The storage area under the armrest between the front seats is not the obvious place to start reviewing a new car, but stick with me. The vehicle in question is the i30, a new, small, family hatchback from Hyundai.

Flip up the armrest’s upholstered top and you will find a shallow tray to keep coins, to pay for parking, and other small items. Lift that and below is a deep storage area for CDs, but also with USB and auxiliary sockets so drivers can plug in MP3 music players.

A shaped flap covers the two holes so they will not get clogged with dust and the identifying labels are lit in the same blue as the rest of the dashboard display. What is more, the base of this storage bin has a material lining, so if you leave your MP3 player inside, it will not bang around noisily – or get damaged – as you go round corners.

Why do I mention this? Because it is an indication of how far Korean cars have come in the 25 years since the first model, the Hyundai Pony, arrived in the UK. Even in the recent past, such an “out of sight” area would have been ignored by the design team.

It would more likely have rough plastic edges, a hard base and nasty exposed screw heads than connection points for the latest electronic gizmos. The i30 is a joint venture vehicle with sister firm Kia; its version, the Cee’d, was launched earlier in the year. The pair are built on the same chassis and share engines and transmissions, although the finished products look slightly different. For the driver, the Hyundai has been set up to ride slightly softer and more comfortably than the sportier Cee’d. The other thing that they have got in common is that they are actually quite good.

On sale from September, with an estate to follow early next year, the i30 is available only as a five-door hatchback. There are four engines available: the 1.6litre 115bhp diesel will account for the bulk of sales, with a 1.4litre 109bhp petrol also likely to be popular.

A 1.6litre 122bhp petrol and a 2.0litre 140bhp diesel will also be available.

At the launch, journalists had the chance to drive the two 1.6 units and, just as it is on the Cee’d, the diesel is easily the pick of the pair. It is smooth and torquey, with plenty of readily available acceleration.

By contrast, the petrol engine gets noisy, feeling as if it is working too hard if you do not change up the gears smartly. Overtaking needs to be planned because gaps in the traffic that you thought were there suddenly seem not to be.

The interior of the i30 is a revelation compared with previous Korean offerings. OK, it is not going to win the Turner Prize for being funky and different, but it is stylish, simple, sensibly laid out and, crucially, seems very well put together. The plastics feel of decent quality and the seats are finished in smart black fabric that looks as though it will last. The i30 cabin is roomy, too, in part because it has the longest wheelbase of any of its rivals. The back seat is spacious and there is plenty of boot space.

Hyundai executives expect the i30 to appeal to buyers in their thirties or older. They want it to steal sales from the likes of the Citroën C4, Peugeot 307 and Toyota Auris, as well as the class-leading Ford Focus. There are three trim levels and the car is priced from £10,995 to £16,595.

The company is basing the i30’s appeal on a high level of standard kit, including traction control. The audio package is also impressive, with every car getting a CD/radio, MP3 connectivity and steering wheel controls. For peace-of-mind motoring there is Hyundai’s standard five-year unlimited mileage warranty. It is a lot of car for the money and the bonus is that it is good to drive, especially the diesel.

The one area that lets down the i30 is its exterior. It is a pretty anonymous machine and, in an age when designers and engineers are combining to make some great-looking cars, its blandness could put people off.