[GeordieViking]

Seems I'm one of the few people not happy  with Hyundai and the new generation i30. At least not the 1.6 crdi Style Blue drive model that I have the misfortune to own. This could have been a great car but for a number of problems that I've encountered.

1) The front parking sensors are useless. Handbook says they emit a warning beep at 60cms but mine never does. Only shows on the dash at approx 20cms. 

2). The road/tyre noise is appalling. On some motorway surfaces you can't talk to someone in the front passenger seat. 

3) Inaccurate speedo. Mine reads 76 mph at 70mph. 

4.) The killer, however, is that the car is fitted with a gel battery. First indication that this was a problem was when, after 4 months, the ISG stopped working. Garage said that battery charge was down to 65%. Apparently gel batteries don't charge properly on short journeys and, once they drop below a certain level, will never reach full charge again unless fully discharged and re-charged by a garage. After the first recharge he ISG failed again (for the same reason) after 3.5 weeks.  I'm about to set up a new topic with all the gory details on ths so if anyone else shares this problem please comment there.

[Doggie 1]

Welcome to the forum.
Sorry to hear you're not happy with your i30.
I can't answer number (4), but as for the others, if you use the search function you will find information on this issue written by Alan Ho who had a similar problem.
Road noise - they are not the quietest car available, although they are much improved over the original FD series. Again, search for detailed posts by Alan because he investigated this very thoroughly with the use of a db meter and came up with some results which may surprise you.
Inaccurate speedo - this has also been discussed. Most new car speedos are inaccurate, although 6 mph does seem a bit excessive at that speed. Maybe that is something you can raise with Hyundai UK as a warranty issue.

[Keith]

Seems I'm one of the few people not happy  with Hyundai and the new generation i30. At least not the 1.6 crdi Style Blue drive model that I have the misfortune to own. This could have been a great car but for a number of problems that I've encountered.

1) The front parking sensors are useless. Handbook says they emit a warning beep at 60cms but mine never does. Only shows on the dash at approx 20cms. 
Bit rubbish but really? Mk one eyeball does for me at the front, does your dealer say there is a problem and / or have you tested another similarly equipped car?

2). The road/tyre noise is appalling. On some motorway surfaces you can't talk to someone in the front passenger seat. 
Probably more to do with the materials used for the roads, but yes, road noise has been discussed before, I can cope with it on my older FD.

3) Inaccurate speedo. Mine reads 76 mph at 70mph. 
Less than 10% error, and on the right side of the law too... Winner!

4.) The killer, however, is that the car is fitted with a gel battery. First indication that this was a problem was when, after 4 months, the ISG stopped working. Garage said that battery charge was down to 65%. Apparently gel batteries don't charge properly on short journeys and, once they drop below a certain level, will never reach full charge again unless fully discharged and re-charged by a garage. After the first recharge he ISG failed again (for the same reason) after 3.5 weeks.  I'm about to set up a new topic with all the gory details on ths so if anyone else shares this problem please comment there.

Would your dealer fit you a lead acid battery do you think?

[GeordieViking]

Bought my i30 in May 2012 and, apart from a few issues (still not sorted) I thought I had a pretty good car. Then, in September, the ISG stopped working. As I was about to go into hospital for knee surgery I couldn't take it to the garage until late October. The garage weren't surprised and said it was probably low battery charge. They called me later that day to say the battery charge was down to 65% and because, the car is fitted with a gel battery, I couldn't do the re-charge myself, it would take a couple of days to fully discharge and recharge the battery.
3.5 weeks after this the ISG failed again, despite doing everything possible to save the battery (e.g. sitting outside shops with the engine idling while my wife went inside). Because of a cold spell at the time I waited to be sure and then took the car back to the garage. Low charge again and another 2 days to discharge and recharge. This time the garage contacted Hyundai whose advice was "avoid short journeys" (without any indication of what a short journey entailed). I was also told by the garage that, on a short journey, a gel battery does not rechage properly from the alternator ande, even worse, if the charge drops below a certain level (about 60-65%) cannot recharge properly from the alternator at all. I contacted Hyundai customer services by e-mail and then, when I got no reply, by phone. I was promised they would check with Hyundai engineering after Xmas. When customer services did come back it was simply to say that their engineers had no reports of these problems.
A few days later the ISG failed again so I decided that the whole thing was a waste of time and now just swith ISG off.
I know that I am not the only owner with this problem and that Hyundai have been told about it so why are they denying the problem exists. Basically I would say that the ISG fitted is not "fit for purpose" if you happen to do mainly "short" journeys.
Btw, a recent EU report stated that the AVERAGE length of a car journey in Europe is 4.5k (3.7 miles). I rarely do a shorter journey than that.

