2024 Hyundai i30 Sedan Hybrid review (2024)

The Toyota Corolla Hybrid has finally gained a true rival – at a competitive price – in Australia.

Three years after it launched overseas, the Hyundai i30 Sedan – formerly known as the Elantra – has gained a hybrid option as part a facelift that adds new styling and a longer list of features for a price rise.

Only one in five Hyundai i30s sold are sedans, but it is able to accommodate a hybrid model as it is based on newer underpinnings than the i30 hatch.

The i30 hatch is about to gain mild-hybrid power, but it will deliver minimal fuel savings – and the chances of an all-new i30 hatch that can support full hybrid technology are unlikely.

Is the first hybrid Hyundai small car since the original Ioniq was axed three years ago a home run? Let’s find out.

Hybrid technology is available on all three regular model variants of the Hyundai i30 Sedan in Australia: the unnamed base i30, mid-grade i30 Elite and top-of-the-range i30 Premium.

At the time of writing, only the base model – the variant on test in this review – has arrived in Australia, priced from $33,000 plus on-road costs.

The Elite is due imminently priced from $37,500. Prices are yet to be announced for the Premium, though it's expected to carry a $4000 premium over the petrol version's $38,500 before on-road costs sticker.

Until further notice, the i30 Sedan Hybrid base model is being offered at $35,990 drive-away nationwide, representing a saving of up to approximately $1400, according to the Hyundai Australia website, depending on the location of the dealership.

The most direct rival is the Toyota Corolla Ascent Sport Hybrid sedan, priced from $32,110 plus on-road costs, or $35,300 to $36,600 drive-away depending on where it is registered.

Other competitors include the Skoda Octavia Style turbo ($42,490 drive-away nationally), MG 5 Essence ($29,990 drive-away), Kia Cerato Sport+ sedan ($39,290 drive-away) and Mazda 3 G20 Evolve ($32,020 plus on-road costs or $35,300 to $36,200 drive-away) though all lack a hybrid option.

The only available version of the Honda Civic e:HEV hybrid hatch is $55,000 drive-away, though it packs a higher level of equipment to compensate.

Standard features in the base i30 Sedan include 16-inch alloy wheels with a space-saver spare, 8.0-inch infotainment touchscreen, digitised instruments with a 4.2-inch screen, cloth seats, six speakers, dual-zone climate control, reflector LED headlights, and front and rear parking sensors with a rear-view camera.

More expensive models add features such as power-adjustable heated and ventilated front seats, larger wheels, eight-speaker Bose audio, sunroof, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, and dual 10.25-inch interior screens.

The Hyundai i30 Sedan is classified as a small car, but with dimensions of 4710mm in length, 1825mm in width, 1420mm in height and 2720mm in wheelbase (distance between the front and rear wheels), it’s about 20cm shorter nose to tail than a Toyota Camry, and 2cm longer than the mid-size Skoda Octavia.

The interior in this base model is – unsurprisingly – not lavishly equipped, but metallic highlights on the air vents, and white accents on the seat fabrics help break up the black.

There are a lot of hard plastic surfaces – including much of the door panel and armrests – and perceived build quality is not outstanding, with plenty of shake in the centre console when pushed. It’s a similar story on the outside; the panel gaps around the bonnet aren’t the most consistent.

The front seats are comfortable, with manual adjustment – including height for the driver – and soft cloth trim.

The steering wheel is adjustable for height and reach, and it’s a good size, trimmed in leather and with two banks of buttons that aren’t hard to learn.

Fans of simpler cars can rejoice in the traditional bank of air-conditioning controls, as well as the ‘T-bar’ gear shifter, and hard shortcut buttons on either side of the touchscreen. There are no distracting touch-sensitive controls to be seen here.

Storage space could be better – the glovebox and centre console compartment are not the largest, nor are the pockets in the doors, which include a bottle holder.

There are dual cupholders with an adjustable bottom depending on the size of your drink, and a wireless charging tray ahead of the shifter for storing and refilling smartphones.

Other amenities up front include dual-zone climate control, a driver’s side auto up-down window, one USB-C and one USB-A port, and a 12-volt socket – but there is a turn key not a push button, a rarity in hybrids as they start in silence, with no engine noise until the car sets off.

Knee room and toe room in the rear behind my driving position at 186cm (6ft 1in) tall is good, but I found my hair brushing the roof – though shorter passengers may have an easier time.

Space is therefore comparable to a Corolla sedan, but unlike the Toyota there are air vents for rear passengers.

Back-seat passengers in the i30 also get two USB-C ports, one map pocket (on the front passenger seatback), a fold-down centre armrest with cupholders, and bottle holders in the doors, which are again trimmed in hard-wearing plastic.

