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Comments
IMHO, it would be hard to justify an Elantra GT above 17 thousand dollars; in lieu of the fact that the Toyota Matrix and Pontiac Vibe can be had for a little more and have far more horsepower.
I imagine Hyundai's sales will suffer to some extent if they do not increase the HP in the GT against those competitors.
But the big thing is Torque. There's an old saying that American's buy horsepower and drive torque. If you look at that 180hp engine, you'll see that it gets the same amount of torque as the Elantra but at a full 2000rpm higher. You hardly ever see an engine that hits its torque peak at 6800rpm! In other words, you will have to rev the snot out of the matrix/vibe's 180hp engine to get power out of it. You'd probably want to shift around 7000-8000rpm, which as a daily driver, I think would get old fast!
I read in Car and Driver online that GM will be producing an aftermarket dealer install supercharger for the Vibe. It will allow the base Vibe to reach 180HP. Nice. I wish Hyundai would do the same. Judging by the number of posts on Hyundaiperformance.com and Hyundaituner.com; there is a market for it.
Revka
Host
Hatchbacks & Station Wagons Boards
I actually think the Pewter is the best color, especially because it is very good at hiding dust/dirt and scratches. Darker colors tend to accentuate dust and scratches, especially in bright sunlight.
Please note that I am not a real frequent car washer, so Pewter definitely works best for me!
http://www.euroncap.com/details.php3?id=car_104_2001
This is inline with IIHS tests almost to a tee. Fortunately at least to this layman it seems fixable with a recall. Structural integrity was good. I'm curious as to what is Hyundai's response.
It is getting harder to pass it off as a fluke.
1. 3 out of 5 is not terrible, many cars did worse.
2. Only one car on the entire site (Renault Laguna) got 5 stars, so one might almost just as well say we got 3 out of 4 stars.
3. Even the 'illustrious' Civic only got 4 stars.
Finally, I don't think there is any easy fix. The airbag seemed to deploy properly; most of the problems, rather, were due to the warping of the driver side floor.
I still want one regardless (:
DW
20+k for a matrix is too much especially when the engine has been reviewed as wimpy in the low-mid rpm range the car would not have any get up and go unless you floor the daylights out of it and that lowers gas mileage. I'd take the extra 5-7k and spend it on a better stereo, new rims, and engine mods for the elantra (Which I am in the process of doing). I am also skeptical about the fact that pontiac is a partner in the matrix, although toyota was in charge of most aspects of the project.
http://www.autonet.ca/wow/Stories.cfm?storyID=3925
The Matrix does 0-60 in 8.9 secs and 60-0 in 118 ft with much wider, stickier tires. The GT is faster.
"I got new 17 inch rims on my car and it totally changes the look of the whole car from an average 'grocery getter' to a mean looking machine ready for some twisties... Ride is much flatter and more responsive in corners"
I would be very interested in seeing pictures of your car, as I am thinking of doing the same thing. Why not send me some scanned photos and I can post them on the Elantra GT website. Either way I would like to email-chat about the rims. The email address is wmoses@houston.rr.com.
You might also want to showcase the uner-the-hood mods you are doing on the Garage Page of the same website.
http://www.euroncap.com/details.php3?id=fiat_seicento_2000
Man! That FIAT crash test picture is truly scary! Good thing they don't import them anymore to the US (as far as I know anyway).
Hey wheel-changers! I am considering moving from the stock 15" to 16" wheels (I don't really want 17" wheels). Since the stock tire size is 195/60-15, does anyone know what the tire size would change to on a 16" wheel (to minimize speedometer variance). My guess is that the 16" tire size would become a 205/55-16.
Fiat is in the process of whipping up a return to the US market, as I recall. I hope they aren't planning on bringing THAT car here!
For similarly worrisome pictures, look at the Renault Clio 1.2RL and the Rover 100, both in the same "supermini" category as the Fiat.
-SHOV6
Regarding rims: Using my handy-dandy spread sheet, I computed the outer diameter of the stock 195/60-15 tire as:
((195/25.4)*(.60*2)+15) = 24.21"
In English, this is the tires width (195) converted to inches, times the aspect ratio of 60, multiplied by two because there's tire at the top and bottom of the rim. Then the rim diameter is added in, giving the result. (My apologies to any of you for whom this is old hat.) Using this same formula:
195/50-16 = 23.68"
195/55-16 = 24.44"
205/50-16 = 24.07"
205/55-16 = 24.88"
Moving up to 17" wheels yields:
205/45-17 = 24.26"
Based on the numbers, I think that the 205/50-16 would be a better bet, although the 55 series might fill up the wheel well better and give a more muscular appearance. The consensus over at hyundaiperformance.com is that any tire wider than 205 won't work well on the new Elantras.
