For a country that entered the automotive industry later than most, Korea is certainly making up for lost time and one of the companies that's at the forefront of this push is Hyundai.
From rather humble beginnings back in 1986 with the Excel - a model which at that time, relied heavily on a low purchase price to win sales - Hyundai Australia has steadily improved and expanded its model range to be competitive in several market segments.
One of the most recent additions to the Hyundai range is the Lantra, a good-looking, well-equipped 1.6 litre four-door sedan with plenty of attractive features to back up its competitive pricing.
There's just one body style, but Lantra buyers can choose between GL and GLS equipment levels, with the option of a five-speed manual transmission or a four-speed computer-controlled automatic with lock-up torque converter and power/economy modes. Manual model prices are GL, $17,386 and GLS, $19,319. Add $1500 for automatic and around $1700 for air conditioning. These prices are competitive with locally produced 1.6 litre cars such as the Toyota Corolla, Ford Laser and Nissan Pulsar and cheaper than 1.6 litre Japanese imports such as the Mazda 323, Honda Civic and Daihatsu Applause Xi/Ri models.
Features and equipment
Built in what is reportedly one of the most modern car plants in the world, the Lantra displays high quality external finish, with particularly impressive paintwork and body panel fit. However, I wasn't so impressed with the quality of some interior fittings.
For example, the coin box lid and the drink holder bracket are flimsy and items already showing deterioration on the test car included a broken centre console lid hinge, split seam on an interior sun visor and torn boot carpet.
Lantra equipment levels compare well with the opposition, the base GL model having power steering, AM/FM radio/ cassette, electric boot lid release, variable intermittent wipers, heated rear window with timer, split folding rear seat and a safety ignition lock-out system on both manuals and automatics.
GLS models add a tilt steering column, lumbar and height adjustments for the driver's seat, higher grade trim, rear heating outlets, tachometer, four-speaker stereo with power aerial, power windows, electrically adjustable exterior mirrors and central locking.
Comfort and space
Like most cars in. its class, the Lantra is best looked upon as a four-seater, even though it's approved to carry five. The rear seat isn't really wide enough for three to be comfortable and comfort in the centre rear position is only fair. Leg room is good in the front, but if all of the seat travel is used, rear leg space is more suited to children. Head room is satisfactory in the front and just adequate for adults in the rear. Four adults could travel comfortably in the Lantra provided they weren't of more-than-average build, or alternatively, two adults and two children would have ample room.
As far as ride comfort is concerned, I rate it a little better than average for the class. What that means is you can take the Lantra over all types of road surfaces without jarring or harshness, but don't expect the plush ride of a large car. The front seats in particular, add to overall comfort by being well-shaped and well-padded.
The Lantra is a winner on load space. The area isn't especially deep but in length and width, it's as good or better than anything in the class. The folding rear seat allows long items to be carried when required but the cushion doesn't fold so a flat extended load area isn't possible. With the rear body panel cut almost down to bumper level, the boot is easy to load.
Behind the wheel
The driver looks over a modern, attractive dash and instrument layout, with the curved dashtop shrouding the dials well against glare or reflections. There are the usual twin column stalks for lights/ wipers and washers and driver's left foot rest is provided.
Most minor controls are well placed but there are a couple of exceptions such as the radio off/on volume switch and the speaker balance knob being obscured by a small ledge above the radio, and the front seat belt lower buckles being hard to engage because of intrusion by the centre console bin. However, the adjustable upper anchorages for the front seat belts are a welcome fitting.
With a turning circle that's average for the class, good vision in all directions and power steering, the Lantra is an easy vehicle to park and manoeuvre in tight places. The steering is fairly "quick", with only three turns lock-to-lock, so not a lot of wheel twirling is needed either.
On the road
The Lantra's 1.6 litre engine is up with the latest in design and technical features, with double overhead camshafts, four valves-per-cylinder, roller rocker arms, hydraulic valve lash adjusters electronic multi-point fuel injection and twin coil distributorless ignition. It puts out a healthy 84 kW of power at 6200 rpm.
The fact that the Lantra's performance isn't as strong as you might expect for an engine with this sort of power output is largely due to the car's heavier-than-average mass of 1100 kg. Many owners, I'm sure, will be happy to forego some performance in return for a stronger, more durable (and consequently heavier) body.
But while the Lantra's performance isn't class-leading, it should prove acceptable to most drivers, particularly in the manual versions. The automatic gives extra convenience in congested city traffic but be prepared to accept less performance and a tendency for the transmission to "hunt" up and down between ratios when driving in hilly country unless you lock it into one of the lower gears.
It's a similar story with fuel consumption. The overall figure for all our tests was 9.8 litres/100 km and while this doesn't qualify the Lantra as a gas-guzzler, most of the 1.6 litre brigade do better. The Lantra was about average on city/suburban consumption, but fell behind on highway-type running.
Noise is another area where the Lantra rates no better than average. At constant speeds it's on a par with the likes of the Mazda 323, Ford Laser and Honda Civic, but engine noise becomes intrusive at higher revs and there was some "booming" in the test car when running on the freeway at 110 km/h.
Suspension is independent front and rear, with Australian-spec Lantras getting what is described as the European sports setting. My testing highlighted the usual understeer associated with most front wheel drive cars, but overall, the Lantra felt well-balanced and secure on the road. The high-quality Michelin MXV2 tyres fitted make a significant contribution to stability and grip.
On rougher surfaces, the Lantra impresses as being a strong little car with very good body rigidity and a suspension that doesn't bottom out or jar easily.
Unlike some of its competitors which have four-disc braking systems, the Lantra makes do with front discs and rear drums. However, the brakes stood up well to the rigours of our standard test procedures, giving a good performance in both normal and emergency stopping exercises.
As mentioned earlier, both the manual and automatic transmissions feature safety lock-out systems. In the manual, the clutch pedal has to be fully depressed before the engine can be started, while in the auto, the engine will only start when the brake pedal is depressed. The lever can't be shifted out of park if the ignition is locked. These systems are designed to overcome any possibility of unintended acceleration or vehicle runaway.
My impressions of the manual test car were that the ratios are well suited to the engine. But though I had no trouble selecting gears, I didn't think the gearchange was as precise as most Japanese cars in this class. One NRMA Engineer rated second gear syncro "a bit slow".
Servicing
Unusually for a current front-wheel-drive car, the transmission mounts off the driver's side of the engine. But this has little effect on engine accessibility, which is no better or worse than normal for this size of car. There's the usual crowding around the accessory belts, but access to routine service items looks satisfactory.
First service is due at 1000 km, then maintenance is scheduled every 12,000 km or six months, with extra lubrication services due every 6,000 km or three months.
Warranty is a generous three years/ 60,000 km, considerably better than the one year/20,000 km provided by Ford, Toyota and Holden.
Summary
Though the Hyundai Lantra doesn't really offer anything outstanding in the way it drives or performs on the road, the overall package represents an appealing alternative for buyers looking in the popular small-medium four-cylinder class.
The Lantra looks good, feels solidly made and provides good value for money. Passenger space is adequate and boot space is excellent. Features and equipment levels compare well with the opposition and the three year/60,000 km warranty is an added bonus.
