2018 Hyundai Elantra

The 2018 Hyundai Elantra tries to make a mark in the compact sedan segment with an aggressive starting price of $16,950. Although the base trim is spartan and you would nevertheless be needed to upgrade to the next higher trim which is priced similar to the rivals thus negating the pricing edge it had in the first place.

The ride and handling along with the performance of the Elantra remains mediocre while the safety scores are its only major highlight. The cabin of the Elantra is pretty straightforward and well laid out while the seats offer a decent level of comfort. Although the rear seats aren't as spacious as the rivals. Speaking of rivals, the 2018 Elantra goes against Toyota Corolla, Honda Civic, and Mazda 3 sedans.

The 2018 Hyundai Elantra sedan is offered in five major trims and two engine options. The five trims include SE, SEL, Value Edition, Eco, and Limited trims. The SEL trim that sits above the base SE trim is the new addition for this year. The SEL trim starts at $18,850 and gets a 6-speed automatic transmission. The SEL trim is based on the SE trim with the equipment package. On the other hand, the Elantra SE trim is the base trim that starts at $16,950 and gets a 2.0-liter inline-4 and a six-speed manual transmission as standard while the six-speed automatic will cost you one grand extra. 

Next comes the Value Edition trim that starts at $19,850 and adds a few more features to the standard list of SEL trim. Above Value Edition trim sits the Elantra Eco trim that starts at $20,550 and is powered by a 1.4-liter turbocharged inline-4 engine mated to a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission. Sitting at the top is the Elantra Limited trim that is based on the Value Edition trim and commands an MSRP of $22,100. The Eco trim and Limited are both based on Value Edition trim but they delete a few features that are standard on the Value Edition trim.

Trims	SE	SEL	Value Edition	Eco	Limited
MSRP (Manual)	$16,950	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
MSRP (Auto)	$17,950	$18,850	$19,850	$20,550	$22,100
Key Features	147 hp, 2.0-liter inline-4 engine	Adds or upgrades to 'SE'	Adds or upgrades to 'SEL'	Adds or upgrades to 'Value Edition'	Adds or upgrades to 'Value Edition'
	15-inch steel wheels	16-inch alloy wheels	LED daytime running lights	128 hp, 1.4-liter turbo inline-4 engine	17-inch alloy wheels
	Air-conditioning	All four wheel disc brakes	Hands-free trunk release	7-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission	Leather upholstery
	Six-speaker sound system	Automatic headlights	Auto-dimming rearview mirror	15-inch alloy wheels	Blue Link System
	Height-adjustable driver's seats	Rearview camera	Sunroof	Deletes sunroof and auto-dimming rearview mirror	Power-adjustable driver's seat
	Bluetooth phone connectivity	Dual-zone automatic climate control	Heated front seats		LED taillights
	Front disc and rear drum brakes	Heated side mirrors			Optional sunroof
		Blind-spot monitor w/ rear cross-traffic alert
		Keyless entry w/ push-button start
		Leather-wrapped steering wheel

We Recommend:

If you are looking for the 2018 Elantra then we recommend spending the extra cash and getting the Limited trim as it is the only trim that comes with the option of getting a range of advanced driver-assist features which otherwise the lower trims don't even offer as a part of the optional feature list. 

“The 2018 Hyundai Elantra has athletic intentions—they just fall closer to marathoner than sprinter.” – Carconnection

2018 Hyundai Elantra Engines and Transmission

The 2018 Hyundai Elantra comes with a 2.0-liter naturally aspirated inline-4 engine in the SE, SEL, Value Edition, and Limited trim. This engine puts out 147 hp and 132 lb-ft of torque and comes standard with a six-speed manual in the SE trim and a six-speed automatic in the other trims.

The other engine option for the 2018 Elantra is offered in the Eco trim. The Elantra Eco trim is powered by a 1.4-liter turbocharged inline-4 engine that puts out 128 hp and 156 lb-ft of torque and is mated to a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission. The standard engine is mediocre in terms of performance while the turbo-four is tuned for better gas mileage.