If it were me spending the money to change out the wheels & tires (and hopefully soon it will be), I'd go ahead and make the jump to the 17's. Sure the ride and noise quality will suffer some, but boy they sure look nice! You might want to try the wheel preview feature over at tirerack.com to see what different size wheels look like on the GT. Good luck!
thats my car and it sure makes it look sooo much better. True ride is not as quiet since there is more rubber and less cushion on the road but man can I corner now. 60 series tires on 15's look puny ( my cuz thought I had 14s on when I showed him the car with the original rims) 60 series tires are too tall and sacrifice handling for comfort ( tire sidewall rolls madly in any type of spirited driving) 205/45/zr 17's are optimal I could have gone with 18s which do fit but that would leave me with 205/35/18 which is like drtiving with a pice of cardboard as a substitute for a tire. 16 inch is autocross size but I want less rubber and more rim
I still love the GT (looks, performance, number of standard options) and I find myself visiting this forum from time to time to see what the owners' experiences with the car are turning out to be.
Yesterday, I was at the local dealership checking out the new Tiburon and had a chance to take another close-up look at the GT. I was blown away by how much cargo space you can get with the rear seats folded flat. I think Hyundai needs to advertise this feature a little more! Can you believe that on the WRX, the rear seats don't even fold back! Sometimes I envy you guys... :-)
Anyways, I was wondering if any of the owners could post pics of their cars, or links to other sites with pics of all the various colors?
I have heard that it takes awhile for the engine to loosen up and MPG's to improve. But 16 seems very low to me. Just wondering if I should bring it in or keep on waiting. I have 1800 miles on the car.
IMO, to be getting such low mileage would mean there is something seriously out of whack (or one heck of a fuel leak). I'd definitely get it looked at.
To Everyone- Feel free to also share your vehicle pics in our new Elantra Photo Gallery and Hatchbacks Pictures discussion. We'd love to see them. Thanks for your participation.
Revka
Host
Hatchbacks & Station Wagons Boards
th003g's (Tom) car will be on the website tonight.
"I'm now doing 16 mpg. 70/30 city driving. I don't have the lightest foot but I do not stomp on the accelerator either."
I would take it in to the dealer and ask them to fix it. That is low.
I have had 3 Elantras dating back to my 1993 1.8 litre automatic, and in a Canadian winter it never got that low (although, if driven in real winter the mpg's drop significantly) -- maybe 22 miles per Imp.gal ...?
I have just over 3000 miles on my 2002 GT (manual) and get 28.5 mpg driving in Houston. I got the same mileage from the get-go. No real change from when I first bought it.
GT_fan gives good advice. Don't rely on the trip computer for now. Calculate it manually and use that as a basis. It could be that the trip computer is "tripping".
"Last year, the GT was at the top of my list until the crash-test results were released. A few months later I ended up settling on the Subaru WRX which is a great car, but was about $15,000 Canadian more."
The WRX is a beautiful car (depending on which one you get) with great performance. Nevertheless, I personally would not have let the crash test results influence me into buying the WRX at a $15k premium.
What are the crash test results for the WRX anyway?
Does one buy a fast car for crash worthiness? No, one buys a Volvo. :-D
Btw, if you haven't had a chance yet, you may also want to check out our Hyundai Elantra Owners club. And while you're there, please feel free to say hello or copy/paste your message into our Elantra Owners Meet the Members discussion. Thank for your participation. ;-)
Revka
Host
Hatchbacks & Station Wagons Boards
I've been considering the tinting recently and am curious to see how hot the car really gets w/ the leather. I look forward to hearing any comments on this from you lucky people who have owned the car since summer/fall 01.
On another note, I noticed a tear/rip in the black molding/weather-stripping that borders the outside driver window, the paint beneath is now showing through. This material looks like a tape material; l and will try to see how easy this will be to replace thru service dept. Has anyone had anything similiar happen?? Not sure how this happened.
It just started snowing here in NW Ohio. Hope we actually get some accumulation so I can see how the car does in the snow.
Hope you high milers keep up the reports b/c I really enjoy hearing from everyone's experiencesas the miles tick up on the odo. like mpgman , and cjaccetta's steelers game excursions ,though since I am a Brown's fan I really didn't lose any sleep over the steelers-patriot's game outcome
I'm not convinced it reduces radiant heat - there is plenty of metal to radiate that anyways, however I have noticed that it certainly reduces the effect of direct sunlight on occupants it doesn't feel as hot - convection heat - and of course the good tints cut UV light, it also cuts down glare and did help save the upholstery on the car - again by cutting down UV.
There are many types of film both good and bad, the best ones are metalised, the cheap ones are just dyed and do fade after a while (mostly those type look purple after a few years)
A small observation from driving on a windy day: the GT seems to get pushed a little by crosswinds. However, that could just be me adjusting to a lighter car. My old Scirocco was quite heavy and solid.
Other small problems: I pulled into a parking lot here in town and 5 cars over was a twin of my car - also Chianti Red with a moonroof. I was hoping to be a bit more unique for a little longer. Also, I let a friend drive my car and he loved the experience, but I didn't. He started driving with the emergency brake engaged -- TWICE!
