Hyundai i30 vs Kia Cee'd (2008-2012)

DustPan12

Hi everyone, back again.

I'm hoping to purchase a (new to me) car the other side of Christmas. I made a previous post but now I have narrowed it down to these 2 cars.

Kia Cee'd (2009-2011) facelift model.

Hyundai i30 (2008-2011) facelift if it can be afforded but if not, pre-facelift model.

Both 1.6 CRDi, and I know these cars are the same essentially, but from reading reviews etc driving wise they can be different. I drive 400-500 miles a week.

My questions are - Kia, what's the difference between the 1/2/3' trims and the ecodynamic models?

Is there a notable difference with how they drive? Is one more reliable than the other? Just general advice. I like the look of both so it's more about the pros/ cons of each of them. Is road noise as bad as people suggest? Im yet to test drive the Kia.

Sorry for such a long post. Any advice is appreciated.

DustPan12

Anybody any advice?

kerten

DustPan12 wrote: »

Hi everyone, back again.

I'm hoping to purchase a (new to me) car the other side of Christmas. I made a previous post but now I have narrowed it down to these 2 cars.

Kia Cee'd (2009-2011) facelift model.

Hyundai i30 (2008-2011) facelift if it can be afforded but if not, pre-facelift model.

Both 1.6 CRDi, and I know these cars are the same essentially, but from reading reviews etc driving wise they can be different. I drive 400-500 miles a week.

My questions are - Kia, what's the difference between the 1/2/3' trims and the ecodynamic models?

Is there a notable difference with how they drive? Is one more reliable than the other? Just general advice. I like the look of both so it's more about the pros/ cons of each of them. Is road noise as bad as people suggest? Im yet to test drive the Kia.

Sorry for such a long post. Any advice is appreciated.

Kia trim levels were 1/2/3/4 in UK I guess. Higher the better spec. Irish high spec ones were called EX as far as I know.

Expect Kia to have stiffer suspension than hyundai as it is positioned as sportier brand.

I doubt reliability will be different.

I wouldn't expect german level sound insulation from those models but I think they are very balanced package if budget is limited. Unless you do high mileage, 1.4 petrol engine in those are pretty nippy engines for their size.

There are issues about weak clutches in Kia/hyundai diesels for a while but I am not sure if those earlier models were subject to the same weakness.

DustPan12

kerten wrote: »

Kia trim levels were 1/2/3/4 in UK I guess. Higher the better spec. Irish high spec ones were called EX as far as I know.

Expect Kia to have stiffer suspension than hyundai as it is positioned as sportier brand.

I doubt reliability will be different.

I wouldn't expect german level sound insulation from those models but I think they are very balanced package if budget is limited. Unless you do high mileage, 1.4 petrol engine in those are pretty nippy engines for their size.

There are issues about weak clutches in Kia/hyundai diesels for a while but I am not sure if those earlier models were subject to the same weakness.

Hi, thanks for responding!

I only saw this now. Well after searching and searching, I am hoping to view an i30 (2009) this weekend.

I managed to have a spin in a C’eed facelift and while it was really nice, comfortable and everything else, it has boiled down to budget and I like the driving feel from the i30 more, despite them being pretty identical. I see what you mean about the stiff suspension though.

Hopefully, I’ll be viewing and buying all going well this weekend. Thanks again for your response.

colm_mcm

Watch for a crunch going into reverse, if it does, then it’ll need a clutch so budget €500 for that if it’s 5 speed and a little more if it’s 6 speed.