2017 Hyundai Imax vs 2018 Abarth 595

What's the difference?

Hyundai’s contender in the under-$60,000 people mover segment boasts a heritage spanning a full decade. During that time it has built a loyal customer base that appreciates its spacious and airy eight-seater cabin, ease of driving, proven durability and five-year warranty.

Even so, the iMax and other well-established people movers are getting clobbered by Hyundai’s sister company Kia and its widely acclaimed Carnival, which with four model grades across a broad pricing spectrum currently boasts a dominant market share of more than 50 per cent.

There are numerous reasons for the Carnival’s popularity but that should not stop a potential buyer from also giving the iMax serious consideration. Its most recent upgrade to Series II specification in 2016 brought styling revisions and new features which made a good people mover even better.

Since 1949, Abarth has been giving the venerable Italian brand, Fiat, a patina of performance, based largely on giant-killing feats in small modified cars like the Fiat 600 of the 1960s.

More recently, the brand has been revived to boost the fortunes of the smallest Fiat on sale in Australia. Known formally as the Abarth 595, the tiny hatch packs a bit of a surprise under its distinctive snout.