Hyundai Elantra vs small car competitors: US comparison

By Tim Beissmann | June 20th, 2011

With the Australian launch of the 2011 Hyundai Elantra coming up next week, it’s an interesting time to look at how the vehicle has been received overseas, where it has already been on sale for a number of months.

The people at Cars.com, a US-based automotive site, compared the all-new Hyundai Elantra with four of its key competitors: the Chevrolet Cruze, the new Ford Focus, the Honda Civic and the Kia Forte (Cerato in Australia).

The comparison was based on the ‘Under 20/Over 35’ concept: the cars had to cost less than $US20,000 ($18,850) and have fuel consumption better than 35mpg (6.7 litres/100km).

Although the specifications of each of the vehicles differ from the US to our market (the US-spec Civic is a different car to the one sold here), the comparison gives us a broad idea of how the competition will be placed.

The Ford Focus, which goes on sale in Australia in August, was ranked in last place. The reviewers called the new sedan “nimble” and liked the “handling composure and sharp steering”, but were not impressed by the tight interior, or the “pokey acceleration and poor transmission response” from the 2.0-litre petrol/six-speed auto combination.

The Kia Forte came fourth. It was praised for its inclusion of “small conveniences” in the cabin (overhead sunglasses holder, rear centre armrest with cupholders, etc.) as well as its rear-passenger head- and legroom. The Forte was criticised for its lack of “visual and dynamic excitement”, choppy ride and less refined drivetrain than its competitors.

The third-placed Civic rated well from the perspective of acceleration, ergonomics and controls, but lost points for poor ride quality, road noise and an overall feel of “cost-cutting”.

The Chevrolet Cruze (built in Australia and sold as the Holden Cruze) came second. It was deemed the benchmark for interior quality, quietness, drivetrain (1.4-litre turbo petrol/six-speed auto) and ride. Keeping it from first place was the below-par visibility, tight backseat and ‘confidence-killing’ acceleration.

Therefore, taking top spot was the newcomer from Hyundai. The reviewers said the Elantra’s cabin was a “huge leap forward”, while on the road it felt “responsive and gutsy” and could “hold its own on twisty roads”. The Elantra was far from perfect, however, with downsides including the swoopy design that cuts rear-passenger headroom, the rough engine sound under heavy acceleration and the sometimes “squirrelly” suspension on some surfaces.

CarAdvice will put the all-new Hyundai Elantra through its paces next week with a full road test and review. Be sure to stay tuned to find out how the Australian variant compares with the local competition.

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ryan bane

Interesting. Car & Driver (US) did a similar comparison in April, and the Focus came out top (then Mazda 3, Hyundai Elantra, and the Cruze).

The Hyundai dealer I talked to last last week actually admitted that the i30 is a better drive – but obviously (love it or hate it), the Elantra has a far more modern design language.

I have to say – from the Elantra the dealer had on display – I was impressed with the build quality (especially the paint). If I was in the market for a small saloon, Id certainly have one over a Corolla or Cruze, but id probably wait for the new Focus and facelift Mazda 3 before writing the cheque.
- Smokin’ Jo
  
  Hyundai often tunes suspension for local conditions. If that’s the case then the Oz version should be quite reasonable in the handling department.
  I’d like to know how good the engine/box combo are.
  - Damian
    
    Tuned for local conditions? If their efforts on the i45 are anything to go by, then I wouldn’t be holding my breath for Mazda 3/Focus dynamics.
- goodjjp
  
  At least I30 has multi link rear suspension
  New elantra has torsion beam rear suspension like
  everybody else (inc corolla , civic)
  - mark
    
    get your facts right before opening your mouth and making a quite obvious fool of yourself…..the civic FD2 (sedan) has IRS thank you and has since 2006.
  - save it for the track
    
    Don’t underestimate torsion beam. Afterall, the current FWD lap record holder of the Nurburgring uses it, along with Renault Clio, Polo Gti, Citoren DS3 and Type R Honda. Not so bad afterall huh?
    - Damian
      
      Except for the fact that all the cars you mention, bar the Civic Type R, belong in the “super mini” class. As for the Civic Type R, the JDM sedan version uses double A arm rear suspension, as opposed to the dud Type R we get.
      - Al Juraj
        
        With the exception of GT-R, Japan, as always, saves the best for themselves.
        
