The Hyundai Venue is a small SUV that is big on design. It's a funky little thing on the outside and that continues to the interior too, where on the Elite model I tested there were two-tone denim style seats.
There's piping on the seats and contrast panelling on the dash, including a storage shelf above the glove box. These are features we're used to seeing in much more expensive vehicles. If you thought the Kona was funky, the Venue steps up another notch or two!
The media system in the Venue is easy to use and navigate and comes with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto as well.
I was impressed with the alert you get when the traffic in front of you pulls away at traffic lights, which only comes on if you don't notice the car in front has moved off and was a welcome surprise as it is easy to get distracted with kids in the car!
From its looks, I thought the Hyundai Venue would be a nippy little car to drive but it actually seemed to have a little lag when accelerating from a standstill. I did get used to this during my week of testing and I was impressed with the turning circle, which made it nimble around town and easy to manoeuvre in a tight car park. The acceleration was lacking when going up hills and you could definitely hear the engine working away very hard!
I found the Hyundai Venue fits two child seats in the back and there wasn't room between them for me to sit. There are ISOFix in the two outer rear seats and top tether anchorages for all three rear seats.
Legroom is a consideration in the Hyundai Venue and there was only room for a 162cm driver in front of a rear-facing child seat. With forward-facing child seats, we did fit a 182cm passenger in front.
Boot space is good in the Hyundai Venue. From empty it holds eight shopping bags, which is the same as the Mazda CX3 and VW Polo but one less than the Hyundai Kona that holds nine bags and the Haval H2 that can hold ten and the similar shaped but bigger Kia Seltos that holds eleven shopping bags. Or you could fit a small dog in the boot!
All sizes of stroller and pram fit in the boot with some shopping bags too. If you remove the parcel shelf, the twin stroller fits with three shopping bags which is practical for family use.
Interior storage is limited in the Hyundai Venue. With cup holders only in the front row of seats and front door bins that will not hold a large refillable water bottle, I think the interior was definitely designed with fashion over function.
The Hyundai Venue is a great car for a small family and has some great design features and practical boot space for a small and affordable family car.
BabyDrive Indepth - Storage
How good is the storage in the Hyundai Venue? How big is the boot of the Hyundai Venue?
The Venue has two cup holders in the central console that are well sized to hold a reusable and disposable coffee cup and behind them is a small central console box, with an armrest lid.
There is a phone well in front of the gear lever that has two USB ports and a 12V socket.
There is not a glasses case in the ceiling but both front visors have lit vanity mirrors.
The glovebox is small and will only hold my wallet with the manual, my iPad wouldn't fit too. Above the glove box is a storage shelf which was useful for all my daughter's little collections over our week testing the car!
The front door pockets are small and would only hold a small 600ml water bottle and there are little storage wells in the door handles too.
In the back, there are net map pockets on the back of both front seats that will hold but not conceal an iPad.
There are no cup holders in the back which is surprising but the door bins are slightly larger and will just hold a large refillable water bottle.
Storage is surprisingly better in the boot of the Hyundai Venue for a small SUV.
The boot space and its functionality are really important. I like to have a big boot space and little side wells or areas I can divide things into. So something I don’t want to move around while I’m driving such as Tulsi’s lunch bag or her wet swimming gear can be sectioned off in a little well where it’s not going to spill or get squashed by the rest of the things in the boot.
Hooks for securing shopping bags to are also favourites of mine, I like being able to secure the bag containing more fragile things like eggs so they don’t move around on the journey.
I measure the boot space in freezer shopping bags, prams and dogs. Not because I think all there is to a mum’s life is food shopping, prams and dogs. (Although it can feel like it sometimes!!) But because these are visually mesurable items we can all associate with. For me, the car company boot measurement of litres is not an amount I can easily visualise and 400L in one car may differ in usability to that in another due to the configuration or shape of the space.
The boot of the Hyundai Venue holds eight shopping bags from empty, which is the same as the Mazda CX3 and VW Polo but one less than the Hyundai Kona that holds nine bags and the Haval H2 that can hold ten and the similar shaped but bigger Kia Seltos that holds eleven shopping bags. Or you could fit a small dog in the boot!