My i30 replaced a Sonata V6 which, in 9 years spent around 42 hours in the garage and the battery lasted for 8.75 years without a problem. To date my i30 has been in the garage for 86 hours so, if anyone would like an I30 1.6 CRDI Style in showroom condition and with only 3,700 miles on the clock, get in touch, 

[Just Rick]

Dave I'm shocked,you bag the older FD's,what road noise,both Cyril and Bruce are more than acceptable in that department.

I reiterate,what I have said for many years technology has gotten beyond a joke,yeah I know it's there to assist us,but if you need parking sensors to park,you shouldn't be driving,turn em off,problem solved,like the new bloody fords with this thing called auto parking,what the F#*K is that.

As for the speedo's,I again reiterate,ALL new car manufacturers do this,up to 11% out.don't ask me why they do it,I have brought it up so many times,with my dealer,same answer every time,it is within manufacturers specifications,I have many aquaintances who in the past twelve to eighteen months bought new cars,Subaru's,Fords,Holden(for the English Vauxhalls) one BMW,Oh Yes and very previlent in the Hyundai's,all have complained about the inaccuracy of their speedometers,when matched to a GPS device,if you worried about your speed being out,match your miles or kilometres against a GPS device,they are way out,well for my two cars they are,the one in my new truck kilometre wises is 38% out, Cyril is 8% out milage wise,Bruce is 12% out milage wise,to my benefit,so that doesn't worry me one iotta.

Anyhow you have convinced me,there's another nail in the coffin for the newer GD for me  no matter the minor bugs in all the new gizmo's on the newer model,I still can't forgive the new design,only thing I like on it is the style of the new back bumper on the hatch.

Gripe over

[Phil №❶]

Now let's see GeordieViking,

(1) Parking sensors activate at 20 cm, nothing wrong with that, you're still 20cm away. The variation to the handbook would be expected because of the shape of objects likely to be encountered by the sensors. They probably do activate @ 60cm if it's a wall as opposed to a narrow post. I acknowledge that our moderator AlanHo was also disappointed with the sensors too.

(2) Road noise is louder still on the FD which I own and very susceptible to the road surface used, I'd like that fixed too.

(3) As previously stated, Hy do not want to be held responsible for any fines you may receive for speeding, so they build in a margin of inaccuracy, as do all other manufacturers too.

(4) The battery, you have a Diesel car but do such short journeys that the battery fails. How long are your journeys? Diesel's prefer a decent drive, as is the nature of the engine and you will not receive very good economy using the car like this. The alternator fitted to modern cars can output 90 amps if it has to so I doubt the battery would go flat with that sort of input. You mention a "garage" why are they involved at all. You should be dealing with Hy under warranty for this issue. If the battery / charging system is faulty, they will fix it free, so take it to them. I doubt a manufacturer like Hy, would mass produce cars with batteries that can't be charged properly.

[GeordieViking]

To Ffoxy

1) Yes, of course I've had the dealer check it. Says it's according to spec. Interesting that an american poster says there's a post sales pack which adds 2 extra sensors and makes it work properly.

2) Used to drive a Vauxhall Omega which was virtually silent, then my Sonata which wasn't that good but reasonable. Again the Americans are fitting extra sound deadening material to sort this out. Why can't Hyundai fit the same under the carpet as standard. That's what other manufacturers do.

3) Agree its legal but again the error on my Sonata was < 3%. Can't see any reason why they can't maintain that standard.

4). I've been told can't retro-fit lead/acid batteries because the whole electric power system is geared to the gel type. Interestingly I've heard a rumour that Hyundai are fitting more wet batteries as standard now. Don't know which models that applies to though.

