2009 Hyundai Getz S 1.4 from Australia and New Zealand

Summary:

Nice looks, baaaaaaad engine

Faults:

Driver's seat made a clicking noise when going around a corner.

Driver seat (cloth) began to lift in the middle.

Lots of paint chips.

General Comments:

I bought this car, having downgraded from a 4x4 Toyota Kluger mainly due to the cost of petrol. I decided to buy it brand new, and opted for an S Automatic due to the fact it would be mainly city driving. Oh, well, that was my first mistake.

The 1.4 Auto is horrendously underpowered, to the point of being dangerous. I knew that I would have to sacrifice some power moving from a V6 to a 4 cyl, however I expected the Getz to at least be zippy around town. There were numerous times where I planted the accelerator pedal to the floor and it took 2-3 seconds for the car to register. Occasionally, mainly on hot days or when I had the A/C on, I would plant the foot and nothing would happen for 4-5 seconds, and when it did eventually shift down, it felt dangerously underpowered.

I found myself having to switch off the aircon numerous times, even on flat straight surfaces, in order for the car to build up speed. I found it difficult to keep up with other cars, and out of all the vehicles I have ever driven, this attracted the most road rage from other drivers. I think it was due to the fact that a) it's small and b) it's so slow that it annoyed so many drivers.

I also had major issues with vibration from the engine when cold -- it felt like a 1980s car, and made it feel very poorly built. I had it for a year and a half, and was so happy to see it drive away (to a P plater mind you).

Don't buy a 1.4 litre Getz!!

By the way, I missed the engine power so much I bought another Kluger. Happy to pay the higher price for fuel to feel safe and keep up with the traffic!!!

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 12th February, 2011

1st Mar 2011, 02:15

I cannot say anything about the automatic shifter, but my friend has one, and he is quite happy with it.

On the other hand, if you had V6 before this one, it is no wonder that the car feels underpowered. But it should definitely not wait a couple of seconds to respond to your pedal. My 1.4 Getz is pretty quick with a manual shifter, but everything about car feels rough, from the shifting to the suspension. It lacks subtlety and sophistication. What bothers me is a constant noise and vibration while driving, regardless of what kind of road I ride on. It seems that chassis is not very well made/designed.

2nd May 2011, 02:07

Just an update - most of the rattles from the rear part of the car was from loosely attached licence plate. But still the car feels cheaply made in terms of materials used and noise dampening in the cabin.

3rd Jan 2013, 17:48

Auto transmissions are not suited to low-capacity engines, and 1.4 is one of the lowest! I have the same car in a manual and it is fine to drive. But yes, you do notice the drain the A/C puts on the engine. Cheap and cheerful, and all round a great value package!

15th Feb 2013, 11:09

Me thinks the review expects far too much from a cheapy econobox.

There is a reason behind the huge price difference of a V6 Kluger and a 1.4L Getz. As to underpowered, that is largely the fault of the automatic transmission; you never ever buy an automatic for an engine under at least 2.0 litres unless it's a CVT. Have to turn off the air conditioning to get it to move? Welcome to the world of small engined economy cars. You can have lots of power or good fuel economy, but you can't have both; an increase in one will decrease the other.

2009 Hyundai Getz S 1.4 from Australia and New Zealand

Summary:

Love it to bits. 6lts per 100ks, cannot go wrong

Faults:

The only two complaints I have for my Hyundai are one, the air conditioning on a hot day leaves a little to be desired, but then again, it is a small motor, how cold can you expect?

Number two is that when I bought it new, one of the options I went for was headlight protectors, and since then they are always coming loose time and time again, to the extent that I have now taken them off and put them in my garage.

General Comments:

I'm very impressed with the car overall. It feels much larger than it is, and handles like a sports car, although the sports car performance isn't there.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 18th December, 2010

18th Dec 2010, 13:16

Go to Repco or Super Cheap Autos, get some of those which stick to the headlamp surface like a clear silicon mat.

4th Feb 2011, 05:55

What do you mean by sports performance?

OK, the engine is quite OK.

But the car has a catastrophic suspension. I can feel each little stone on my back. At least, it is so in the models made for the European market. I also ride the car with a 1.4 petrol engine. And I was driving in many similar size cars made by European manufacturers (VW Polo, Opel Corsa, Fiat Punto, etc.). Polo's suspension is very similar to Golf's, and the comfort and road holding is much better than in Getz. Don't get me wrong, Getz is good on the road holding, but it is simply too hard. Like driving a skateboard. Definitely must be better.

In reply to 4th Feb 2011, 05:55

3rd Jan 2013, 17:50

In Australia, the Getz and Polo are not comparable because of a huge price difference; if you pay the extra, you would expect some major benefits.

3rd Jan 2013, 17:54

For colder A/C, once the initial heat of the cabin has dropped, switch to recirculated air. To feel "cool" in a car in the sun, the air temperature inside needs to be quite cold; cooling outside air which is ~30C takes a huge compressor, but keeping the heat out of inside air which is 18C is within the capability of the smaller Getz A/C unit.