2018 Hyundai Accent Completes Puberty, Becomes Full-Grown Car


It looks like the awkward years are over for the subcompact Hyundai Accent.
Our first glimpse of the next-generation Accent comes courtesy of leaked photos from China, where the model goes by the name Verna. In them, the Accent appears all grown up, adopting a large grille and styling reminiscent of its bigger brother, the Elantra.
The model, which will appear sometime next year as a 2018 model, grows slightly in width and length. There’s talk that a hatchback version won’t accompany the sedan seen in the leaked photos, which seems almost sacrilegious, given the Accent’s roots.
Speaking of talk, you’re not likely to hear many animated water cooler conversations about the Accent, but it remains an important model for the automaker. Hyundai sold 61,486 of them in the U.S. last year, so it’s not about to start ignoring its entry in the subcompact market.
But back to that grille. The first Accents to reach North American shores back in the mid-1990s featured a plastic-heavy face with a vestigial front air slot resembling something you’d see living near the ocean floor. The model received regular styling updates through the years, and a healthy dose of competitive technology arrived in 2011, but this redesign really closes the door on its lackluster econobox past.

[Source: AutoHome] [Image: Wikimedia Commons]
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- Scott ?Wonder what Toyota will be using when they enter the market?
- Fred The bigger issue is what happens to the other systems as demand dwindles? Will thet convert or will they just just shut down?
- Roger hopkins Why do they all have to be 4 door??? Why not a "cab & a half" and a bit longer box. This is just another station wagon of the 21st century. Maybe they should put fake woodgrain on the side lol...
- Greg Add me to the list: 2017 Sorento EX AWD w/2.0 Turbo GDI 68K miles. Changed oil religiously with only synthetic. Checked oil level before a rare long road trip and Ievel was at least 2 quarts down. That was less than 6 months after the last oil change. I'm now adding a quart of oil every 1000 miles and checking every 500 miles because I read reports that the oil usage gets worse. Too bad, really like the 2023 Tuscon. But I have not seen Hyundai/Kia doing anything new in terms of engine development. Therefore, I have to suspect that I will ony become a victim of a fatally flawed engine development program if I were to a purchase another Kia/Hyundai.
- Craiger 1970s Battlestar Galactica Cylon face.
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Verna is starting to look like she's got "potential." If-you-know-what-I-mean. In a small car sedan way. Even if I didn't have much money, I bet I could get with her.
Turns out an accent doesn't make everyone sexy...