Hyundai Excel Problems

IT DOESN'T sound as if your Hyundai is burning oil, so I would be looking for a leak that is allowing oil to connect with the exhaust manifold or part of the exhaust system. If you can't see any leak, perhaps have the engine steam cleaned and then watch carefully for a few days to see if you can identify the leak source.

THE X3 Excel is a good little car that is popular with young drivers. Yours has done relatively few kilometres and, with auto and air, should be popular and easy to sell. A dealership would give you about $4200 as a trade-in and expect to get about $6500 when it sells it through its yard. I would aim for the latter if you sell it privately.

MOST mechanics would be able to do the job for you, and you would certainly find a Hyundai dealer prepared to do the work. You could also ask a panel beater, but I would look for a mechanic who works on Hyundais and I'm sure they would happily do it for you.

Find another mechanic. The X3 Excel is a tough car that is generally reliable. I have seen models that have done more than 200,000km without any trouble. The gearboxes are reliable and parts are readily available to rebuild them. And second-hand units are easy to find if it needs replacing. But before you replace the gearbox check the clutch. I reckon a worn-out clutch is probably causing your problem.

Paint on the early Hyundais wasn't great and it's not unusual to see bumpers and rear-view mirrors minus paint. That sort of thing can happen when you buy a cheap and cheerful car.

THE recommended service interval for the belt is 100,000km, but remember that it is set at a conservative figure to cover the whole population. A belt might run without a problem for the sort of distance yours has, but chances are it won't and the consequences of it breaking are too dire to think about. Even if your belt has stretched just a little, that can lead to it jumping teeth, which can also be a disaster.

THERE could be many reasons, from a simple wiring problem -- and Korean cars tend to suffer from them -- to the coolant temp sensor. It may be difficult to trace, but I would start with the coolant sensor.

EXCELS do have dodgy manual gearboxes, as you've been told. Reverse is hard to select, but there is a way around the problem: select a forward gear first, then select reverse as you would normally, and you'll find it goes in OK. Second-gear synchro is the other problem area with the Excel gearbox. The problem wasn't really fixed until the Accent was released.

THERE is no reason to dump the Excel before it gets to the 100,000km mark. They are a reliable car and I have seen some with more than 200,000km up and running sweetly. Maybe people are getting out before the warranty runs out, but I see no reason to justify doing that.

ACCORDING to the trade, the Excel doesn't have a problem with pinging. The advice about using a higher-octane fuel to check for the source is correct. As the pinging wasn't present when PULP was used, it suggests you have a problem with the fuel you're using. Try switching brands and buying from an outlet with a high volume of sales. It's possible you've had some poor-quality fuel. If that doesn't work and you aren't satisfied with what your dealer has done, contact Hyundai's local office and express your concerns directly.