It may not be evident from the outside, but glide into any of the I30's seating positions and you immediately get the sense of roominess. Front-seat legroom and headroom have been increased over the previous-generation I30 as has rear-seat legroom. The expansive amount of glass gives excellent visibility in all directions.The front bucket seats are comfortable. Both the forward movement of the steering wheel and the driver's seat have been increased to offer an improved ergonomic position. The front seats incorporate a new active head restraint system designed to help reduce injury from whiplash by automatically moving the headrest forward to support the head and neck in an accident.
Instruments are highly visible and switches are easy to operate. The instruments are virtually blacked out until you turn the key, then they come alive with a backlit design that makes the needles seem to hang in mid air. Climbing into the rear seats we immediately noticed the additional legroom. On paper it is a scant 1.9-inch improvement, but it seems as though it is much larger. Headroom is good in both locations. A foot-operated parking brake pedal has replaced the hand brake of the previous generation. While we happen to prefer a hand-operated parking brake, moving it to the floor has uncluttered the center console and improved the appearance.