Model	2018 Hyundai Elantra	2018 Toyota Corolla	2018 Honda Civic	2018 Mazda Mazda3
MSRP	$16,950	$18,600	$18,940	$18,095
Engine	2.0-liter inline-4	1.8-liter inline-4	2.0-liter inline-4	2.0-liter inline-4
Transmission	6-speed manual	CVT	6-speed manual	6-speed manual
Power	147 hp @ 6200 rpm	132 hp @ 6000 rpm	158 hp @ 6500 rpm	155 hp @ 6000 rpm
Torque	132 lb-ft @  4500 rpm	128 lb-ft @ 4400 rpm	138 lb-ft @ 4200 rpm	150 lb-ft @ 4000 rpm

The Hyundai Elantra undercuts the rivals in terms of pricing by a margin. All but Toyota Corolla comes with a 2.0-liter inline-4 engine while the Corolla gets a 1.8-liter engine. The Mazda 3 remains the most powerful sedan in this comparison putting out 8 hp more and 18 lb-ft more compared to the Elantra.

2018 Hyundai Elantra Acceleration

The 2018 Hyundai Elantra does 0-60 mph in 8.6 seconds and covers the quarter-mile in 16.5 seconds. While the Elantra Eco trim powered by the turbo-four engine goes from 0-60 mph in just 7.8 seconds. 

Car	2018 Hyundai Elantra	2018 Toyota Corolla	2018 Honda Civic	2018 Mazda Mazda3
0-60 mph (sec)	8.6 sec	9.9 sec	8.2 sec	7.9 sec
Quarter-mile (sec)	16.5 sec	17.5 sec	16.4 sec	16.2 sec
Engine	2.0-liter inline-4	1.8-liter inline-4	2.0-liter inline-4	2.0-liter inline-4

In this comparison, the most powerful Mazda 3 remains the faster in both the runs and beats the Elantra by 0.7 seconds in the 0-60 mph run and by 0.3 seconds in the quarter-mile run.

2018 Hyundai Elantra Ride and Handling

The ride quality of the 2018 Elantra isn't very firm or squishy rather it slots right in between the two. The suspension does its job well of absorbing bumps and undulation in day-to-day driving while it remains firm enough to ensures a composed ride on the highway. But don't keep your hopes high as the Elantra is not at all a fun-to-drive car.

The steering of the Elantra is light for the most part but feels direct. Although being overly light there is no chance of trying for sporty maneuvers but the steering is well-calibrated and weighs up decent as you pick speed. That said, the anemic engine of the Elantra coupled with the average suspension setup won't let you have too much fun in any case.

2018 Hyundai Elantra Braking

The 2018 Hyundai Elantra took 125 feet to stop from 60-0 mph. The 2018 Elantra gets an 11.0-inch disc at the front and 8-inch drum brakes at the rear. The brakes are easy to use and offers predictable stopping power under panic braking.

Car	2018 Hyundai Elantra	2018 Toyota Corolla	2018 Honda Civic	2018 Mazda Mazda3
Front Brake Rotors (in.)	11.0	10.8	11.1	11.0
Rear Brake Rotors (in.)	8.0	9.0	10.2	10.4
Curb Weight (lbs.)	2,767	2,840	2,742	2,899
Braking Distance (60-0 MPH)	125 ft.	131 ft.	117 ft.	171 ft. (70-0 MPH)

In this comparison, the Honda Civic which is the lightest sedan here took just 117 feet, 8 feet less than the Elantra, to stop from 60-0 mph.

The 2018 Hyundai Elantra has an EPA estimated gas mileage of 26 mpg in the city, 36 mpg on the highway, and 29 mpg combined. All these figures are for the 2.0-liter inline-4 mated to the manual transmission while with the same engine mated to the six-speed automatic transmission the gas mileage rises by three mpg in the city and two mpg on the highway. While the turbo-four powered Elantra Eco trim returns a class-leading 32 mpg in the city and 40 mpg on the highway.

Model	2018 Hyundai Elantra	2018 Toyota Corolla	2018 Honda Civic	2018 Mazda Mazda3
MPG (City)	26	28	28	28
MPG (Highway)	36	36	40	38
MPG (Combined)	29	32	32	31
Fuel Capacity (gallons)	14.0	13.2	12.4	13.2

In this comparison, the Honda Civic remains the most frugal with gas mileage of 28 mpg in the city and 40 mpg on the highway. Compared to that the Elantra returns two mpg less in the city and four mpg less on the highway.

“The Elantra’s interior is definitely a top selling point. It’s well built, attractive and spacious. In addition, the controls are logically placed, and getting in and out is a breeze.” – Edmunds

2018 Hyundai Elantra  Seating and Comfort

The interior of the 2018 Hyundai Elantra is plain and simple with a driver-centric design. All the controls are tilted towards the driver's side while the passenger side gets a plain dash with AC vents. Falling under the budget segment the Elantra no doubt has plenty of cheap plastics around the cabin but they are nicely concealed in hard-to-see areas although it is no excuse as slightly expensive Mazda 3 gets a more upmarket cabin. The thoughtfully sculpted doors of the Elantra aids in easy ingress and egress.

