There are affordable cars, and then there are Hyundais. Having lavished more effort than most towards putting the cheerful back into cheap, the Korean manufacturer has been rightfully reaping the benefits of late. Toyota and its closest rivals have in more mature markets moved up a rung in terms of brand perception and market offering, creating room for companies like Hyundai and its Kia subsidiary to establish a firm foothold.

A foothold that's sufficiently rooted to allow for even the mounting of a Hyundai challenge to mighty Lexus. A cheeky move to be sure, but then again Hyundai's new flagship Azera does come uncomfortably close to offering Lexus-like levels of refinement.

Hot on the heels of the Azera's local launch comes the replacement for the stalwart Accent compact sedan. Hyundai has dispensed with the Accent badge, opting to call its replacement the Verna, mostly to make absolutely plain how different the two cars are.

The Verna's platform is also used by the new Kia Rio so it's no surprise that both cars share a similar profile. Compared to the slightly awkward old Accent, the Verna looks sleeker, more contemporary and more grown-up. It's also a good deal larger than its predecessor, and while the Verna is not quite big enough to place it in the class above the Accent, this still means more room for passengers and luggage.

From the front, the car looks a little bit like Fiat's new Grande Punto. The nose is bulbous in a way that's more shapely than distended, and it's attractively framed by sleek front fenders that arc from the base of the A-pillars to neatly designed headlamp housings. The styling becomes a bit more conventional in the flanks and at the rear, where the resemblance to the Rio is strongest. The only real niggles with regards to the looks are the rather sudden 'CVVT' badges behind the front wheel-arches.

DRIVING IT

As the Verna's platform provides the same basic mechanicals that you'd find in the Kia Rio, you'd expect similar performance and handling. For the most part this is true - the steering is well-weighted and direct, and the engine makes up for its high-rev raucousness by going about its business pretty smoothly.

However, the ride is more on the tolerable side of firm than that of the Rio's, and this, coupled with the direct steering, makes you want to drive a bit more enthusiastically. And therein lies the rub. The Verna's suspension feels like it's been set up to be reasonably stiff, but the dampers aren't as authoritative as they need to be, given the relative aggressiveness of the spring settings. On the road, the action of large bumps and ruts often sets up one or two body oscillations too many.

In this sense, the Verna mimics the Azera, in that the engineers who developed both cars couldn't quite make up their minds about exactly how stiff and sporty or how soft and cosseting the cars ought to be. It's almost as if they only decided at the penultimate minute to opt for soft and cosseting, but left all the nuggety stiff and sporty bits in place.

All that said, you can't actually stoke up a proper hooligan charge in the Verna as the standard-fit Kumho tyres function like high-tech stability control programs. If you enter a corner at any speed above 'geriatric', they protest by immediately emitting a high-pitched screech. The louder the screech, the less grip available. They also make their presence known by generating a fair bit of road noise, this is exacerbated by the fact that the cabin is very well insulated from just about everything else.

For the most part, however, the Verna makes for perfectly acceptable daily transport, which for 99 percent of motorists is absolutely fine. It's near silent at idle, and the 1.6-litre four-cylinder engine makes the most of its 130bhp and 145Nm, delivering decently brisk progress. The four-speed automatic gearbox is smooth enough ordinarily but you need to be careful with throttle inputs, calling for a downshift by stomping on the gas can result in a less than perfect gearchange.

INSIDE IT

It's been a while since we've managed to muster some genuine vitriol about the state of a car's interior, and the Verna's isn't going to change the status quo. The interior is quite different from that of the Rio's, with a more grown-up look overall. The plastics are of good quality and everything's laid out neatly and clearly. Hyundai has also gone to the trouble of giving most surfaces if not quite a soft-touch feel, then a soft-touch look which helps lift the interior ambience significantly.

Visibility from the driver's seat is excellent. There should be no problems with parking in tight spaces, and the overall feel of the cabin is similarly bright and airy. Head and shoulder room up front are pretty generous, too.

The front seats are comfortable and feature a commendably wide range of adjustment, as they do in the Rio. In many cars, not just the ones in this segment, you tend to only be able to move the front seats forward and back, and set the seat back angle. In the Verna, you can adjust the height of both the front and rear sections of the seat squabs, which makes for a more comfortable driving position.

The rear offers plenty of room all round for two passengers, but more than that means a bit of a squeeze. Besides, there's only a centre lap belt, so it's best to carry just four people in total.

DOLLARS AND SENSE

At $52,000 with COE, the 1.6-litre Verna represents a big steal. Especially if you take advantage of the $X,XXX early-bird discount which, at the time of printing, was still valid. The clincher, however, has to be the fact that the Verna comes not only with a driver's side airbag, but it also boasts an anti-lock braking system (ABS). The safety and peace of mind this feature alone brings should be worth the relatively small premium the car commands over its closest rivals.

VERDICT

Hyundai wants to market the Verna as quite a bit more than simply an Accent-plus, the new car being larger, better equipped, more refined and much better-looking. The raw, perky fun of the Accent might be absent from the decidedly more mature Verna but as long as the prices stay the way they are now, buyers at this end of the market can only benefit.

NEED TO KNOW

Hyundai Verna 1.6 (A)
Engine Type 1,599cc, 16v in-line 4
Max Power 112bhp at 6,000rpm
Max Torque 145Nm at 4,500rpm
Gearbox 4-speed automatic
Top speed 176km/h
0-100km/h 12.0 seconds
Price $52,000 with COE
Warranty 3 years / 100,000km
Contact Komoco Motors
Telephone 6475-8888

SIMILAR CARS WE HAVE DRIVEN

Kia Rio 1.6 (A) $42,999 with COE
The Rio plays up the fun factor, with spunkier styling and a more lively interior. The two cars are mechanically similar but the Rio seems to possess the slight handling edge. The Verna has ABS, though.

Honda City 1.5 (A) $59,000 with COE
The newly-facelifted Thai-built City is one of the best budget sedans available, and it now boasts arguably neater styling. It's more expensive than the Verna though, and you still have to fork out extra for ABS.