In the new Elantra,Hyundai has found what’s possibly its most attractiveproposition, not only in terms of value, but also because it looks so damngood. Yes there are glaring hints that it may somehow be related to the Sonata,those Chris Banglesque convex and concave lines stare at your faceinstantly. I reckon its competitors have some serious sleepless nights straightahead.
Hyundai calls its design language “fluidic sculpture”, but we prefer referring to it as “the legacy thatBangle left the motor industry”. Not many cars in this segment are beautiful to look at, some manufacturers like theircars to stand out from the crowd in the same way as the guy who blows a vuvuzela at a football match. Thiscompany however, is on the up, it wants to be the most loved car company in theworld within the next five years. Therefore design is very important to them.To this fifth-generation Elantratoo. Globally they’ve sold over 6million of the previous 5, so there’s a lot to live up to.
Had it not been for the lacklustre engine, this car would bea new segment favourite for us. Alas, natural aspiration came in the way. Thenew Nu 1.8-litre MPI D-CVVT mouthfulengine delivers a suitable 110kW at6500rpm, with peak torque of 178Nmcoming in at 4700rpm. Smaller than a 2.0-litreyes, more power also yes, but response a little disappointing. Witness the0 – 100km/h time of 10.2 seconds and9.3 seconds for automatic andmanual. Not fit to take on the smaller turbos out there, that’s for sure,especially in Gauteng. An even less powerful 1.6-litre is offered too, with its maximum thrust pegged at only 96kW at 6300rpm, and peak torque of 157Nm at 4850rpm.
The 1.8 we drove promised buzz but only managed to dish outa little cough on the open road. If youare after some spunk in your life,the Elantra is not the place to find it from. It’s the same trick missed by Chevroletwith the Cruze 1.8 LT, and leaves me suspecting that the claimed 6.5 and 7.1 litres per 100km fuel consumption for the 6-speed manual and automatic respectively, are a little toooptimistic. A turbo diesel would be a great option for later.
Other than that, Hyundai made sure buyers aren’t leftwanting for features. I’ll start with the exterior, which covers a space of 4.5 metres in length, 1.78m width and 1.4m in height. Although lower, the company says headroom was notcompromised. Factory-fitted wheels are steel rims of 6.0Jx15” size for the 1.6, wearing 195/ 65 R15 tyres. The 1.8 models are obviously higher specced with17-inch alloys and 215/ 45 R17 rubber. Front fog lightsare standard in all three models, as well automatic door locking at over 15km/h, remote central locking, keylessentry and rain sensors. Our launchcar also had parking sensors but it seems they waited for quite a while beforewarning of an imminent bump.
The interior is nicely stacked out with features like USB port, an auxiliary music connection,a trip information meter display, electric side mirrors, and others. Dual splitair conditioning is also included inthe listed price for all models. Interior ambience is inviting, comfortable anda pleasant place to be.
The new Hyundai Elantra must challenge cars like the ruling Toyota Corolla, Honda Civic sedan,Chevrolet Cruze, Mazda3, new Ford Focus sedan and the new Volkswagen Jetta. Because Hyundai generally suppliesfull features and very few options on their cars, then prices them below competitors, the Elantra could very well becomethe new sales leader in its segment. Not that its competitors will ever findout though, as its SA importers don’t report to their peers how many cars theysell.
Hyundai ElantraPricing
1.6 GLS (R186 900)
1.8 GLS manual (R214 900)
1.8 GLS automatic (R224 900)
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