To Rick

Totally agree with you that technology has gone crazy. WHo really needs automatic lights and wipers (quite like the latter though) and as for voice commands to the radio well, it's far easier to press the bloody button.

To Phil aka 84.

1. Tested my parking sensors against my garage door. How solid does it need to be. Also 20 cm = 8", not much for the first warning.

3. Hy couldn't be held responsible for you speeding, you're allowed a 10% tolerance anyway. I wouldn't object to anything up to a 5% error but 8-9% is pushing it imho.

4. The "garage" is the local Hyundai dealer that Hyundai pointed me to and they do the warranty work. As to my mileage, it varies over the year. As I've said, when the problem first raised it's head I was waiting for a knee op and then recovering from that so I wasn't exactly burning up the roads at that time. Doesn't change the fact that many people may chose a car like this and use it mainly for the school run, or commuting to a nearby town. Anyway, one way or another I'll soon be getting rid and my next car will defo be petrol and no ISG.

[Just Rick]

To Rick

Totally agree with you that technology has gone crazy. WHo really needs automatic lights and wipers (quite like the latter though) and as for voice commands to the radio well, it's far easier to press the bloody button.

[

I'm with you,we have had Bruce and Cyril for well over twelve months and I'm still finding hidden little tricks they have,now I thought Cyril(the SX) was idiot proof,as I'm just a simpleton truck driver,so anything more than just a steering wheel,gearstick,brake pedal and clutch, start to get confusing for us.

But yes why all this extra technology,it just more to go wrong and when it does,it tends to do it in a big way,like you I m quite capable of just pushing a button which is safely within my reach.

[plasticphyte]

As far as road noise goes, I would suggest that the biggest culprit here outside of sound deadening materials, is the tyres. The standard Hankooks on my Australian i30 are woefully noisy at highway speeds (80Kph), and get louder the faster you go. Road surface is also a factor, but out of my control.

If you're not happy with the cabin noise levels, swap your tyres out for a different set.

My personal favourites are Bridgestone Adrenalin R02. Grippy & reasonably quiet.

I haven't changed the tyres on this car yet as I'm not wanting to go to the extra expense if I don't have to.

I am considering adding some sound insulating material at some point, but can live with the noise at the moment, as I am the only one in the car.

[Keith]

See Alan Hos Thread on sound deadening, might save you some money.

[Phil №❶]

To Phil aka 84.
As I've said, when the problem first raised it's head I was waiting for a knee op and then recovering from that so I wasn't exactly burning up the roads at that time.

Not in this thread you didn't 

Suggest you part company with the vehicle ASAP because if you keep driving it like that, the next thing to go wrong will be the DPF is going to clog up and you'll have to pay to have Hy clean it for you.

[Just Rick]

To Phil aka 84.
As I've said, when the problem first raised it's head I was waiting for a knee op and then recovering from that so I wasn't exactly burning up the roads at that time.

Not in this thread you didn't 

Like you say Phil not in this thread , but yes it was clearly stated this problem all started when the knee op and recuperation period took place,I read it this morning in another thread Geordieviking started,maybe the two could be merged(something WA drivers cannot do LOL)as I was flicking through the threads reading I thought I had re=enetered a topic I had already read,but no there are two threads covering this same issue, from time to time I find this forum very confusing and not that simple to use,not everyone is a computer whizz.

[Doggie 1]

Dave I'm shocked,you bag the older FD's,what road noise,both Cyril and Bruce are more than acceptable in that department.

What???
I don't bag the FD at all. I loved my FD - it was a great car and you only have to read the hundreds of posts I've made on this forum that say that.
But similarly, you only have to read the many, many posts on this forum that discuss the road noise in the FD. The FD (mine certainly, and I know also others), was not a quiet car and it has been discussed many times.
I have also posted that the GD in my opinion could be quieter too, but it is a huge improvement over the FD, not only in noise suppression but also in general refinement.
So having owned both, I've been happy with both, but that doesn't mean that they've had zero faults.
In the FD, road noise was the biggest issue for me and several others, followed by crappy carpets.

[Just Rick]

Dave I'm shocked,you bag the older FD's,what road noise,both Cyril and Bruce are more than acceptable in that department.