The 474-litre boot is mid-pack the small sedan class – a Mazda 3 has 444L, but a Toyota Corolla has 470L and a Kia Cerato has 502L – but it’s roomy enough for airport trips, and there’s a space-saver spare under the floor. As with all sedans, the boot opening is not as accommodating for large items as a hatchback or wagon.

The 8.0-inch infotainment touchscreen in the base-model i30 Sedan Hybrid is smaller than what is fitted to more expensive variants, and the software is not the newest or quickest to respond in the small-car class, with basic graphics.

However, it is easy to use, and is well-featured with wireless Apple CarPlay and wireless/wired Android Auto connectivity, and AM/FM radio – but no digital radio or Bluelink remote smartphone app support in this base model.

Wireless Apple CarPlay worked reasonably well in our testing. In recent years, Hyundai and Kia cars with wireless CarPlay have suffered issues with drop-outs and patchy connections, but it seems – at least from this brief test – that has been resolved.

The instrument cluster comprises a small 4.2-inch display for the trip computer and vehicle settings, between digitised alarm clock-style read-outs for speed and RPM. We prefer this design over fitting analogue dials on each side of the digital display.

If bigger screens are your thing, more expensive i30 Sedan models offer a widescreen 10.25-inch display.

The six-speaker sound system delivers acceptable audio quality in our opinion.

The Hyundai i30 Sedan has not been crash-tested by ANCAP.

The Hyundai i30 Sedan line-up received a safety upgrade with its facelift late last year, including more capable autonomous emergency braking (AEB) technology that can now detect motorcycles, and standard front parking sensors across the range.

The entry-level hybrid includes most features expected to be standard in this category in 2024, but notable in their absence are blind-spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert.

Buyers need to step up to more expensive model grades to get these features, as well as blind-spot cameras, a door exit warning, 360-degree camera, and low-speed rear AEB for car parks.

Admittedly, blind-spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert are not standard on the base-model Toyota Corolla sedan either, but buyers can option them in for $1000. No Toyota Corolla sedan is fitted with parking sensors, even the circa-$45,000 drive-away flagship ZR.

The lane-keep assist wasn’t too intrusive for our liking, the lane-following assist worked well, and we didn’t have too many issues with the adaptive cruise-control system, or various parking cameras and sensors available.

However – as with other new Hyundais – the i30 Sedan Hybrid is fitted with an overspeed alert for its traffic-sign recognition system that beeps when the vehicle exceeds the speed limit it has detected.

It may be a good idea in theory, but it often misreads signs, picking up the 60km/h sign on an off-ramp while on a 110km/h freeway, or not being able to understand school-zone hours, and beeping incessantly at the driver for exceeding the school-zone speed on a Sunday afternoon when the lower limit isn’t in force.

The system can be turned off, but it is hidden in the menus in the instrument display – not even the touchscreen, like other Hyundai models with larger infotainment screens – and re-activates every time the car is started.

Other Hyundai and Kia models have updated software with a quieter beep, higher tolerance for how far over the limit the car should go before the chime starts, and the ability to map a shortcut button to the infotainment menu to turn the system off.

This does not completely fix the issue – which is partly a result of ANCAP/Euro NCAP crash-test rules, as well as European law, even though the i30 Sedan is not sold in Europe nor has been tested by ANCAP – but it makes the system just bearable in our opinion.

The Hyundai i30 Sedan Hybrid is covered by a five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty, aside from the high-voltage battery that has eight years or 160,000km of coverage, whichever comes first.

Roadside assistance for 12 months is standard, which can be extended for another 12 months each year for the lifetime of the vehicle if it is serviced at a Hyundai dealer.

Maintenance is needed every 12 months or 15,000km, whichever comes first, and costs $1130 over three years/45,000km, or $2150 over five years/75,000km.

For context, over five years/15,000km a Toyota Corolla Hybrid sedan costs $1225 – about 40 per cent less – and a Mazda 3 G20 sedan is $2209, while over five years/50,000km a Honda Civic hybrid costs $995, and a MG 5 Essence is $1831.

Over 10 years, the Hyundai costs $5025 to service through the company’s dealer network – while the Toyota is quoted as $3740. All prices are listed according to each car maker’s website.

A year of comprehensive insurance coverage with a leading insurer is quoted as $1496, based on a comparative quote for a 35-year-old male driver living in Chatswood, NSW. Insurance estimates may vary based on your location, driving history, and personal circ*mstances.

The same calculator and quote parameters return $1770 for a Toyota Corolla Hybrid sedan.

Hyundai claims fuel consumption of 3.9 litres per 100 kilometres for the i30 Sedan Hybrid, split between a claimed 2.8L/100km in urban driving or 4.0L/100km in highway or extra-urban conditions.

