The reality of this eco-aimed i30 is that it’s really hard to drive smoothly in town where there are lots of restricted zones, speed bumps and traffic.
The car doesn’t like changing up to third at 20mph let alone fourth at 30mph. Do so, and it starts to vibrate considerably – which makes my passengers’ heads rattle. But staying in second at 22mph feels loud and slightly out of control. It also makes following Hyundai’s eco driving advice tricky, as it states that “Correct use of gears can make huge savings on your fuel bill. Make sure you change up into a higher gear as soon as it’s possible and safe to do so.” Wish I could.