2023 Hyundai Elantra 1.6L Turbo

Vehicle Overview

Hyundai revealed the refreshed version of the Elantra’s seventh generation, trying to make it more upscale, and gave it an aggressive stance. The Korean automaker targeted young customers with families, and its recipe worked well. After all, the Elantra was Hyundai’s best-selling product.

The Korean automaker dubbed its facelifted model PE, as in Product Enhanced. Still, that was not just a marketing line but an actual fact. Not only did the exterior and the interior improve, but also the car’s features, the engine lineup, and even the car’s key went through an evolutionary process. As a result, the Elantra became more appealing and remained fresh on the market.

At the front, the headlights’ design was enhanced and featured exclusively LED lamps inside them. The daytime running light that looked like eyebrows for the vehicle was continued on the car’s upper grille by a chromed horizontal slat. On the lower side, the bumper featured a few sculptured lines that formed the central air intake and the side scoops, like on a sports car. Yet, the Elantra has always been a family vehicle. From its profile, the sculptured door panels and fenders kept their lines as on the non-refreshed version, while at the back, the automaker emphasized the H-pattern with a red horizontal strip that crossed the rear fascia from side to side, visually connecting the taillights.

Inside, the driver fronted a redesigned 4.2” digital instrument cluster that showed the tachometer, the speedometer, and other information gathered from the onboard computer for fuel consumption, range, and various notifications for the vehicle’s status. In addition, atop the center stack, Hyundai installed a 10.25” touchscreen for the infotainment unit that was complemented by a Bose premium sound system. This screen was standard from the SEL trims and above, while the Bose was reserved for the Limited and N-Line grades. The new infotainment system was compatible with a digital key running on either Android or iPhone. Despite being a family vehicle, the automaker installed contoured bolstered seats at the front, while at the back, there was room enough for three adults on the 60/40 split-folding bench seat. Hyundai also made a significant upgrade in the safety department by installing standard side airbags for the rear passengers on all trim levels.

Under the hood, the automaker installed a choice of gasoline engines. The base model was a 2.0-liter naturally aspirated unit, followed by a 1.6-liter turbocharged and a 1.6-liter hybrid system. The 2.0-liter turbocharged unit was reserved exclusively for the Elantra N, the model’s top performer. For the transmission, Hyundai placed its bets on a CVT (continuous variable transmission) for selected versions, while others got a dual-clutch gearbox. As usual for Hyundai, power went to the front wheels only, and there was no option for an all-wheel-drive system.