If you remove the parcel shelf, a Duet twin stroller fits with three shopping bags.
The tandem pram fits with two shopping bags.
The Urban Jungle single pram fits with three shopping bags around it.
The Nano compact stroller fits with four shopping bags beside it.
With the parcel shelf removed you could fit a small-sized dog in the boot.
The shape of the boot opening is great for lifting prams in and out of and the floor is nice and flat and even so you can do an emergency nappy change on the boot floor!
BabyDrive Indepth - Noise
How noisy is the Hyundai Venue? How good is the media system in the Hyundai Venue?
The Hyundai Venue is not a particularly noisy little SUV (apart from the engine on hilly roads)!
The media system is great in the Hyundai Venue, it is really easy to use and navigate.
The split home screen makes it easy to select the function you need while driving.
It does have Apple CarPlay and Android Auto as well.
The reversing camera image is a little bit pixellated but it is a nice big image that fills the whole media screen. You can turn the sensors off with a button, down in the central console.
Becoming a parent I soon realised there are some noises and sounds I feel are unnecessary and I could happily live without if it meant my baby stayed asleep!!
That often the distraction of my screaming, distressed baby is more dangerous when driving than not having a lane departure warning for example.
If it is the lane departure warning beeping that creates distress with my baby then which is safest?
It’s where I think we need to be able to strike a balance and choose when we can mute the warnings or swap them to a vibration in the steering wheel or flashing light perhaps?
A lot of these noises come with the increase in technology and especially linked to safety features and alerts. For me these all have their place.
Another thing I have realised is I spend my time in a lot more places where small children roam, parks, beaches, play gyms, swimming lessons, daycare centre etc. I have become more aware that when I’m reversing or manouvering in the car parks I have to tripple check for small children running around behind me or being in my blind spot when reversing. For this I LOVE reversing cameras, I just don’t like their beeping sounds!!
I have become so much more aware of safety and potential accidents or hazards since having a child and so I love the peace of mind that I get from the cameras and sensors combined with my own vision from windows and mirrors as I don’t trust cameras alone.
You can lock the doors and windows from the driver's door control panel.
The indicator is not too loud and would not disturb a sleeping baby in the Venue.
The windows in the Hyundai Venue close relatively quietly and are not baby waking.
The engine of the Hyundai is a little bit revvy and especially going up hills you can hear it over anything else in the car, which may disturb little passengers.
BabyDrive Indepth - Car Seats
How many child seats fit in the Hyundai Venue?
The Hyundai Venue has ISOFix points in the two outer rear seats, they are not within plastic guides and are easy to connect to.
There are top tether anchorages on the back of all three backrests, they are within plastic guides and are nice and easy to access through the boot and connect to.
Fitting child seats in the Hyundai Venue is nice and easy. I can fit two child seats in the back there is no room for a third and I found I could not fit between them.
With a forward-facing child seat, we found a 186cm passenger could just about fit in front, although with someone that tall up front the front passenger backrest doesn't give an enormous amount of legroom for the child.
With a rear-facing child seat installed I could fit in the driver's seat, I'm 162cm, but nobody much taller would be able to.
Posting bub into their child seat is fine from inside and outside the car and there is room to feed bub in the back with only one child seat installed.
Australia being a country of weather extremes blazing sun and torrential rain means you may find it easier to put bub into their seat from inside the car. If it’s hot you can get the aircon going, cool the car down and not stand out in the heat with the door open while you fasten them in or shelter from the rain and not get soaked yourself whilst you’re doing it. So it is important to test whether bub can be easily installed from either direction.
The seats in the model of Hyundai Venue we tested are two-tone french navy blue leather with denim-like fabric central panels, which look very nice but could make cleaning family spills and messes a little more tricky.
BabyDrive Indepth - Drive & Comfort
How comfortable is a Hyundai Venue?
The seats of the Hyundai Venue are comfortable in the front.
I found I could wear a ponytail while driving which was great!
I had spent hours styling my hair this morning to get it just right too… said no new mum ever!!!
The steering wheel is fully adjustable in/out and up/down.