        As for torsion beam, some manufacturers try to make the most out of the cheap layout and provide good handling, but it will never beat a fully independent setup. Like pushrods, they work when properly tuned, but there will always be better alternatives.
      - save it for the track
        
        Umm the Megane RS is not a “super mini”.
Mikey_94

Gee, coming from the US.. This must be very reliable
Lofto

I can’t believe they ranked the ford in last spot!
- Al Juraj
  
  I’m sure the others paid the testers to rank the best as worst.
john

I like the comments for the cruze. I didn’t think it is all that good to be setting the “benchmark”. It is an improvement over the first model that came out that is true but it had to be. The first model was rubbish.
RunFlat

In a similar comparison on MotorTrend, the Corolla was ranked last in a field of 8, Civic got 2nd and yes the Elantra came First.
So why does the Civic manage 2nd there when it hardly rates over here? Is it just different tastes, or are their local-made Honda vehicles significantly better than our Thai ones?
- mark
  
  they just got an all new gen civc (9th gen) which we will be getting soon, looks the same as the american one with a few changes. i wouldnt have a thai or american built civic…id have a jap type R
MeestaNob!

Unless the new Focus tech and quality levels have gone backwards 15 years I don’t think putting it stone motherless last is a very convincing result, especially in the company of the Civic and Cruze.
delux

http://www.cars.com/go/crp/buyingGuides/Story.jsp?section=Passenger&story=compactOverview&subject=stories&referer=&year=New
- MeestaNob!
  
  All the article proves is that Americans are fat AND stupid.
  - Smokin’ Jo
    
    I’d put big money on you having never been to the USA.
    Do yourself a favor and go visit before you attempt such a vote-grabbing rant. You might find an amazing country with amazing people.
    
    In the 2007–08 Australian National Health Survey, which found that 68% of adult males and 55% of adult females were overweight or obese according to their measured BMI.
    The obesity figures have been increasing at about 0.5 per cent of the population every year, over the last decade, and if we continued to increase at that rate, we’d actually have about 7.2 million Australians who are obese by 2025, which would be 28.9 per cent of the population.
    Source: Australian Weight Loss Surgery Support.
VVE

The Elantra needs a 2L GDI engine.
Munich

Well if the Elentra is anywhere near the i30 then the interior and everything is cheap..

And is that the new Civic?
MMind

this review is utter BULLS** if you read closely you find out that all the cars have the same faults.. So how did they choose the winner?? Design, power??
- http://yahoo Andrew
  
  probably has the most cupholders
http://www.nsmg.com.au Wil-son

Look at the “new” CIVIC. How boring, dull and uninspired can a car get!! All these cars have the looks factor going on, BUT….someone forgot to tell Honda they are now competing in a segment that competes on looks, features, and technology!! Wake Up Honda before it too late!
- Al Juraj
  
  Honda has gone from cheap racing pretenders to generic appliances. Unless they take a U-turn, they will soon become insignificant. Hyundai will take their place before we know it; Mazda and Ford are currently the sporting leaders; and Toyota will stay on no matter what.
idlebrain

I think some people need to read the article properly before commenting.

CA did not review any of car listed. They just introduced the comparison review that is done by cars.com.
darkone

the new elantra lokks like the i45,bloody horrid.
Sumpguard

I walked around a couple an hour or so ago and they are certainly well put together. I noticed that the rear tail lights and boot lined up really poorly on one of them and was quite surprised as Hyundai are usually fussy with their fit and finish. Upon closer inspection the boot wasn’t closed so I took the liberty of closing it.

They had one auto and one manual in stock .Other than the flowers on the tyres (Hippies unite) the cars are very nice to look at. One useful feature I noticed inside is there is a small pocket on the front passenger’s side of the centre console with a lighter socket for ipod storage or phone charging.

The prices are right and the car should do well. I’ll wait for the Aussie journos to test it before making a full judgement.
SaveUs

PASS
Thrillhouse

Interesting that you guys haven’t posted the news about Hyundai having drag their latest ‘comparison’ of the Elantra off the advertising circuit after it sparked quite a few comments here. Or maybe it’s because Mr. Cadogan is Hyundai’s media consultant.
Silver_aquarian52

The i30 is a better car all round. Brilliant engine, great handling, (poor brakes though) and in the wagon , excellent vision. The interior in the i30 is European layout and not as chinzy as the outa space Elantra. The guy who mentions ‘plastic’
interior seems not to have been in comparable other makes..they all are…however in the upgraded models for not much more the i30 becomes quite acceptable. The Trophy we own is the best option as the dashboard highlights and extras like cruise are included for little extra $$.
The killer for me in the Elantra is the chronic rear vision, or rather lack of it, and the quick-to-date extreme edgy design, ditto the i45..which needs a 3 littre engine badly!
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