What???
I don't bag the FD at all. I loved my FD - it was a great car and you only have to read the hundreds of posts I've made on this forum that say that.
But similarly, you only have to read the many, many posts on this forum that discuss the road noise in the FD. The FD (mine certainly, and I know also others), was not a quiet car and it has been discussed many times.
I have also posted that the GD in my opinion could be quieter too, but it is a huge improvement over the FD, not only in noise suppression but also in general refinement.
So having owned both, I've been happy with both, but that doesn't mean that they've had zero faults.
In the FD, road noise was the biggest issue for me and several others, followed by crappy carpets.

I was having a dig  I'm a truck driver so to me road noise has got to be really bad before I notice it,my rule is if it doesn't drown out the wife,it's quite, yes have to agree about the carpets they could be easier to clean,they're not really carpets are they more like a hard wear felt of sorts.

[Doggie 1]

 

[bumpkin]

Blimey, you expect to open a thread about disgruntlement and find that the car has lost a wheel, broken down, blown a gasket, kicked a leg out of bed, but no apparently it's about parking sensors and inaccurate speedos, one really has to ask if priorities are a little out of kilter??

Parking sensors on the new i30 are perhaps not as good as some, but if they are working at 8 inches then they are doing something, surely you are not driving towards walls at 70 mph then slamming on the anchors when you here the beep?

GeordieViking has previously driven an Omega and a Sonata, both cars at the upper end of their respective manufacturer and expects the same level of refinement when coming down to a mid sized hatchback, did you not test it with regard to the road noise?

As already stated speedos are now calibrated to be delibarately out, new engines are so effective at getting up to speed quietly along with the abundance of speed cameras etc that it makes sense for the manufacturers to do this, otherwise you quickly hit your points tally and won't be buying a car again, does it really matter that 76 is actually only 70, go at 70 indicated and you will find the road noise is less.

I'll concede that the battery problem would be a pain however....

[beerman]

G'day mate,

Sorry to hear your unhappy,

on the parking sensors, surely they are designed to give you guidance where you would be unsure. 60cm would annoy me. From my experience with reverse sensors, if they go out too far they are triggered by all sorts of things causing you to second guess what you are seeing. 20cm allows you to know that you are getting close. would do me, though personally I could live without them.

on the noise, I would have thought this would have been evident on the test drive. The tyres are not the quietest in their field, though the vehicle they are fitted to is not the most expensive either. Most if not all of the small car reviews I read raise tyre noise as an issue. Personally I lived with it knowing that I would be rid of the tyres in a couple of years.

On the speedo, they are all like this, it is normal. You can have the speedo calibrated if you feel it necessary. Personally I would just sit on 75.

On the final point, I wonder what research you did on your vehicle needs? I wouldn't be paying the diesel premium for a car that isn't going to do the miles. Whilst in Australia we don't get the stop start and DPF (hooray!), it is fairly obvious from my reading that the DPF needs a couple of good runs to keep going. Whilst I haven't researched the stop start, it would seem reasonable that it would also need a good run to keep everything going, after all you are starting the car a number of times per trip where as you would normally start it once. If you are not going to give the engine a good number of miles, I would, like others suggest, sell the car and choose an engine that better suits your needs.

[Just Rick]

G'day mate,

 if not all of the small car reviews I read raise tyre noise as an issue. Personally I lived with it knowing that I would be rid of the tyres in a couple of years.

.

Bugger my your frugal,I go through a set of tyres every twelve months if not sooner,  times that by two vehicles  as it has been mentioned earlier two the tyres you get make a lot of difference too,just over twelve months we have clocked up just on 120.000 K's between the two cars,the the Gel Battery would not be an issue for us.

[rustynutz]

As already stated speedos are now calibrated to be delibarately out, new engines are so effective at getting up to speed quietly along with the abundance of speed cameras etc that it makes sense for the manufacturers to do this, otherwise you quickly hit your points tally and won't be buying a car again, does it really matter that 76 is actually only 70, go at 70 indicated and you will find the road noise is less.

The reason speedos are deliberately out has nothing to do with the above reasons but more to do with complying with regulations which one would assume are similar to Australia's Design Rules. These stipulate that speedometers must not display a speed that is lower than the speed the vehicle is traveling. In Australia's case the speedo can be out by as much as 10%.

