Hyundai developing i-Blue brand with new i30

[Rory Phoulorie]

Monday 21 July 2008



First shown at the Geneva show this year, the Hyundai i-Blue line of efficiency-focused cars will get a new entrant, and a whole range to follow, with the debut of the i30 at the London Motor Show. The car shown at Geneva in March was an i10 powered by compressed natural gas.

The i30 that debuts at the London show this week will be powered by a 1.6L CRDi diesel engine, however, and is designed to be competitive with rivals like Ford and Volkswagen, while outperforming them on both price and emissions. The only mechanical change to the i-Blue i30�s driveline is a tweaked set of gear ratios, to offer slightly higher gearing for lower engine revs, yielding a 6g/km drop in CO2 emissions. The rest of the i30�s performance and handling remains the same.

While the alternative-fueled i10 managed an impressive 65g/km CO2 from its 0.8L CNG engine while also producing 96.6hp (72kW) from the tiny powerplant, the i30�s more conventional route nets less than 120g/km CO2 - a base line requirement for all i-Blue branded vehicles - while providing the same essential driveability as its standard variant. The new i10 that will follow the i30 offers an all-new 1.2L Kappa petrol engine, and in combination with a manual transmission, all i10s with the new powerplant will meet the sub-120g/km CO2 requirement.

The new Kappa engine (pictured below) is rated at what Hyundai claims to be a class-leading 94.15Nm (69lb-ft) of torque per liter, or 113Nm (83lb-ft) total. Weighing in at just 82.4kg (181lb) dry, the engine is also a small and lightweight package despite delivering power of 77hp (57kW) from its 1.2L displacement. The key innovations involve lightweight materials and special surface treatments of key components for reduced mass while maintaining longevity.

Hyundai is advertising the new i-Blue i30 with a starting price of �13,155 ($26,270) with standard equipment like stability control, air conditioning and alloy wheels found across the range.

Motor Authority