I bought Hyundai accent after driving Alto for 8.5 years. Then I was looking to change the car. I test drove Ford Fiesta classic, Honda City and couple other cars. Honda is a very refined car but price is very high and was not in my budget. I finally read reviews and bought Accent. I have already done 1500KM in 2 weeks. Here are my review:
Engine- It has got very good power but feels under-powered in second gear. However it I got very good pickup on highway and on hills. I drove to Shimla and Beyond, I was very happy with the power it generated for overtaking on hilly roads.
Inside - Inside space is pretty decent. However the bottle holders are let-down. These actually are cup holders. The dashboard with wooden finish looks very good. However I did not like the mechanical trip and odometer.. Hyundai.. are you listening.
Drive and comfort - I love the suspension. Ride quality is superb and never had any discomfort even on really bad roads. Car is very steady even beyond 120kmph. However I did not drive much at 100+ as it was advised not to do so till first 2000km. Also you feel in control of the car even at high speeds.
Fuel Efficiency- This is one tricky. My first tank full gave 13kmpl for first 200KM with 100% AC on straight highway (NH1), but once I moved to a slightly local roads/state-highways, it drastchandru021y dropped to 10kmpl 100% AC , but I guess I was reving it high @ 3500 rpm and probably the engine is still very new. But my final tank full gave me very good 15kmpl with 60% AC. So I believe if you don’t rev it hard the average mileage for this car should be 14 kmpl.
Finally, it does not have a smooth engine like Honda but I guess @ 5.4lakh, you cannot get anything better.
It’s definitely a value for money car. Will update after doing 5000 km.