The Hyundai Accent: A Subcompact Car that Stacks Up Against the Competition

Hyundai has built a reputation for building fuel-efficient cars that offer great value, and their subcompact Accent is no exception. As one of the least expensive options in its class, we decided to put two Accents to the test to see how they stack up against the competition.

The design language of the Accent is unmistakably Hyundai, with a familiar look that's reminiscent of other models like the Elantra and Sonata. The sedan version looks like a shrunk-down Elantra, while the hatchback version resembles a mini Sonatia. The family resemblance is strong, both inside and out.

Inside the car, we found a decently finished interior that doesn't look cheap, but falls short of being luxurious. This is a common trait in many subcompacts, which often sacrifice comfort and refinement for the sake of price. However, the Accent does offer some surprises. For one, there's plenty of room for the driver, with good space all around, including even a decent amount of room for your left foot. This is something that many tiny cars can't match.

One feature that the Accent wishes it had was a telescope steering wheel. The current design is a bit too far to reach, and more and more rivals have adopted this feature as a standard. Controls are also simple and straightforward, with a mounted radio high in the dashboard and three climate control knobs. However, some users may find the front seats' cushioning to be a bit firm, and the seat contouring is rather flat.

The rear seat room is tight, but two adults can still fit fairly comfortably. It's too narrow for three, however. The sedan has a spacious trunk, while the hatchback cargo area is more modest with the rear seat up, but folds down to reveal plenty of space when needed. Unfortunately, this also affects rear visibility, as the small rear window limits your view.

The Accent is powered by a 1.6L direct-injected 4-cylinder engine, which delivers decent performance and excellent fuel economy. With either the automatic or manual transmission, you can get an impressive 40 MPG gallon. The manual shifter works well, with low effort and precise throws, while opting for the manual gives quicker acceleration and one more mile per gallon better overall.

However, there are some drawbacks to consider. The ride is fairly stiff and jittery, but at least it's isolated from outside noise. Road noise is definitely a major irritant here, but the engine can get loud when pushed hard. Handlings are reasonably responsive, with decent turning and well-controlled body lean. The SE hatchback version we tested had better response and steering feedback than the plain Jane GLS sedan.

So what about value? The Accent GLS automatic sedan costs just over $16,600, which is a pretty good deal considering the features you get. However, there are a few things missing that might be expected otherwise, such as keyless entry. On the other hand, the Accent SE hatchback with a stick shift costs $16,700, and comes with plenty of features like steering wheel controls and alloy wheels.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enHyundai's been known for building fuele efficient cars that offer Great Value the accent is their least expensive Sub Compact to find out how it Stacks up we bought two accents to test one was a gray GLS sedan with an automatic the other one was a top trim SE hatchback with a stick looking at the sedan it's very evident it's a Hyundai the design language carries through the accent looks like a shrunken Elantra which looks like a shrunk and Sonata it's a pretty strong family resemblance inside there's a decently finished interior doesn't look cheap but it fall short of being luxurious a lot of sub compacts don't have a lot of room for the driver but the accent does there's good space all around even good room for your left foot something a lot of tiny cars don't have one thing we wish the accent did have though is a telescope steering wheel it's a bit too far to reach and more and more Rivals have one controls are really simple with a straightforward radio it's mounted high in the dashboard and three simple climate control knobs the front seats while they get the job done but the cushioning is pretty firm and the seat contouring is rather flat rear seat room is tight but two adults will fit fairly comfortably it's too narrow for three the sedan has a spacious trunk the hatchback cargo area is more modest with the rear seat up but fold that seat down and you get plenty of space buing the hatchback does affect rear visibility the rear window is fairly small which limits your view out visibility is better out of the sedan but you still have to peer out over a high trunk the accent is powered by a 1.6 L direct injected 4cylinder engine performance is decent and it comes with excellent fuel economy you can get 40 MP gallon if you try with either the smooth responsive automatic or with the manual transmission the manual shifter works pretty well it's low effort has direct throws and a precise action opting for that manual gives you quicker acceleration also gives you one mile per gallon better overall however highway fuel economy is a little bit better with the automatic than it is with the stick shift in our test the ride is fairly stiff and jittery but at least there is some isolation here same goes for cabin noise road noise is definitely the biggest irritant here but the engine can get loud when it's pushed handlings reasonably responsive with decent Turnin and well controlled body lean the SE hatchback we tested with its sportier suspension tuning and bigger wheels and tires it had better response and better steering feedback than the Plain Jane GLS sedan either way the quick steering feedback Falls a bit short than what you'd get from more Nimble Rivals like the Mazda 2 or the Ford Fiesta finally there's the question of value our accent GLS automatic sedan cost just over $166,000 that's a pretty good value but you're missing ing a few features that you might expect otherwise like keyless entry you actually have to put the key in to unlock the door our accent SE hatchback with a stick cost $16,700 that gets you lots of features including steering wheel controls alloy wheels you're really not missing much on all the accent ranks at the top of the sub compact class it's a great combination of value fuel economy and practicalityHyundai's been known for building fuele efficient cars that offer Great Value the accent is their least expensive Sub Compact to find out how it Stacks up we bought two accents to test one was a gray GLS sedan with an automatic the other one was a top trim SE hatchback with a stick looking at the sedan it's very evident it's a Hyundai the design language carries through the accent looks like a shrunken Elantra which looks like a shrunk and Sonata it's a pretty strong family resemblance inside there's a decently finished interior doesn't look cheap but it fall short of being luxurious a lot of sub compacts don't have a lot of room for the driver but the accent does there's good space all around even good room for your left foot something a lot of tiny cars don't have one thing we wish the accent did have though is a telescope steering wheel it's a bit too far to reach and more and more Rivals have one controls are really simple with a straightforward radio it's mounted high in the dashboard and three simple climate control knobs the front seats while they get the job done but the cushioning is pretty firm and the seat contouring is rather flat rear seat room is tight but two adults will fit fairly comfortably it's too narrow for three the sedan has a spacious trunk the hatchback cargo area is more modest with the rear seat up but fold that seat down and you get plenty of space buing the hatchback does affect rear visibility the rear window is fairly small which limits your view out visibility is better out of the sedan but you still have to peer out over a high trunk the accent is powered by a 1.6 L direct injected 4cylinder engine performance is decent and it comes with excellent fuel economy you can get 40 MP gallon if you try with either the smooth responsive automatic or with the manual transmission the manual shifter works pretty well it's low effort has direct throws and a precise action opting for that manual gives you quicker acceleration also gives you one mile per gallon better overall however highway fuel economy is a little bit better with the automatic than it is with the stick shift in our test the ride is fairly stiff and jittery but at least there is some isolation here same goes for cabin noise road noise is definitely the biggest irritant here but the engine can get loud when it's pushed handlings reasonably responsive with decent Turnin and well controlled body lean the SE hatchback we tested with its sportier suspension tuning and bigger wheels and tires it had better response and better steering feedback than the Plain Jane GLS sedan either way the quick steering feedback Falls a bit short than what you'd get from more Nimble Rivals like the Mazda 2 or the Ford Fiesta finally there's the question of value our accent GLS automatic sedan cost just over $166,000 that's a pretty good value but you're missing ing a few features that you might expect otherwise like keyless entry you actually have to put the key in to unlock the door our accent SE hatchback with a stick cost $16,700 that gets you lots of features including steering wheel controls alloy wheels you're really not missing much on all the accent ranks at the top of the sub compact class it's a great combination of value fuel economy and practicality\n"