A troupe of baboons based at the wildlife attraction were let loose on the new i30 to test the toughness of the hatchback's interior and exterior fittings - and unlike many a motor that's had the odd mirror or two knocked off by the animals - it was still fighting fit at the end of the visit.
David Ross, General Manager at Knowsley Safari Park, said: “For a baboon, to have a car to play with for a whole day is manna from heaven! If you put them on any car they will scour it for the weak points and find any faults. At one point there were 40 monkeys in the car, pushing it to its limits – that’s ten times the size of the average human family.
"I’ve seen thousands of cars pass through this enclosure, get mobbed by monkeys, and none have lasted the distance as well as this Hyundai. These baboons are incredibly inquisitive."
Hyundai said the car's paintwork had been smeared and scratched after being attacked by the monkeys, but otherwise the i30 had emerged unscathed from the experience.
Felicity Wood, i30 Product Manager at Hyundai, said: "At Hyundai we believe in new thinking, which is why we decided to take a new approach with this durability test. You have to be pretty brave to subject a car to the most rigorous quality testers in the world, and the monkeys certainly gave our i30 a thorough examination!
"The fact that it survived with only a few scrapes is testament to the way a modern Hyundai is designed and engineered. We really do give a monkey’s about building tough cars!"
For more information about Knowsley Safari Park visit www.knowsleysafariexperience.co.uk or call 0151 430 9009.