I walked away with only paying $13900 for this completely loaded with every option puppy. Between the dealer going nuts and them making a mistake on top of that (put a different state's tax % on there so they had to take that off the price of the car)... I totally got a steal on this car. And beyond the great price- this car is great.
The only thing I would like is to have telescope tilt steering as oppossed to just regular tilt- but you can't really complain when you have ever other option known available to you.
I am a proud Hyundai Elantra GT owner
The same goes for any other new GT owners passing through here. Thank for your participation. Happy motoring! ;-)
Revka
Host
Hatchbacks & Station Wagons Boards
and have been reading daily since. I first became interested in the Elantra GT
after reading the review of the car in the 11/01 Road&Track and have been intrigued by the car ever since. In fact,
after hearing my enthusiasm for the car,
my parents bought an 02 GLS! I finally
test drove an 02 GT 5 speed last week and
was truly impressed. I am 6'8"/320 lbs
and was not sure if I could even fit in
the car! What a pleasant surprise to
discover that I could--with the seat all
the way back/down,wheel up, and recliner
back a couple of notches. Shifter/steering had a nice tight feel and the engine seemed to like to rev.
Did not even turn on the radio/lights/wipers but from what I have
read, there does not appear to be a lot of complaints. I was really wanting to get a stripped 5 speed GT and found one in Carbon Blue. Same dealer had a loaded
Rally Red GT and wanted 14000/15100 respectively/delivered. Another dealer in
town is running a sale price on automatic
GTs w/roof and no ABS for 12995. This same dealer had a loaded Rally Red GT 5spd w/500 miles that I drove. They came
in at 13400 delivered. I have not gone
back to the 15100 dealer yet to see if
they will match/beat the 13400 dealer.
From what I have seen on this and other boards, the 13400 price will be hard to
beat. Finally, I want to thank the host and posters for their insights into what
I am sure will be my next and probably
immediate car purchase. THANKS!!
I got this from a local internet manager when I asked about availability:
"There is exactly 3 Hyundai Elantra GT 5spd package 11 in the region. One is Chianti
Red. I will sell it to you for MSRP which is $15845. Let me know as soon as possible if you
want it because I know there is about 4 of us looking to get it."
I'm pretty sure he (or some other dealer) will be able to sell it at MSRP with no trouble;
he laughed at my offer (14.9K + DMV fees). I envy you folks who are able to get this
configuration at a good price.
At this rate, I may have to seriously reconsider my desire for ABS. Bummer.
Erik
DW
I think I had one of the best negotiated prices on a GT ($14,600 for a 2001.5 loaded/auto) until I saw girlbob's deal. Now I am a little jealous. Granted I did buy a 2001, there is virtually no difference so I thought I made out like a bandit.
But girlbob (sorry for the abbreviated form) really made out.
As for getting good deals, patience and homework are your best bets.
Erik
Dave
For comparison with respect to the prices mentioned in some previous posts, I paid $14,500 for a base 2001.5 GT with auto tranny in June, 2001. This was in Northern NJ at a time when there were very few GTs available anywhere. Based on my purchase price, it seems like you all are doing a little better than I did.
Markj11 - a Browns fan, are you? Well, I won't hold that against you since your taste in autos is so good. Get yourselves a RB and you could make some noise. We'll see which team comes out on top next season in the revamped AFC Central. By the way, I drove the GT through six inches of fresh Pennsylvania snow recently and the car was fine.
Esto - I specifically requested NO anti-lock brakes on my GT and I have found that I don't miss them at all. The stock brakes work very well. I drive daily in fast, heavy commuter traffic and I can tell you from experience that even threshold braking is very controlled in the GT. If all that's holding you back is the availability of ABS, then consider scrapping that option. Some insurers are withdrawing their premium discounts for ABS, too. Check with yours.
A word to the wise for all owners: read the fine print in your warranty booklet. Many small repairs and adjustments are not covered after one year or 12,000 miles. If you're having a nagging small problem try to take your car in for service before you approach either mark.
Well, that's all for now. Happy Motoring!
I bought my 2002 Elantra GT 5 speed back in December almost by accident (I was looking for a Mazda Protege5 or a Honda Civic). I paid Edmund's TMV at the time -14,900- for a fully loaded car (option 11, floor mats, cargo net, CA inspection, even wheel locks!). The dealership manager was major league *******, as the Mr. Bush would say, extremely intimidating and aggressive but I guess the number of dealerships in this area -DC- is high enough for one of them to refuse a good client, and when I was about to leave without the car, he gave in. The first 2000 miles were awful: just couldn't drive it the way I wanted to! After that, I feel quite pleased with the car. It's extremely quiet and responsive. I've noticed something, though: sometimes, the gas tank door doesn't open right away and I have to try three or more times to get it open. Has anybody noticed that?
Thank you!
Manuel
agirlcalledbob: Excellent deal. Congratulations. I was wondering at the time that I bought mine if I could have got a better price since they gave in so easily. However, I still think I got a very good deal and all without any headaches.
Tom