Time flies when you’re having fun. And if you’re Hyundai, you’re celebrating 25 years of success (i.e. fun) in Canada.

The Accent is a lot of car for the money. (Photo: Alexandra Straub, Canadian Auto Press)

So what better way to celebrate than to enhance some of the Korean car manufacturer’s best-selling cars with a value-added package? Hyundai is doing just that with their 2009 Accent Sedan 25th Anniversary Edition. Not only does it come standard with seat warmers, a sunroof and fog lights, but you can get it for only $17,395. That’s tough to beat considering the Accent is one great little car.

I love the Accent for various reasons. One, it’s a fun car to drive. I’ve driven a fair share of them in my automotive journalism career, and over the years they keep getting better. Two, the styling, which is quite cute although it could use a little updating as the 2006 model year was its last extreme makeover. Three, the handling of the zesty little 4-door. Despite the bargain basement price, it’s actually fun to throw this little subcompact into tight turns. Whether I’m pushing the front MacPherson strut, rear torsion beam suspension a little bit further than it would normally like to go, the Accent, despite having P185/65R14 tires on steel wheels with full wheel covers, holds ground. Of the subcompact category, the Accent continues to impress me, and everyone I show it to. And the list goes on.

On the inside, the Accent sports a very basic and to-the-point cabin. Its predominantly black plastic trim is decent-looking and all the buttons and knobs fit nicely together. There aren’t any super fancy gadgets, unless you call the seat warmers and air conditioning system

Simple, clean lines give the Accent presence. (Photo: Alexandra Straub, Canadian Auto Press)

super fancy, but its AM/FM/front aux/CD/MP3 player with four speakers makes some pretty good noise for a ‘basic’ stereo system. And as for the cloth-upholstered seats, well, even after driving for a few hours and then sitting for another hour, they remained pretty comfortable. No complaints here.

Underneath the Accent's charming façade is a modest 1.6-littre, 16-valve, DOHC, 4-cylinder engine that produces 110-horsepower and 106 lb ft of torque. It's nothing to get too excited about, but it gets the job done at a thriftier rate than many of its competitors. On average, the Accent Sedan uses 7.9 L/100 km of fuel in the city and 5.6 L/100 km on the highway. We drove over 350 kilometers and

Again, a simple, straightforward yet well-made interior. (Photo: Alexandra Straub, Canadian Auto Press)

ended up paying about $28. Since I’m saving so much on fuel, I guess that means I can go on more shopping trips, right? Not likely! But it’s still fun to dream.

Other than driving to my favourite shopping hotspots, my daily routine consists of the requisite to-and-from work city route, so the four-speed automatic transmission, which comes standard with the 25th Anniversary Edition, was a definite bonus. It takes the “hard labour” out of driving. My only quibble was that the engine got a little noisy when accelerating quickly from a standstill, but not so much that I couldn’t hear the stereo. I was impressed, though, at how quiet the Accent remained while driving at highway speeds. I’m not going to say that you could hear a pin drop on the rear seat cushion while driving, as it’s no Genesis, but for the subcompact class it’s impressively refined.

The

Who? Me?! Shopping? OK, busted. You can get a lot of stuff back here. (Photo: Alexandra Straub, Canadian Auto Press)

Accent is definitely a handy car to travel with, especially when going on a weekend shopping trip with a friend. Its 350-litre (12.4 cu ft) trunk had no problem gobbling up all of the goodies that my roommate Jamie and I filled it to the max with (I hope my boyfriend isn’t reading this).

While I would have liked to have cruise control for the shopping weekend, our Accent four-door would have had to have had the GLS trim level, which is priced at $18,645. Alas, I can’t have it all in the 25th Anniversary Accent, but such features as air conditioning, keyless entry, power windows, power doors and locks, dual front airbags, side curtain airbags come with the $17,395 price tag. And if you’re wondering why the 25th Anniversary Edition is such a great deal, well, the seat warmers, fog lights and power sunroof, as mentioned above, will only cost you $650 more that a base Accent GL does with the optional automatic ($16,745). Now that’s a deal. But like I said, the special edition only comes with the four-speed automatic transmission. That’s great news to some and not the best for others.

Over the years, the Hyundai Accent has proven to be a comfortable, reliable and thrifty car, highly favoured by Canadian drivers. And now with the value-added pricing it's even easier to be impressed with this four-door subcompact. Whether it’s the great fuel economy, luxury amenities or fantastic five-year, 100,000 km comprehensive warranty, you don’t have to look further than Hyundai’s Accent. It’s got the goods, and then some.

Specifications (2009 Accent 4-Door Sedan 25th Anniversary Edition):

• Price (MSRP):  $17,395
• Destination Charge: $1,345
• Body Type: 4-door sedan
• Layout: front engine, FWD
• Base Engine: 110-hp, 106 lb-ft of torque, 1.6L, 16-valve DOHC I-4
• Transmission: 4-spd auto
• Brakes (front/rear): disc/drum
• Dimensions (L/W/H/WB): 4,280 / 1,695 / 1,470 / 2,500 mm (168.5 / 66.7 / 57.9 / 98.4 in)
• Curb Weight (auto): 1,136 kg (2,504 lbs)
• Seating Capacity: 5
• Cargo Volume: 350 L (12.4 cu ft)
• Fuel Economy (city/hwy): 7.9 / 5.6 L/100 km
• Fuel Capacity: 45 L (11.9 gal)
• Warranty (mo/km): 36/60,000 comprehensive - 60/100,000 powertrain
• Direct Competitors: Chevrolet Aveo Sedan, Kia Rio Sedan, Nissan Versa Sedan, Pontiac Wave Sedan, Suzuki SX4 Sedan, Toyota Yaris Sedan, Volkswagen City Jetta
• Web site: www.hyundaicanada.com

Interior

Exterior

Mechanical

Safety

Dimensions

Misc

(J005) Standard Gloss Paint

(J003) Standard Metallic Paint