The seats of the Elantra upfront offers a range of adjustment and depending upon the model you choose you will either get fabric-trimmed seats or leather upholstery with heated seats. The seats offer a decent amount of comfort and support while the rear seats also are in the same line provided you seat only two instead of three. The legroom and headroom in both the rows are sufficient although the all-black interior makes the rear occupant feel a bit claustrophobic. 

Model	2018 Hyundai Elantra	2018 Toyota Corolla	2018 Honda Civic	2018 Mazda Mazda3
Passenger capacity	5	5	5	5
Front (Head/Shoulder/Leg) (In.)	38.8/ 56.2/ 42.2	38.3/ 54.8/ 42.3	39.3/ 57.0/ 42.3	38.6/ 57.2/ 42.2
Second (Head/Shoulder/Leg) (In.)	37.3/ 55.3/ 35.7	37.1/ 54.8/ 41.4	37.1/ 55.0/ 37.4	37.6/ 54.4/ 35.8

All the sedans in this comparison come with a similar 106.3-inch wheelbase and almost similar width yet they differ a lot in terms of cabin space on offer. Starting with the front seats the Honda Civic offers the best overall space while moving to the rear the Toyota Corolla beats the competition by a margin with a class-leading 41.4-inches of rear legroom, a rarity in the compact sedan segment.

Interior Features:

• Height adjustable driver's seat
• Air conditioning
• 60/40-split folding rear seats
• Available auto-dimming inside rearview mirror
• Available leather upholstery
• Available power-adjustable front seats w/ heating and memory function
• Available heated rear seats
• Available dual-zone automatic climate control

2018 Hyundai Elantra Infotainment System

As standard, the 2018 Hyundai Elantra gets a six-speaker AM/FM/CD player along with USB and Auxillary ports. Step to the SEL trim and you get a 7-inch touchscreen with Bluetooth, Apple CarPlay, and Android Auto smartphone connectivity.

Higher trims offer a bigger 8-inch touchscreen with a premium Infinity sound system. Other optional upgrades include navigation and Hyundai's Blue Link. The latter offers voice commands and a bunch of connected car tech.  

2018 Hyundai Elantra Cargo Capacity

The 2018 Hyundai Elantra gets 14.4 cubic feet of cargo space in its trunk. The rear seats can be folded in 60/40-split as standard for putting in odd-size cargo or expanding the cargo capacity.

Model	2018 Hyundai Elantra	2018 Toyota Corolla	2018 Honda Civic	2018 Mazda Mazda3
Cargo Capacity (cu. ft.)	14.4	13.0	15.1	12.4

As for the rivals, the Honda Civic offers the best 15.1 cubic feet of trunk space which is around 0.7 cubic feet more than that of the Elantra.

“Hyundai’s emphasis on design is just as important as its fantastic warranty. The Elantra looks more sophisticated than its price tag suggests.” – Kelley Blue Book

2018 Hyundai Elantra Dimesnion and Weight

The exterior design of the 2018 Hyundai Elantra follows the typical fluidic design language of Hyundai. This means you get a set of sweeping lines and attractive proportions throughout the Elantra's body. The front gets a trapezoidal grille with boomerang-shaped foglights flanking from the side. The regular headlights look sharp and the prominent bulge on the bonnet is accentuated by the strong crease line running through it. 

From the sides, you get a strong shoulder line that abruptly starts from the front quarter panel and cleanly merges in the rear taillamps. Just like the front the rear also features a sharp and angular design theme and the trunk is slightly lifted to give the Elantra a fastback look from the side.

Model	2018 Hyundai Elantra	2018 Toyota Corolla	2018 Honda Civic	2018 Mazda Mazda3
Curb Weight (lbs)	2,767	2,840	2,742	2,899
Length (in)	179.9	183.1	182.3	180.3
Width (in)	70.9	69.9	70.8	70.7
Height (in)	56.5	57.3	55.7	57.3
Ground Clearance (in)	5.3	6.7	N/A	6.1
Wheelbase (in)	106.3	106.3	106.3	106.3

The dimensions of the 2018 Elantra are like 179.9-inches in length, 70.9-inches in width, and 56.5-inches in height. All four sedans share a similar 106.3-inches of wheelbase irrespective of their body length. Among the rivals, the Corolla is the longest in length, measuring 3.2-inches more than the Elantra. While the Mazda 3 and Corolla both share the same height and are 0.8-inches taller than the Elantra.

