Hyundai is moving up the quality league with an impressive new i30 car. This is a mid-range car that claims to offer competition to the likes of the Volkswagen Golf and Ford Focus. But is that its real challenge? Michael Moroney reports after his week behind the i30 wheel.

The new Hyundai i30 is a modern design European built car from Korea's leader. The 1.6 litre turbo-diesel model comes with a starting price of €20,495 before delivery charges.

Hyundai claims to have notched up a few steps on the quality ladder with the launch of the new Hyundai i30 just before last Christmas. The car has some obvious similarities to the Kia c'eed and at the launch time Hyundai drew every comparison with the i30 bar the c'eed.

I've had the i30 on the road recently, just months after I've driven the c'eed. It's still interesting to make comparisons.

I took the 1.6 litre diesel powered i30 for a long series of runs and have to admit that I came away with more than a hint of belief in Hyundai's claims. This car is modern, stylish and does feel so different to Hyundai models such as the Accent of the past.

Hyundai claims that the i30 can compete with the Volkswagen Golf and Ford Focus, but I'm not so sure that it can go that far yet, but it's not far off. It has a growing quality feel and the road performance is impressive.

The 1.6 litre turbo-diesel engine version that I had is available at two power levels. The standard 1.6 litre engine delivers 90bhp and 235Nm of engine torque. For a little more in the price band you can opt for the powerful 115bhp version that also adds some more torque for impressive driving pace.

I drove the more powerful i30 and it makes an impressive statement. The high engine torque gives a 0 to 100km/hr rating at 11.6 seconds, well ahead of most of the competition. Fiat's new Bravo is the pace setter in the sector, closely followed by the 1.5 litre diesel Renault Megane while at the other end of the scale the 1.4 litre diesel powered Honda Civic comes in with a sluggish performance. The Hyundai i30 is at the top of the market segment in terms of engine torque and that's what's powering its impressive acceleration figures. A good economy rating completes the picture. The top power i30 comes in with a rating of 4.7 litres/100km (60mgp) and that's also at the top of the market segment.

The Hyundai diesel comes close to the bottom ranking in one figure where it needs to be and that's CO2 emissions. The i30 comes with a 125g/km rating, only beaten by the Ford Focus and Renault Megane. So across a number of critical and measurable features the i30 can match the best out there. Add a new driving dimension where the car has a solid feel to it and you begin to appreciate that a transformation has taken place in the Hyundai stable.

On the inside the i30 has a new quality feel to it. The doors have a more solid feel to them; the dash design is modern and uses higher quality materials, while the seating has been firmed up for greater strength.

Don't even think about the old Hyundai Accent when you're looking at this car. They are as far away as possible in terms of styling and build quality. This new i30 is European built and that's part of the Kia c'eed connection.

One is built in Slovakia, the Kia that is, while a short hop across the Czech border and you're in the new Hyundai factory. All the suppliers for both brands are clustered around these new industrial giants, feeding a share of common components into dual assembly lines. Just look at the three-button remote control folding key and you get that European Volkswagen feel to it. The subtleties are everywhere.