It was once again a motor sports-packed events last weekend with the Karnival Sukan Bermotor at Bukit Jalil, the Malaysian Rally X day at Cyberjaya AND the mother of all motor sport festivals in Asia, the Asia Festival of Speed (AFOS) at the Sepang International Circuit – all within a few hours worth of distance. Owing to the fact that we had to travel back and forth to cover all of these conveniently located events around the Klang Valley, we needed a car that is small and nimble (and it's not a sin if it's good looking too). We tried to get a hold of the Mini Cooper S Clubman or the BMW 120i but only Kah Bintang manage were kind enough on that particular weekend to lend us the all new 2008 Hyundai Accent.

We were at first a little disappointed of not being able to go Deutsch and instead went Korean with a car that has 14 inch wheels, dummy twin tailpipes, all-around body kits, silver colored, and furthermore, a Hyundai to boot but this car has successfully outshined our expectations and totally caught us off guard as this Seoul car does have some serious soul power and emerged a winner after the long AFOS weekend.
 

Exterior

ProReka Sdn Bhd was commissioned by Kah Bintang to make the car more appealing for the Malaysian market. The ProReka guys delivered as with the boot spoiler, dual exhaust finisher, rear skirt, side skirts, and even side mirrors with turning light to name a few. The original big headlights and taillights, front fog lights, flexible bee-type antenna and chrome grill were retained. The 14-incher was something we didn't really fancy as we've seen better looking wheels on the previous generation of the Accent RSX-5. It should also be noted that this third generation Accent is currently one of the best selling subcompact car right now in the United States.

Interior

The Accent gives you everything you want in a car - comfortable leather seats, eight cup holders and a sunglass holder. Music is provided through 200 watts of ICE with MP3 and USB input that is blasted through six speakers. There are also two 12volt power outlets (1 dedicated + 1 lighter). The driving position is comfortable, bundled with the leather-wrapped and wood-grained combination steering which is like baby skin to the parent's hands. The spacious rear seats are capable of seating 2 adults with ease.

The dashboard is very subtle in design; simple with a lot of compartment areas for storage. Buttons and dials are well positioned and big enough to operate on the spot. It's difficult to miss or overlook any buttons due to it being only less than ten buttons in number, and we haven't even said anything about the radio buttons - fewer and well implemented, making the dashboard very user-friendly. A small cup on the centre console aka the moveable ashtray can be used as a coin cup for non-smokers like some of us here at the website. Nonetheless, we love the simple and above all the practicality that been displayed in this car.

This car also comes with the 'Reverse Warning System' with voice and visual display. It is a nice touch for a car at this price with a lady talking back to you (we unmarried people like it when a woman says something to you) as you reverse the car instead of the usual beeping sound. However, the voice wasn't loud enough, and it could have been connected to the speaker on the driver side or a new tiny speaker mounted on the B-pillar. The front seats get a height adjustable seatbelt with a front seatbelt pretension with force limiter.

The only thing we didn't like about the interior was the so called 'Sporty and Easy to Read Cluster' which is pretty much analogous to computer programming manuals – anything but user friendly at night. The greenish illumination strained our weak, human eyes.
 

Driving Fun

Driving the car back and forth to Sepang for AFOS was quite the experience. Being a subcompact car powered with only 1.6 liter CVVT engine that produces 112 ps @ 6000 rpm and a maximum torque at 145 Nm @ 4500 rpm, it preserves itself respectably. Engine is a bit noisy if you over-revved them but hey, we can live with that. The handling is fairly good enough for this entry level car.

Braking is satisfactory although the rear is still fitted with a drum but worry not this model is also fixed with Electronic Anti-Lock Brake System (ABS) and Electronic Brakeforce Distribution (EBD) as standard safety equipment.

It may have a sporty look, bodykit and all but make no mistakes – this is no sport car but it was quite fun taking back roads to Sepang in a sport car driving tempo with the Electronic 4-Speed Automatic transmission featuring Grade Logic which allowed the transmission to automatically downshift and lock itself on the low gear in order to slow the car down. Overtaking can be initiated fairly easy by pushing the pedal to the metal (yes, we are serious and honest about it). The rush of power produced by the CVVT engine reminded us the very first drive of our 4G92 Mivec with automatic transmission in a 1997 Proton Wira. It certainly doesn't lack a punch, particularly when accelerating. The wind and road noise levels are much better when you stay within the legal speed limits.
 

Conclusion

At a cost of only RM 71,000 it floors out its entire Japanese rival with the price tag. We are willing to bet out hair that this car can be a best seller in Malaysia in its class if the price was closer to the Proton Persona.