Hyundai Elantra facelift vs rivals: Specifications comparison

With a new face, more equipment, a BS6 petrol engine and a price tag that starts at Rs 15.89 lakh, the Elantra facelift has the same rivals as its predecessor – the Honda Civic, Skoda Octavia and Toyota Corolla Altis. But does the new Elantra just pick up where the outgoing model left, or is it a proper match for its competition? We put the four executive sedans side-by-side, on paper, to find out.

Dimensions

In terms of dimensions, the Elantra facelift is identical to its predecessor in all aspects barring the length, which has increased by 50mm. Despite its growth, the Elantra remains the shortest sedan here along with the Corolla Altis. However, the Hyundai does have the longest wheelbase, along with the Civic and Corolla and is the second widest of the lot. Skoda’s Octavia reigns supreme in the overall length, width and height department, while the Civic sports the largest tyres in the segment. The Toyota Corolla Altis has the largest fuel tank – it’s able to carry 55 litres of fuel.

Engine and gearbox

The new Elantra carries forward its predecessor’s 2.0-litre petrol unit that produces 152hp and 192Nm, along with the previously offered gearbox options – a 6-speed manual and a 6-speed torque converter automatic. Both engine-gearbox combinations have ARAI mileage figures of 14.60kpl, which makes the new Elantra the least fuel-efficient model here. However, the Elantra’s motor has been upgraded to meet the BS6 emission norms, which is not the case with the others. The Octavia is the only car here to come with two petrol engines – a 150hp, 1.4-litre and an 180hp, 1.8-litre. The smaller engine comes paired with a 6-speed manual only and does 16.7 kilometres to a litre, while the 1.8-litre gets a 7-speed DSG automatic that is rated at 15.1kpl. Along with being the most powerful (180hp), the Octavia 1.8 is also the torquiest of the lot, with 250Nm on tap. The two Japanese sedans – the Civic and Corolla Altis – are closely matched in all aspects, with the Honda being slightly more powerful and the Toyota being more fuel-efficient. While both also feature a 7-step CVT automatic, the Toyota also gets a 6-speed manual option.

As Hyundai has elected to launch the new Elantra as a petrol-only model, it may be at something of a disadvantage compared to its rivals, all of which get a diesel option. However, those in the market for an executive sedan prefer buying petrol models over their diesel counterparts so the Elantra’s lack of a diesel unit may be somewhat negated.

Just to recap, the Skoda comes with a 143hp, 2.0-litre diesel unit, the Honda gets a 120hp, 1.6-litre diesel motor while the Toyota is powered by a 88hp, 1.4-litre diesel. The Civic and Corolla Altis diesels can be had with a 6-speed manual only while the Skoda also gets the option of a 6-speed DSG automatic.

Price

Coming to the prices, Hyundai has priced the refreshed Elantra very competitively with the petrol-manual versions undercutting all its rivals – Corolla Altis prices start higher, but the Octavia petrol-manual is the most expensive.

Coming to the automatics, the Honda Civic comes with the lowest starting price though the top-spec variant is pricey. As the range-topping Elantra automatic is the second most affordable model here – the Octavia is by far the most expensive of the lot – and the fact that it comes with a BS6-compliant engine makes the Hyundai come across as a good value-for-money proposition. However, we’ll hold off any judgement till we’ve gotten behind the wheel of the new Elantra and compared it with its rivals in the real world.