SIMPLY observing the aggressive campaign and the resulting performance in the market of Hyundai, one would see the obvious: the brand is making waves and disrupting the traditional sales flow of the more established automotive manufacturers in the country like Toyota, Honda, Isuzu and Ford.

Hyundai Asia Resources Inc. has been operating in the Philippines for more than a decade now, but its presence wasn’t felt until a few years ago, when the company decided to be more aggressive and bring in more of their brand’s variants.

This created an impressive impact on the Filipino automobile market that one of their more popular models, the Hyundai Starex, had become a Pinoy middle-class favorite. Big, roomy, economical and priced quite lower than its other competitors, the Starex was a hit.

Now, Hyundai comes out with a model that is making another stir: the Accent. A compact car running on a diesel engine, the Accent has reason to be another middle-class favorite. Sure, it does not have the sophistication of the other brands in its class. Nor does it have the technological savvy of the more expensive brands. But the Accent is the kind of automobile the ordinary John Doe would turn to when pressed with cash and yet want a little more something from his brand-new car.

From the outside, the Accent has the modern look and lines of mainstream designs. That is to say its look does not differ much from all the other cars out there.

Entering the car, one would notice that even the interior is designed so that the driver or passenger would not feel out of place or confused. You are simply hopping onto your favorite ride. The inside is even a bit more spacious than most other compact cars, and the fabrics used are soft and good to the touch. Seat design is modern and up to standard, although this writer doesn’t have a clue as to why they decided to put that round thing one turns to adjust the seats instead of the easier pull up lever.

The instrument cluster is simple and easy to read, and the audio system is situated where it should always be, within the reach of the driver. The rear seat has a collapsible center armrest with cup holders, and all rear seats can be folded to a certain configuration for baggage needs.

The Accent GLS is powered by a 1.5 DOHC CRDi Turbo Intercooler with “Variable Geometry Turbocharger.” It has a five-speed manual transmission, but the reverse gear confused this writer at first since it is European in design (which means you have to pull up a lever to engage reverse gear, which is situated on the left side of the gear shifter instead of the more conventional right.)

But by and large, the power of the diesel engine is impressive as it gives the required push when it is needed. Not your ordinary diesel engine in tight passing spots—it will jump when you squeeze the throttle to overtake that road-hogging 18-wheeler truck.

Another point to ponder is that it has a much lighter-than-usual steering control, probably because of its Motor Driven Power Steering system. The system gave an easier time in maneuvering and, of course, that difficult parallel parking stunt we all have to contend with.

Even the safety package like the braking system and seat belts are there to keep the passengers safe during travel.  And the economy of a diesel engine cannot be questioned at any level. All in all, this writer must say that the Accent is quite a deal to have for someone whose first major investment is a car. For P680,000, this is more than a deal. It’s a steal.

SIMPLY observing the aggressive campaign and the resulting performance in the market of Hyundai, one would see the obvious: the brand is making waves and disrupting the traditional sales flow of the more established automotive manufacturers in the country like Toyota, Honda, Isuzu and Ford.

THERE are motor shows and there are other motor shows, but when mere participants decide to change their role into a much bigger one, the result can put to shame all the motor shows of the past.  And that is what the influential Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. or Campi wants—to surpass all the big motor shows that were ever staged in the country.

FOLLOWING 30 years of success in manufacturing tires for on and off road applications, BFGoodrich has released two 4x4 tires that have been developed from the company’s experience in the tough Baja and Dakar rallies.

WHEN Cats Motors formally announced its partnership with DaimlerChrysler in the summer of 2005, it immediately found itself facing up to the challenges of the local car industry.

WE would like to go back to an item in our past column regarding school buses after talking with various parents who are really concerned about their children.

LAUNCHING a second-generation automobile can be quite a feat, especially if the previous model is a tough act to follow. And this was the base expectation during Volvo’s launch of its new S80. The first S80 received quite a “thumbs up” that following it up with the next model seemed a tough job.