Lillian Laslett

2015 Hyundai Elantra

••3.0

Posted On: May 20, 2024

Nice & reliable

Pros
Very very reliable!, Surprisingly comfortable for a handful of passengers.

Cons
Seats stain somewhat easily (they are a beige cloth; I would have preferred fabric), A/C vents are too close to my hands so they get cold in the summer before my car is cool enough for the rest of me.

I got this car as my first back in I believe around 2019 and I love it. The gas mileage is great, I hear it's very safe (haven't crashed it though, luckily!) and the stock radio system is pretty nice. It also hasn't had any significant problems outside of normal maintenance. I think I may have needed to have the battery replaced once and that was my most expensive repair besides tires, brakes, et... Read more

2015 Hyundai Elantra Review

Pros

Generous features for the money
Large trunk
A quiet and well-built cabin
Long warranty coverage

Cons

Limited headroom
So-so acceleration with the 1.8-liter engine
Somewhat stiff ride quality

The compact sedan represents the fact that how quickly the South Korean carmaker has learned from the landslide success of the Japanese car manufacturers and changed its game completely.

Overview

The Hyundai Elantra is a nice looking affordable sedan from the Korean carmaker and offers good comfort along with a feature-rich cabin. The compact sedan represents the fact that how quickly the South Korean carmaker has learned from the landslide success of the Japanese car manufacturers and changed its game completely. Let’s find out how the sedan fares against its rivals.

Pricing and Features
6.0/10

The Hyundai Elantra is offered in a total of three trim levels with the SE as its base trim. The price of the SE trim starts at an affordable $17,250 and it maxes out at a generous $21,700 for the top-end Limited trim. Interestingly, the mid-level Sport trim gets a more powerful 2.0liter motor which is not available in the other two trims.

Trim	SE	Sport	Limited
MSRP	$17,250	$21,600	$21,700
Key Features	15-inch alloy wheels	Adds to SE trim features	Adds to Sport trim features
	Full power accessories	Powerful 2.0-liter engine	7-inch touchscreen display
	Cruise control	Sunroof	Dual-zone automatic climate control
	Tilt and telescoping steering wheel	Sports tuned suspension	Navigation system
	60/40-split-folding rear seats	Keyless ignition and entry	Upgraded audio system

We Recommend

We would recommend you to go for the Sport trim since it provides a punchy performance along with a host of features at a really affordable price tag.

Engine and Performance
7.3/10

The 2015 Hyundai Elantra is powered by a 1.8liter naturally aspirated four-pot motor. The motor is capable of generating a maximum of 145 horsepower and 130lb-ft of torque. For a compact sedan, the figures seem adequate for performing daily activities and occasional highway cruising.

However, the engine suffers from a lethargic acceleration and possesses no sportiness to say the least. The beefed up 2.0liter motor offers a better overall performance in the Sport trim. The 0-60mph time is a disappointing 9.5 second which is also the highest among the rivals. The top-speed of the sedan is limited at 120mph.

Model	Hyundai Elantra	Mazda 3	Toyota Corolla	Honda Civic
MSRP	$17,250	$17,845	$17,300	$18,640
Engine	1.8L Naturally Aspirated Inline-4	2.0L Naturally Aspirated Inline-4	1.8L Naturally Aspirated Inline-4	2.0L Naturally Aspirated Inline-4
Drivetrain	FWD	FWD	FWD	FWD
Transmission	6-speed manual	6-speed manual	6-speed manual	6-speed manual
Power	145 hp @ 6500 rpm	155 hp @ 6000 rpm	132 hp @ 6000 rpm	158 hp @ 6500 rpm
Torque	130 lb-ft. @ 4700 rpm	150 lb-ft. @ 4000 rpm	128 lb-ft. @ 4400 rpm	138 lb-ft. @ 4200 rpm
0-60 MPH (sec)	9.5	7.8	9	7.2
Quarter Mile (sec)	17.1	15.8	16.6	15.5
Top Speed (mph)	120	130	120	125

The Mazda 3 and the Honda Civic are the sportiest among the rivals with a decent power rating and acceleration times. The Toyota Corolla is the least powerful on the list but is quicker than the Elantra by .5 second in completing the 0-60mph run.

Fuel Economy
7.0/10

The fuel economy of the Elantra is quite decent for a compact sedan. The city mileage stands at 27mpg while out on the highways, the figure shoots up to an impressive 37mpg. The combined mileage rating stands at 31mpg.

Model	Hyundai Elantra	Mazda 3	Toyota Corolla	Honda Civic
MPG (City)	27	29	28	27
MPG (Highway)	37	41	37	40
MPG (Combined)	31	33	31	31
Fuel Capacity	12.8	13.2	13.2	12.4

Surprisingly, the Elantra is less fuel efficient than two of its more powerful rivals, the Mazda 3 and the Honda Civic. The Mazda 3 returns an excellent overall mileage and also takes the lead in both city and highway mpg ratings too.