[Doggie 1]

Yes, I don't know what the ADRs say but the state legislation (VSRs) in W.A. state that speedos can have a maximum variance of 10%.
International vehicle manufacturers would be aware of our national legislation and just make sure that they fall within those parameters.

[rustynutz]

I found this in Wiki....

United Kingdom
A speedometer showing mph and km/h along with an odometer and a separate "trip" odometer (both showing distance traveled in miles).The amended Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986 permits the use of speedometers that meet either the requirements of EC Council Directive 75/443 (as amended by Directive 97/39) or UNECE Regulation 39.[11]

The Motor Vehicles (Approval) Regulations 2001[12] permits single vehicles to be approved. As with the UNECE regulation and the EC Directives, the speedometer must never show an indicated speed less than the actual speed. However it differs slightly from them in specifying that for all actual speeds between 25 mph and 70 mph (or the vehicles' maximum speed if it is lower than this), the indicated speed must not exceed 110% of the actual speed, plus 6.25 mph.

For example, if the vehicle is actually travelling at 50 mph, the speedometer must not show more than 61.25 mph or less than 50 mph.

[AlanHo]

The OP is quite right about the front parking sensors - there are only two sensors, one behind each fog lamp pointing out at 45 degrees. Thus they only cover the corners of the car and not a width of 1.5 metres at the front. I had a long running argument with Hyundai UK about this and finished up fitting 4 aftermarket sensors to get full cover.

Read my thread here - you will see references to front sensors, road noise etc.

https://www.i30ownersclub.com/forum/index.php?topic=14198.30

[beerman]

Not a huge fan of reverse sensors anyway. Was backing an Iload down a driveway tonight car to the left wall to the right. The sensors kept triggering the beeping. I could see I was ok, but kept second guessing myself because of the stupid beeps.

Would be ok if they were all the same, but when you go from a Hyundai to a Holden and then to a Toyota, they all have different ideas of how and when to beep.

If you really hate someone, put some blutak onto one of their reverse sensors.....

[Dazzler]

If you really hate someone, put some blutak onto one of their reverse sensors.....

Thanks for the warning 

[peon2t]

Can't say anything to 1) because I have no parking sensors fitted.

2) isn't a problem for me. In never had any problems talking to someone on the passengers seat. Tough I think that on some surfaces it gets a bit noisy at high speeds with the winter tyres. The summer tyres I found quite silent.

3) it's true tough it's normal. As far as I know, in many countries the law sais that speedos have to show a speed higher than the one the car is actually doing.

4) you realize, that gel batteries have quite a lot of advantages an that it often is a sing of quality if there is a (more expensive) gel battery than a (less expensive) non-gel battery fitted? So usually people would complain when they DON'T have a gel battery...

Gel Batteries usually have a higher durability and are noticeable less sensitive against extreme (high and low) temperatures. And unlike acid batteries you don't have to refill distilled water.

If you never do enough driving to fully recharge the battery (must be very short trips only), perhaps you should think about an external charger. They aren't very expensive and could solve your problem (at least if you somehow can get a power ccable near your car.)
But actually one could wonder why someone who only does very short trips buys a Diesel engine anyway.

By the way: Now in winter when the batteries are more stressed, I often see in my 1.6 CRDI that the idle speed is higher than normal. As far as I know this is to produce more energy in order to recharge the battery. Usually the idle speed soon drops to a normal level, so I guess my battery is fine.

[bumpkin]

I would also point out that the ISG models rely heavily on the type of driving you do for recharge purposes, whilst on relatively flat or downhill sections the battery is charged more as less power is required to drive the car, the clever electronics divert power from the drivetrain to the alternator and "boost charge" whereas on uphill sections it actually does the opposite and takes charging power away from the alternator to the drivetrain to ensure max power for the gradient.  If you are doing lots of short journeys and encountering lots of terrain undulation therefore, you are not giving the battery a chance

If this is the case I would suggest that you ensure you switch ISG off at the button every time you use the car, but again would have to query why the BlueDrive diesel was the best option for the type of driving you do.  I had a BlueDrive ix20 petrol for about a year and did not encounter any problems with charge or ISG not working properly in that time, despite also being a mainly city driver with perhaps once a week the car actually getting a journey of approx. 40 miles round trip.