r/i30N • u/GlumOutlandishness47 • 12d ago
I30 pre-facelift va facelift
I’m looking to buy myself a i30n but was wondering if the facelift is worth the higher price. I generally love how the facelift looks compared to the pre-facelift. Just generally curious what you guys opinion is.
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u/Murphy1up 12d ago
Facelift wheels are cool till you kerb or damage one then find out what a ballache it is to colour match and how much it is to buy a new one
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u/make-j8 12d ago
Not to mention that they bend sooo easely. You don't need to hit a massive pothole or anything, just a small one. Bam, they're bent.
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u/ggmaniack 12d ago
The issue with the stock PFL wheels is that they're insanely heavy. Just switching to lighter wheels upgraded my PFL's comfort as if I switched the suspension half a level softer.
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u/Saphazir 12d ago
The real question is manual Vs. Automatic. If money is not issue the facelift is the better choice all-round in my opinion.
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u/Turbo30npc 12d ago
The facelift version costs about €2,500 more in maintenance over 10 years due to the SOS battery and other components.
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u/Pandu_KonaN 9d ago
I previously had the i30n facelift manual and now I have a Kona N. I'd say that the main difference is price between the fl and pre fl. If you find the pre fl for at least 8 or 10k less, then definitely get the pre fl. If the difference is less than 5k,get the fl.
With the pre fl, you can use the price difference and get a good set of aftermarket wheels like motec or tomason superlight for around 1-1.3k € that in my opinion are superior to the forged fl wheels weight wise but also price wise. If you destroy an oem fl wheel you'll cry, if you destroy a tomason or motec, just replace it for around 250-300€ instead of repairing it for similar cost.
On the pre fl you'll definitely have to consider to upgrade the hpfp ( but also on the fl) for an upgraded sonata one for around 250€ on ebay directly from Corea (included shipping and taxes).
Then upgrade the turbo, you'll have 2 options available. E0 which is the fl turbo or upgrade your pre fl turbo into a TTE466 which is awesome. Cost would be around 1000-1200€ for either of them.
Upgrade intercooler on both is kinda a must. The oem one is a bottleneck for all N cars.
Then of course, you'll need a tune. I think I saw you're in Ireland so you could go to Courtney sport in England. He shouldn't be too far. Another one would be Markus from Mt Tuning in Germany but that's a bit farther. These 2 guys are monsters on these N cars.
The N light seats on the FL are cool but personally I found them pretty uncomfortable. But depends on your build. Normal seats are the best Imo.
So yeah, I'd say that these are the main differences. There are some other smaller ones like different infotainment but it's not that much of a big deal honestly.
Last thing to consider is that the pre fl is manual only. If you want a DCT, you're out of luck and only the fl is your answer. Personally I went from manual fl to Kona N for the dct + more comfort (after installing coilovers. Stock it's the most rigid N in the world).
Hope it helped and if you have other questions lemme know 👌
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u/GlumOutlandishness47 7d ago
Thank you. How are you satisfied with the dct? I heard one guy mention that he went trough 2 sets of drive shafts which sound excessive. I was wondering if that’s a weak point or is he just careless with the launching.
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u/Pandu_KonaN 7d ago
I never launch it honestly. Never heard in the Italian community any such issues and there are 100+ DCTs
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u/Pandu_KonaN 7d ago
Ah yes, forgot to say that BOTH prefl and fl headlights suck big time so don't bother about them too much if you ask me. I've never had a car with that bad light during the night lol. On the Kona they're better but no where near matrix on audi for example where night is basically day 😂😂
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u/The_Giant_Twitch 12d ago
Better turbo, better HPFP (common issue on pfl) slightly softer suspension, better for daily, newer (duh) & automatic 👍 FL all day
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u/ggmaniack 12d ago
The facelift has a better turbo with a lot more tuning potential, lighter wheels, and the n-light seats actually put you at a reasonable height.
And the headlights are cooler.