments, considering that these folks think Aveo is GM and speak of "4-cycle" and "V-4" engines.
11th Feb 2009, 13:32
11:23 I know that the Aveo is made in Korea, and I probably know a lot more about the mechanics of automobiles than you do. It IS Korean, yet GM DOES make it. And NO, it isn't the same as a Hyundai Accent. The Accent is better built, which is clear and obvious.
The Aveo was at the bottom, DEAD last, on every review I read when I was comparing subcompacts to buy one. Not that I'd ever even consider a GM product; I just happened to notice that it was always rated last, for obvious reasons. Then my aunt bought one and I saw why. So, actually, the exact opposite is true: those of us who ARE mechanically knowledgeable choose Toyota's, Honda's, and Hyundai's and know enough to stay away from domestic garbage.
14th Oct 2008, 10:56
"Hyundai far surpasses any domestic in build quality, always have"
Another excellent example of an unfounded comment. We see NOTHING BUT this kind of comment from some people. All opinion, definitely no fact, ALWAYS NO DATA TO BACK IT UP.
When Hyundai began selling cars in the U.S. they were a JOKE. Mechanics (myself included) laughed at them and often refused to work on them because we didn't think the cars (which had tons of problems) were WORTH repairing, and we told the owners that.
To its credit, Hyundai has worked very hard to correct its early problems and has now become a world-class car company on a par with most domestic makers and Honda, and far ahead of Toyota, whose quality has gone DOWN over recent years. Hyundai has a higher reliability rating than Toyota now, and is equal to Honda and Ford. I'd have no problem at all in buying a Hyundai if the money went to an American company rather than to Korea.