- Doors and Seats
4 doors, 5 seats
- Engine
2.0i, 4 cyl.
- Engine Power
105kW, 186Nm
- Fuel
Petrol (91) 8.1L/100KM
- Manufacturer
FWD
- Transmission
Manual
- Warranty
5 Yr, 130000 KMs
- Ancap Safety
NA
2006 Hyundai Elantra Fx 2.0 Hvt Review
This is my first, and so far only car. It arrived on my family driveway through a series of weird events, and was sitting there with no one to drive it. So in a rush of student poverty, I decided to buy it from my parents at a very cheap price. Then I realised what I'd done. I'd bought a Hyundai.
- Surprisingly punchy engine, Nice gearchange, Roomy and robust interior, Great visibility, Quality speakers
- Lifeless steering, Firm and slightly crashy ride, Enormous steering wheel, Thirstier than it should be, Interior styling a bit weird
Being a car fan, I had all these are conceived ideas about how amazingly awful the car was going to be, about how every time I hit a bump a random piece of trim would fall off. As it turned out, the car met barely any of my expectations, which is a good thing.
So far I've been driving the car for a year, and covered 20,000 km (odo currently reads 146,000) and can tell you this. The engine is quite powerful and surprisingly tractable, although it needs revs to do it's best. The manual gearchange is smooth and bordering on slick, and the clutch is light.
The interior? Sure, its not a Toyota level of quality, and it looks a bit weird, but nothing squeaks, and nothing rattles. The whole car feels very well put together. The interior is also quite roomy, and the front seats are pretty supportive, yet comfortable. The visibility from inside is great too, with minimal blind spots and thin (ish) piElantraThe cruise control works faultlessly, the air conditionin can reach Arctic chill level, and the stock speakers sound quite good, even if the standard head unit is sub par.
Actually driving the car? Beat described as a mixed bag. The engine is the highlight, but it's let down by the steering. Its accurate enough, but you'd have more road feel through an Xbox controller, or one of those kids rides outside Coles. One of those would probably ride better too, the cars ride is bumpy at best, and harsh at worst, but it smoothens out at speed, thankfully.
Other niggles? The steering wheel is enormous in proportion to the car, and makes you feel like the captain of HMAS Hyundai, the engine runs at it's best on 95 RON, and the average fuel economy of 9.3L/100km is pretty average, although feel free to blame my "typical p plate driving style," according to my grandmother. I have seen it as low as 8.9 (like that's a good thing).
So then, my Hyundai Elantra. Does it live up to the stereotypical image of a pre 2010 Hyundai? No way (for the record, I've had it serviced twice and the only issue was a new set of front shock absorbers). The car is roomy, well made, has enough power, you can see out of it, and it will play some hectic beats. Its just a shame that it doesn't back up its engine with handling or a rirde that it deserves.