Exterior Features:

• 15-inch steel wheels
• Power outside mirrors
• Available 16-inch alloy wheels
• Available sunroof
• Available automatic headlights
• Available rear disc brake
• Available LED daytime running lights 

Even though the 2018 Hyundai Elantra lacks advanced safety and driver-assist features still it managed to bag the top honors of 'Top Safety Pick+'  from IIHS. The NHTSA gave the 2018 Elantra a four out of five star overall ratings and the same ratings for the front crash, side crash, and rollover mitigation tests. The IIHS on the other hand gave the Elantra the highest rating of 'Good' in five out of six parameters. While the passenger-side small overlap front crash test was given the second-best rating of 'Acceptable'.

Safety Features:

• Available blind-spot monitor w/ rear cross-traffic alert
• Available forward-collision warning w/ automatic emergency braking
• Available adaptive cruise control
• Available rearview camera
• Available lane keep and lane change assist

2018 Hyundai Elantra vs. 2018 Honda Civic

The 2018 Honda Civic the arch-rival of the Hyundai Elantra is also available in both sedan and hatchback body styles. The pricier Civic gets a more powerful and faster-accelerating engine compared to the anemic and lethargic engine of the Elantra. Not only this the Civic also returns class-leading gas mileage and beats the city and highway gas mileage figures of the Elantra by a margin.

Inside, the cabin of the Civic feels more premium and spacious compared to the Elantra even though both share the same wheelbase. Being dimensionally longer in length, the Civic has an edge of having a bigger trunk compared to the smaller Elantra. Thus to conclude, the Civic is the better bet between the two. 

2018 Hyundai Elantra vs. 2018 Toyota Corolla

The 2018 Toyota Corolla once again comes as the dominator of the compact sedan segment. The Corolla that gets a smaller capacity engine than the Elantra is even slower than the latter and lacks any sort of enthusiasm. Although it manages better overall and city fuel economy compared to the Elantra.

Inside the cabin, both the sedans share almost similar material quality but the cabin of the Corolla feels better put together. The major difference that makes the Corolla take a lead over the Elantra is its class-leading rear-seat space and bullet-proof reliability. So unless you don't want a boring and reliable car the Elantra could be a better pick over Corolla.

The 2018 Hyundai Elantra has got a lot to prove in the segment dominated by market leaders like Toyota Corolla, Honda Civic, and the Mazda 3. Each of the rivals has something special to offer its target customer while the Elantra tries to play the jack of all trades but master of none. It gets a mediocre engine with average performance and fuel economy. The cabin space is also decent and so is the trunk.

The material quality inside the cabin is although low rent but then the Elantra has at least two grand cheaper starting price tag than the rivals. That said, even after lacking many safety features the Elantra bagged the top honors by IIHS which is commendable. Thus to conclude, the Elantra is kind of a substitute for folks who don't want a boring Corolla or a cramped in the rear Mazda 3 while beating the Civic is still far-fetched for the Elantra as of now. 

More from Hyundai:

• Check out what's expected in the 2022 Hyundai Elantra
• The 2022 Hyundai Tucson N Line is in the making, check out the latest scoop
• The 2022 Hyundai Kona N Line has been teased, find out more details in our review

FAQs on the 2018 Hyundai Elantra:

How reliable is the 2018 Hyundai Elantra?

The 2018 Hyundai Elantra has a reliability score of 87 out of 100 and a reliability rating of 3.5 out of 5 from J.D.Powers both of which put it above-average in reliability.

What is the warranty offered on the 2018 Hyundai Elantra?

The 2018 Hyundai Elantra gets a 5 years or 60,000 miles basic warranty, 10 years or 100,000 miles powertrain warranty, and 7 years or unlimited miles corrosion warranty.

How many recalls does the 2018 Hyundai Elantra have?

The 2018 Hyundai Elantra sedan has zero recalls while the 2018 Elantra GT hatchback has been recalled once for sunroof by NHTSA.

What are the major problems in the 2018 Hyundai Elantra?

As per the NHTSA's customer complaint database, the 2018 Hyundai Elantra owners faced major issues with engine and powertrain, fuel system, steering, brakes, and electricals.