While the Accent might not be the most exhilarating car on the face of the

To illustrate how important this vehicle launch was, there were three of Vancouver's finest Policemen escorting the Accent entourage out of town. (Photo: Alexandra Straub, Canadian Auto Press)

planet, it is very important to the Hyundai family and due to its low window sticker, much more relevant to the majority of consumers than some high priced exotic. To illustrate how important this vehicle launch was, there were three of Vancouver's finest Policemen escorting the Accent entourage out of town. I thought, "All this for a pack of subcompacts?" Yes. Perhaps the VPD knew that a clan of crazy journalists couldn't be trusted on their own, even with barely more than 100 horsepower each at our disposal, and might run amok while racing around town. Hmmm... most likely not. The VPD escort was there to keep us in line, literally, for our voyage to the ferry terminal, so that we could uniformly load onto the ferry and embark on our adventure to beautiful Tofino, on the West Coast of Vancouver Island.

While police escorts and birthday banter makes for interesting gossip column fodder, I'm sure it's the car you want to hear about. At first glance, the redesigned Accent is easily recognizable. The exterior boasts some healthy new curves and a few fresh features, like a chrome-accented

The exterior boasts some healthy new curves and a few fresh features. (Photo: Alexandra Straub, Canadian Auto Press)

grille, aerodynamic headlamp clusters, larger wheels and tires, and body-coloured door handles and mirrors. While it might not look all that much larger from the outside, it is. The wheelbase has increased by 58.4 mm (2.3 inches) and the track has been widened to 1,471 mm (57.9 inches) in the front and 1,461 (57.5) in the rear, making a total increase of 35.6 mm (1.4 inches).

Not only have its outside extremities been stretched, but resultantly it's larger inside too. The Accent has class-leading interior volume, with 2,962 litres (2,857 litres in the previous model year). The driver's seating position has also been raised by 50 mm (2.0 inches) to optimize visibility and comfort. Furthermore, the new Accent comes with a two-tone colour scheme and large analog instrumentation, tilt steering, and best of all, an 8-way adjustable driver's seat with fold down arm rest. Its combination of features makes the Accent's interior cozy and convenient at the same time.