The lower fuel-use figure for city driving is because it allows the hybrid system to do its best work – recharging the battery when slowing down, and deploying electrical power under acceleration from a standstill.

In our testing, the trip computer displayed 4.9L/100km. It is about 25 per cent higher than Hyundai’s claim, but at times we saw the readout dip to the mid-4.5L/100km range – and if you are a more conservative driver than us, you may be able to do even better.

We found it easier to return fuel economy of about 5.0L/100km in the i30 Sedan Hybrid than a Toyota Corolla ZR Hybrid sedan we tested in January, which displayed consumption of up to 7.0L/100km at times in the city, and an overall 5.5L/100km average, albeit in different conditions.

The Hyundai has a 42-litre fuel tank – for an estimated driving range of 1100km if you can hit the 3.9L/100km fuel consumption claim – and will happily accept 91-octane regular unleaded petrol.

The Hyundai i30 Sedan Hybrid is not a powerhouse, but it is a quiet, refined and pleasant car to drive.

More so than many other hybrids we’ve driven, performance depends heavily on how much charge is in the battery.

With the battery full, the i30 will run on electric power up to 50km/h if you’re gentle enough with the accelerator pedal, and performance on the move is zippy, if less athletic when overtaking at highway speeds.

However, with a near-depleted battery, the 1.6-litre petrol engine is left to fend for itself, and with just 77kW/147Nm on tap it can struggle if hard acceleration is needed. Accelerating from a standstill will see the petrol engine turn on at just 10–15km/h.

In short, performance is not as consistent as a Toyota Corolla Hybrid, but because the i30 has a real gearbox – with six speeds, not the Corolla’s single, continuously variable ratio – there’s less groaning from the engine under hard acceleration. With a charged battery, the Hyundai feels perkier.

Because the electric motor is integrated into the transmission, you can feel the car changing gears in electric mode. It’s bizarre at first, but we got used to it.

There’s also some mild hesitation from the gearbox when moving off from a standstill – a characteristic of the Hyundai’s dual-clutch transmission design – and we’ve previously reported on lag when switching between drive and reverse gears, but these are behaviours it’s possible to adapt to.

The transition from electric to petrol power is smooth, without sending too many vibrations or unpleasant noises into the cabin.

The suspension is comfortable over bumps – helped by small 16-inch alloy wheels with chubby tyres to help soak up potholes – without sacrificing the car’s composure at high speeds or inducing too much body roll.

At city speeds the steering is light, though we wish it were a touch faster – with fewer turns from lock to lock. The Kumho Ecowing tyres (205/55 R16) provide acceptable grip in the dry, but can be left lacking in wet weather.

There is room for improvement in the brake pedal feel, as the transition from the regenerative braking of the electric motor to the ‘friction’ disc brakes is not as seamless as a Corolla Hybrid – but it is far from the worst brake pedal in any hybrid we’ve driven.

On the motorway, the tyres produce a fair amount of roar on poorly surfaced or coarse-chip roads, and there’s some wind noise, but the lack of engine noise when the car runs in electric mode makes the other sounds easier to notice.

Unlike the standard 2.0-litre petrol Hyundai i30 Sedan – which can tow up to 1100kg braked or 610kg unbraked – the hybrid is not rated to tow.

The payload – the maximum weight of passengers and cargo the vehicle is legally allowed to carry – is just 425kg.

It is on the low side given five adult males alone weigh 435kg based on the Australian average of 87kg each – so it's worth keeping this in mind if you plan to load all five seats up, and fill the boot regularly.

It’s about time the Toyota Corolla Hybrid had a serious competitor, and we’re pleased to report the Hyundai i30 Sedan Hybrid is it.

The price is competitive with its Japanese rival, the interior is spacious for passengers and well presented, it’s easy to drive, and it sips fuel as expected of a hybrid.

It is not perfect. It’s not as cheap to maintain as a Corolla, the infotainment system is basic, performance is not as smooth as Toyota’s hybrid technology, and the speed sign recognition system is infuriating.

But if you’re after a small, fuel-efficient sedan, the Hyundai i30 Sedan Hybrid should be near the top of your consideration list.

We’re keen to get behind the wheel of better-equipped versions once they arrive to see if they make for a more luxurious experience.

Hyundai Australia has previously indicated good stock of the i30 Sedan Hybrid, with 600 cars arriving in the first two months of launch.

The next step on the purchase journey is to contact your Hyundai dealer to check stock levels. You can also find Hyundais for sale at Drive.com.au/cars-for-sale.

We recommend taking a test drive at a dealership before committing because personal needs and tastes can differ. Find your nearest Hyundai dealer via this link. It is also worthwhile test-driving the Toyota Corolla Hybrid sedan, as it is the i30’s closest and best competitor.

If you want to stay updated with everything that's happened to this car since our review, you'll find all the latest news here.

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