Hyundai i30 Tourer estate

The Hyundai i30 Tourer is an estate version of the latest i30 hatchback. While it’s not an involving car to drive, if you’re in the market for a Skoda Octavia Estate, a Ford Focus Estate or a Vauxhall Astra Sports Tourer, the i30 Tourer should definitely be on your shortlist.

That’s because the i30 Tourer is a handsome, capable car with a decent range of engines, a truly spacious boot and a commendably long list of standard safety equipment. It’s also just £500 more expensive than its hatchback sibling; many rival manufacturers charge twice as much to make that switch.

Hyundai offers the i30 Tourer with the same engines as the i30 hatchback. Cheapest is a 1.0-litre 118bhp turbo petrol, with a 138bhp 1.4-litre topping the petrol range. Those in need of a diesel are offered a 1.6-litre engine, with a choice of two power outputs.

Economy is decent by class standards, with the most frugal i30 Tourer managing between 47.9mpg (when fitted with the 118bhp petrol engine) to 60.1mpg (returned by the lesser of the two diesels).

While few buy a family estate car such as the i30 Tourer for pure performance, its figures in this field are reasonable if somewhat uninspiring. The entry-level petrol manages the 0-62mph sprint in 11.4 seconds, while the 138bhp 1.4-litre petrol does the same in 9.2 seconds. If you’re planning to fill the i30 Tourer’s boot on a regular basis, that entry-level petrol engine may feel a little overworked.

And it’s a mightily impressive boot, too. At 602 litres, it’s ever so slightly down on some of its rivals, but 602 litres is a big space, and more room than you get in the back of a BMW 5 Series Touring – a car from two classes above.

Interior space is also generous, with the rear seats seeming roomier than they do in the i30 hatch, and offering more headroom. The dashboard is neatly and cleanly designed and feels well made – although some of the plastics used aren’t that pleasant to touch.

The i30’s driving experience is competent rather than thrilling. While it’s an excellent motorway cruiser, the steering feels somewhat artificial, making driving this car an unrewarding experience on winding roads.

There should be no complaints in terms of equipment, though, as all i30s come with alloy wheels, air-conditioning, LED running lights, cruise control and all-round electric windows. It’s probably worth upgrading from S to SE or SE Nav trim, as the latter pair include rear parking sensors, a reversing camera and a central armrest.

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Safety is a real strong suit, too, as Hyundai fits all i30 Tourers with lane-keeping assistance, auto-dipping headlights, autonomous emergency braking and a fatigue warning system as standard. And while the Touring hasn’t yet been crash-tested by independent safety experts Euro NCAP, those systems helped the i30 hatchback score the full five stars in its assessment.

Hyundai came 22nd out of 30 car manufacturers in our 2019 Driver Power customer satisfaction survey, but fell down on areas like interior styling and driving experience. Look past these, and the picture that emerges of the i30 Tourer is of a reliable, spacious and user-friendly car you can buy with confidence.