Hyundai i40 Tourer (2011 – 2019) Review

Hyundai i40 Tourer (2011 – 2019) At A Glance

4/5

+Good quality and fairly stylish for an estate. Plenty of standard equipment. Comfortable ride. Economical diesel engines

-Awkward boot shape. Lacklustre image

Insurance Groups are between 12–18
On average it achieves 78% of the official MPG figure

The Hyundai i40 Tourer is Hyundai doing what it does best. A good quality, good value car that appeals to the left side of the brain rather than the right. In other words, if you made a big checklist of all the things that are good about the Hyundai i40 Tourer you’d come up with a desirable car, yet you’d never actually write 'desirable' as one of its traits.

Initially the i40 Tourer was only one engine, a 1.7-litre diesel in three versions - 115PS, 136PS and 141PS. This was replaced by a 1.6 CRDi diesel late in 2018, while a 1.6-litre GDi petrol was also introduced. One thing all these engines have in common is impressive fuel economy - with the latest diesels capable of a combined 54.3mpg under WLTP tests.

The car was launched in 2012 with trim levels called Active, Style and Premium, but a 2015 update changed that to S, SE Nav, SE Business and Premium. All cars get alloy wheels, Bluetooth and air conditioning plus you only need jump one grade to SE Nav for a full colour touchscreen multimedia setup and climate control – this is a well-equipped car, far from ‘low budget’ in that respect.  

Cabin quality is excellent throughout, with good use of soft-touch plastics for the upper dash and door trim plus glossy black trim even for base models. Some of the dials and buttons are flimsy and the dashboard design occasionally falls into the 'trying too hard' category with its swoopy creases, but overall the i40 Tourer has a quality feel.

So, it’s well-equipped, spacious, high quality and the numbers stack up. But what the i40 Tourer lacks is any sense of fun. Granted, fun is rarely a priority for estate buyers if you believe the cliche, but everything about the i40 Tourer just does a decent job – no more, no less. 

Hyundai i40 Tourer Road Test

Real MPG average for a Hyundai i40 Tourer (2011 – 2019)

RealMPG

Real MPG was created following thousands of readers telling us that their cars could not match the official figures.

Real MPG gives real world data from drivers like you to show how much fuel a vehicle really uses.

Average performance

78%

Real MPG

32–62 mpg

MPGs submitted

240

Diesel or petrol? If you're unsure whether to go for a petrol or diesel (or even an electric model if it's available), then you need our Petrol or Diesel? calculator. It does the maths on petrols, diesels and electric cars to show which is best suited to you.

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Ask Honest John

My car doesn't have a CD player, can I fit one?

"I have a 2017 Hyundai i40 with a factory-fitted stereo radio system but it does not have a CD function. Can I buy and fit a CD player that will play through the car's speakers?"
While CDs have not become obsolete, they have been somewhat pushed to the side by car manufacturers with features such as DAB, Bluetooth and Apple CarPlay/Android Auto giving drivers a wealth of audio options. Depending on the specification of your Hyundai i40, you should have USB and AUX inputs available, so if you want to play your CDs in the car then you could purchase a portable CD player and plug that straight in. If you want something that is more factory-fit, you would have to purchase an aftermarket audio system and replace the standard fit unit, although this would be a relatively expensive option. We think that the easiest option would be to purchase an MP3 player and using the appropriate software to convert your favourite CDs into audio files. MP3 players are relatively inexpensive and can accept audio files in a lossless format - that means there is no loss in sound quality compared to the original CD. A 64Gb MP3 player could hold over 4000 songs in a lossless format such as FLAC, would take up less space in your car and means you can keep your CDs safely at home.
Answered by David Ross

Does my Hyundai i40 Tourer have a gearbox problem?

"I have recently purchased a 2018 Hyundai i40 Tourer diesel with an automatic gearbox. The car has done 42, 000 miles. On two recent occasions when I get into the car, start the engine and then move off the car has juddered as if the gearbox is slipping. Once the car has travelled a mile or so the issue does not repeat. Only does it when stating from cold. This issue is intermittent. Also, when I am travelling along if I touch the brakes the gearbox drops down either one or two gears and can result in the engine revving up to 3,500rpm. This issue is present all of the time when the brake pedal is pressed. Can you tell me if this seems to be a fault with the gearbox? I bought the car from a Hyundai main dealer and with an 18-month warranty. I wanted to make sure of the situation before I approach the dealer if there is indeed a fault with the gearbox. The issue was not present when I bought the car but it started after about four weeks after the purchase. "
This does sound like a fault with the automatic gearbox. It's possible it could simply be resolved with an oil change but it could be something more serious. We would get it to the dealer as soon as possible to avoid further gearbox damage.
Answered by Lawrence Allan

What should I replace my Hyundai i40 Tourer with?

"I'm looking to trade up on my current Hyundai i40 Tourer that I've had for five years. I want to find something with a reasonably sized boot but it needs to be higher and easier to get into. I dont like the Nissan X-Trail, so that's out. I do about 15,000 miles a year my budget is £16-18,000. I need your advice for something with a good stereo and sat nav for that price."
If you can find a diesel Skoda Kodiaq within budget, that'd be my choice. It's got a very good navigation system and a huge boot. A Honda CR-V would be another good choice, although it's not got the best infotainment system.
Answered by Andrew Brady

Diesel repeatedly leaking into sump

"Since buying the car in Jan 2015 it has suffered from diesel leaking into the sump from the fuel pump on 3 occasions. On the first 2 occasions the pump was replaced under warranty after being off the road for a month and it is in the workshop now to rectify the latest occurrence. I now have no confidence in the car and when it happened on New Years Eve at 70mph on a motorway the smoke obscured the carriageway putting other road users and my family at risk. Do I have grounds for getting Hyundai to replace the car or buy it back at the purchase price?"
You probably do. The problem must be due to a malfunction of the programmed active regeneration of the DPF during which extra fuel is pumped into the engine to fire and burn off the soot in the DPF. Obviously having had a year's use out of the car you can only expect 'market value', not what you paid for it. Law here: http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/faq/consumer-rights/ I'm assuming the car was new in January 2015.
Answered by Honest John
More Questions

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