If there’s a quiet hero in the Australian new car market, one that sells strongly without much attention being drawn to it, it’s the Hyundai Accent. The Accent is both larger and better equipped at the entry level than its competitors like the Mazda 2 and Volkswagen Polo, and buyers must be noticing that because it’s the highest selling light car in Australia.
In 2017 so far it’s sold 6,349 units, which is above the very popular Mazda 2, which sold 5,080 units. Despite this, Hyundai has decided to fettle with the specs and introduce even more value to the Accent range.
“Accent has been an award winner and strong seller for us in the Australian light-car market, and it now offers greater appeal than ever before,” Hyundai Motor Company Australia Chief Operating Officer, Scott Grant said.
“With such desirable new features as the 1.6-litre Gamma engine, 16-inch alloys and cruise control now standard – all for just $500 above the outgoing Active’s list price – Accent Sport represents an exceptional entry point to Hyundai’s range of cars and the great benefits of Hyundai ownership,” he said.
Replacing the Hyundai Accent’s two-tiered previous range is a new Sport spec, available in both sedan and hatchback forms and in both six-speed manual and automatic transmissions.
The Sport variant is placed midway between the previous Active and SR variants, yet its pricing is only $500 more than the Active, at $15,490 plus on-road costs (+$2,000 for the automatic). As its positioning suggests, the Accent Sport takes equipment from both Active and SR grades, with headline features being 16-inch alloy wheels, cruise control, a five-inch touchscreen with Apple Carplay, air-conditioning and a trip computer.
Also standard are steering wheel-mounted audio controls, Bluetooth connectivity, AUX and USB inputs, six airbags and stability control, a trip computer, a height-adjustable driver’s seat and a leather steering wheel and gearknob.
As a bonus for Active buyers, the Sport also gets the SR’s more powerful naturally aspirated 1.6-litre GDi Gamma four-cylinder petrol engine, which produces 103kW of power and 167Nm of torque. Hyundai claims fuel consumption of 6.3L/100km combined for the manual, and 6.6L/100km combined for the automatic.
With the replacement of the previous Active’s 1.4-litre petrol engine, the available CVT automatic transmission has also been discontinued in the Accent.
The Hyundai Accent falls under the brand’s capped price servicing arrangement, with the pricing for each of the services capped at $245 for the first five services, or 75,000km. Servicing falls every 15,000km or once yearly, whichever comes first.
The current generation Hyundai Accent has been on sale since 2011, and the new generation model was recently revealed internationally. However, Hyundai has not confirmed the new model for Australia as yet, instead choosing to stick with the current model for the time being. With such a strong value equation, the Accent is likely to continue its sales dominance in the very price sensitive light car class for some time to come.
Stay tuned to Chasing Cars for any news regarding the Hyundai Accent.
2017 Hyundai Accent pricing (plus on-road costs):
Accent Sport hatch manual – $15,490
Accent Sport hatch auto – $17,490
Accent Sport sedan manual – $15,490
Accent Sport sedan auto – $17,490