Interior
7.9/10

The Elantra carries its fluidic design to its interior too with a lot of swooping lines and appealing surfaces to enhance the overall aesthetics of the cabin. The center console is in perfect harmony with the rest of the curvy designs around the cabin while the controls are easily accessible and made out of robust quality materials.

There are quite a bit of exposed hard plastics here and there but they are given a unique texture to look appealing.

Model	Hyundai Elantra	Mazda 3	Toyota Corolla	Honda Civic
Seating Capacity	5	5	5	5
Front Row (Head/Shoulder/Leg) (in)	40/55.9/43.6	38.6/57.2/42.2	38.3/54.8/42.3	39.3/57/42.3
Rear Row (Head/Shoulder/Leg) (in)	37.1/54.8/33.1	37.6/54.4/35.8	37.1/54.8/41.4	37.1/55/37.4
Cargo Capacity (cu-ft)	14.8	12.4	13	15.1

The Elantra offers the rival-best headroom for the front passengers while the rest of the dimensions are more or less identical to the rivals. The Honda Civic takes the crown in terms of trunk space by offering an impressive 15.1cu-ft of space.

Infotainment

The Elantra’s infotainment system is a standard 7-inch touchscreen unit and comes with a simple yet fluid user interface. The unit produces straightforward and large in-screen images that are easy to read and non-distracting while driving.

The system includes a host of standard features along with some optional ones too such as a rear-view camera and a 4.3-inch touchscreen audio system.

Some standard features include:

Six-speaker audio system
Navigation
Satellite radio
USB port
Handsfree phone integration
Bluetooth

Exterior
8.0/10

The exterior of the Elantra is quite appealing with a swooping design starting from the hood and ending at the trunk. The sleek front grille carrying the Hyundai logo looks smart and flanked by a set of stylish and extended headlights.

The front bumper houses the angular fog lamps and a blacked out air-intake grille. The side profile of the sedan looks quite appealing too with sculpted fenders and a sloping roofline. The big wrap around tail lights gives the rear end a nice look too.

Model	Hyundai Elantra	Mazda 3	Toyota Corolla	Honda Civic
Curb Weight (lbs.)	2773	2869	2800	2742
Length (in)	179.1	180.3	182.6	182.3
Width (in)	69.9	70.7	69.9	70.8
Height (in)	56.3	57.3	57.3	55.7
Ground Clearance (in)	5.3	6.1	5.5	5.1
Wheelbase (in)	106.3	106.3	106.3	106.3

The Toyota Corolla is the longest sedan on the list while the Elantra is the shortest one. The Honda Civic sits lower to the ground than all the rivals, giving it a better stability and sporty appeal. The Mazda 3 has the best ground clearance, quite unusual for a sedan, and it will allow it to clear steep speed breakers with ease.

Safety
9.0/10

Hyundai vehicles generally come with excellent safety features and scores brilliantly in almost all the crash tests. The overall build quality of the vehicles are also great. The Elantra follows in the same suit too. It bagged an excellent “Good” rating from the IIHS and a respectable overall “5-star” rating from the NHTSA as well. The standard safety features of the Elantra includes ABS and hill-start assist.

The standard and available safety features of the Elantra sedan includes:

antilock disc brakes,
hill-start assist,
stability and traction control,
front-seat side airbags and side curtain airbags
Rear-view camera
Blue Link emergency telematics
Theft recovery and geo fencing’

Final Verdict

The 2015 Hyundai Elantra sedan comes in a well-equipped form for its price and its fluidic design further sweetens the deal. The performance aspect might not be the strongest point of the sedan when equipped with the basic engine, but the Sport trim offers a commendable performance with a bigger motor and a substantial power bump. The sedan also covers the safety aspect quite well with an array of standard and useful safety aids along with the optional Blue Link telematics system that further adds to the safety context. If you want a budget sedan with decent comfort levels and adequate performance to tackle city driving and perform daily chores, the 2015 Hyundai Elantra sedan is a brilliant choice among its rivals.

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2015 Hyundai Elantra User Reviews

Nice & reliable

ProsVery very reliable!, Surprisingly comfortable for a handful of passengers.

Cons Seats stain somewhat easily (they are a beige cloth; I would have preferred fabric), A/C vents are too close to my hands so they get cold in the summer before my car is cool enough for the rest of me.

2015 Hyundai Elantra Review

Pros

Cons

Overview

Pricing and Features6.0/10

Engine and Performance7.3/10

Fuel Economy7.0/10

Interior7.9/10

Infotainment

Exterior8.0/10

Safety9.0/10

Final Verdict

Saved Cars

Pros
Very very reliable!, Surprisingly comfortable for a handful of passengers.

Cons
Seats stain somewhat easily (they are a beige cloth; I would have preferred fabric), A/C vents are too close to my hands so they get cold in the summer before my car is cool enough for the rest of me.

Pricing and Features
6.0/10

Engine and Performance
7.3/10

Fuel Economy
7.0/10

Interior
7.9/10

Exterior
8.0/10

Safety
9.0/10