The cruise controls on the right side of the steering wheel are very easy to use, I found the cruise control was nice and accurate in the Hyundai Venue
Your fuel distance to empty is clearly visible in the display in front of the steering wheel, meaning you can time your fuel stop for when bub's not with you if need be!
There are four air-con vents in the front dash. One either side of the media screen in the centre of the dash, and one at either end.
There are no air vents in the back of the Hyundai Venue which I think you would need during the Australian summer.
The controls for the air-con are centrally located on the dashboard and easy to reach and use while driving.
Visibility was quite good out of the driver's side and rear of the Venue, however, I did find when reversing I struggled to see out of the passenger's side past a tall front passenger and child in a child seat in the back.
One thing I have noticed since being a mum is I hate it when I reach a destination or get home from being out and Tulsi has either done really well in the car or she is screaming her head off and I have done really well to keep it together for the entire journey (usually the latter!!) and it takes 10 minutes to park the car! It can be really stressful. Usually I dread when we drive big cars and utes as they tend to take longer to park in our tight apartment block carpark, the little Hyundai Venue was quite easy and enjoyable to drive and to park!
Visibility is good for rear passengers, the rear windows are large allowing them to see out and a lot of light inside the car so it does not feel cramped in the back.
In the back centrally located in the ceiling is an interior light that I could reach from the font.
There is a handle above the doors on either side in the back, perfect for hanging a baby toy from.
I often will reach back to turn on the interior light if I am driving at night time, I find my little girl gets less distressed traveling at night that way. It helps if I can reach the interior light from the drivers seat so I can turn it on and off whilst driving. I often find my daughter will need it on as we start our journey in the dark but once she falls asleep I can turn it off.
It is also useful when there are lights situated above the doors where the handles are usually positioned. These are good for when putting baby into their child seats when visibility is poor, so you do not have to reach across them to a light situated in the ceiling centrally etc.
BabyDrive Indepth - Safety
The Hyundai Venue has a four-star ANCAP safety rating. Scoring 91% (34.9 out of 38) for adult occupant protection. Scoring 81% (40.0 out of 49) for Child Occupant Protection.
In child occupant protection crash testing, the Venue scored 13.78 out of 16 in the dynamic front test, 8.00 out of 8 for the dynamic side crash test, 11.22 out of 12 for child restraint installation testing and 7.00 out of 13 for onboard features.
ANCAP said of the child occupancy testing:
In the frontal offset test, readings of neck tension in the 10 year dummy indicated POOR protection while protection of the neck of the 6 year dummy was ADEQUATE. Protection was GOOD for all other critical body regions of both dummies.
In the side impact test, protection of all critical body areas was GOOD for both child dummies.
The Hyundai Venue is fitted with lower ISOFix anchorages on the rear outboard seats and top tether anchorages for all rear seating positions.
Installation of typical child restraints available in Australia and New Zealand showed most child restraints could be accommodated in most rear seating positions, though one of the selected Type A convertible seats could not be correctly installed in rearward- facing mode using the ISOfix anchorages and the Type A capsule could not be correctly installed in the rear outboard seating positions.
The Hyundai Venue has six airbags as standard and seat belt reminders for front and rear seating positions:
Dual frontal airbags are standard. Side chest-protecting airbags are standard for front occupants and side head-protecting airbags (curtains) are also standard for front and second row outboard positions.
Anti-lock braking system (ABS), autonomous emergency braking (AEB) – City, Interurban, VRU, automatic headlights, automatic high beam, daytime running lights (DRL), electronic brakeforce distribution (EBD), electronic data recorder (EDR), electronic stability control (ESC), emergency brake assist (EBA), emergency stop signal (ESS), fatigue detection, forward collision warning (FCW), hill launch assist, lane departure warning (LDW), lane keep assist (LKA), rear cross-traffic alert (RCTA) and tyre pressure monitoring systems (TPMS) all come as standard.
Blind spot monitoring (BSM) does not come as standard on the base model of the Hyundai Venue.
Some of these safety features are also features that drive me crazy as a mum! Like the lane departure and forward collision alert or the parking sensor beeping sound.
I want all the safety technology AND to be able to mute the sound when Tulsi’s asleep!
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