HYUNDAI has seized the opportunity to take one of its products designed for Europe and pitch it to the Eurocentric small-car market. While the new i30 may not overtake the current one-two leadership of Toyota's Corolla and the Mazda3, Hyundai is confident it has the right quality, price and features to provide a value alternative to the mainstream volume sellers and those with more direct European heritage such as Ford Focus, Volkswagen Golf and Holden Astra.
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Hyundai XD Elantra
Released: Oct 2000
Ended: Sep 2006
Family Tree: i30While the i30 name is new, it sells alongside the Elantra sedan and is a replacement for the superseded Elantra hatch. Hyundai’s previous (XD-series) five-door Elantra hatch was released in October 2000. It was fitted with a 94kW/165Nm 1.8-litre four-cylinder petrol engine and the range comprised GL and GLS variants, priced either side of $20,000. The XD was facelifted three years later in October 2003, when a new 105kW/186Nm 2.0-litre engine came as standard in a line-up that comprised base, HVT and Elite models, and which continued to be available with either five-speed manual or four-speed auto transmissions.
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