Hyundai i30 Tourer (2012-2017) review

The Hyundai i30 Tourer is what you’d call a sensible family estate. It’s good value, it offers a huge amount of space and it boasts a very grown-up driving experience. There’s not much to be had in the way of fun, but plenty of buyers will appreciate the i30 Tourer’s ‘straight down the line’ attitude. It takes long journeys in its stride thanks to a quiet, refined cabin and a comfortable ride. Add to that a choice of efficient diesel engines, and family buyers can’t help but consider the Tourer when it comes to buying a new car.

The engine line-up is easy to get to grips with as buyers only have to choose between two diesels. They’re both 1.6-litre engines and come with either 109bhp or 126bhp, but neither feels particularly quick – that’s despite a 0-62mph time of 11.2 seconds. The handling is as you’d expect from a family estate – predictable and safe but not exactly thrilling. There is a FlexSteer system that allows you to change the weight of the steering, but the standard setting is all that’s really necessary. The Blue Drive models - with its low-rolling resistance tyres and small wheels runs out of grip quite easily and the six-speed gearbox has a nothcy action but these are small niggles in an otherwise pleasant drive.

The Hyundai i30 Tourer is only available with diesel engines and they’re all incredibly cheap to run, provided you don’t go for the six-speed automatic gearbox. Stick with the manual and Blue Drive cars can achieve 67.3mpg and emit just 110g/km. As you move up the range to Style or Style Nav these figures drop to 64.2mpg and 115g/km. If you do need an auto gearbox, though, be aware that your running costs will shoot up considerably, with claimed figures of 50.4mpg and 149g/km putting the i30 into a much higher tax bracket.

The i30 Tourer boasts the same sharp lines as the standard i30 hatch, but with the elongated body the whole design has been dulled down and it doesn’t look quite as well proportioned as the standard car. Range-topping cars help solve the problems with standard LED daytime running lights, tinted windows and larger alloys wheels. The cabin is also dependent on specification, with higher-spec cars looking modern and premium with a sat-nav screen and gloss black plastics, while lower-spec cars can look rather dull by comparison and lower down the interior the materials still feel a little cheap.

Take a look at the figures for the Hyundai i30 Tourer and you’ll see that this is one of the most practical cars in the class. At 528 litres, the boot is larger than the VW Golf Estate, the Ford Focus Estate and the Vauxhall Astra Sports Tourer. In fact, one of the few cars that boasts a larger boot is the Skoda Octavia Estate. Folding down the rear seats frees up a massive 1,642 litres of space, and you can comfortably seat five adults with them in place. The boot is also lined with tough plastic that should protect it when carrying large items and the low loading lip and handy hidden compartments under the boot floor make it even more attractive to family buyers.

Hyundai’s recent models have an enviable reliability record, and the i30 Tourer looks set to follow suit. It comes with the manufacturer's fantastic five-year Triple Care package, which includes an unlimited-mileage warranty, five-years' roadside assistance and five-years' annual vehicle health checks. So even if something does go wrong, you’ll certainly be covered. The standard i30 hatch scored well in the crash safety tests, with a full five-star rating and a 90 per cent score for both adult and child protection. The Tourer should perform just as well.