2007 Hyundai Elantra

player4

Here are some mystery pics, sources have confirmed that it is in fact the '06 Hyundai Elantra.

themanx

I wonder if the tape will come off like it does around the windows?



ElantraStan

rctennis3811

Actually, sources say this is the Accent, and not the Elantra.

player4

This the the new Elantra because one of my peeps that works for Hyundai said it is, heres what he said:
It is the new Elantra. The body profile is all Elantra. Hyundai is going towards a brand identity image so to mistake on for the other with the cladding should be expected. People still mistake the new XG for a Sonata because they look similar with cladding. Hyundai is building identity herritage, so to speak.

rctennis3811

Oh ok.

jchan2

do we have any more info?

player4

Not really.

player4

My sourcve told me this, remember he works for Hyundai.

After the Tuscon, the minvan should be next. After that, I expect the Equus to arrive (aorund late 06-early 07). Possibly a truck( which I believe will end up being a Kia, we don't have a domestic plant for a full size truck). Supposedly we are working on a cross-over Pacifica-type vehicle. The Sonata Coupe should fall in their somewhere with the Tib convertable being made available late 05. (current plan)

rctennis3811

I thought the Hyundai minivan won't be until 2007/2008 because the Kia Sedona minivan will be around 2005/2006.

jchan2

Hyundai rushed the van project.

player4

From what i've always heard, the Hyundai minivan is for 2006. never heard it being for 2007 or later.

pzev

I don't know about this car. Too much is covered up but it looks pretty tall, like a Corolla. I'm assuming those are 15" wheels, which look kinda small on that car. At least the wheel gap doesn't look as bad as the Corolla.

crsher2002

Maybe Hyundai will be good enough to make sure the new design includes the ever present front end shimmy....

jpryba

...if they can fix the shimmy.

backy

Does this look like a 5/6 scale 2005 Sonata to anyone else? The roof profile in particular looks a lot like that of the new Sonata, but without the cutout in the front of the C pillar. I hope Hyundai doesn't make the new Elantra look like all the other nondescript small cars out there. At least the current model has some personality.

As for the shimmy, I have heard a rumor that it is more advanced for '06 and there will be a control on the dashboard to regulate it--you'll be able to dial in as much or as little shimmy as you want. ;-) Actually with the new engines that are expected for the '06 Elantra, and probably 16" wheels (to match the optional wheels on the Spectra I figure), which would have to have five bolts, that might be enough to banish the shimmy. Or maybe they'll have someone at the assembly line to check the torque of the lug nuts, plus a computer chip in the wheels that will say "Please re-torque the wheels to factory specs" when they are removed. Or maybe not.

pzev

Could someone just point out to me an obvious difference between this supposed Elantra and the Accent.

http://www.thecarconnection.com/images/gallery/7993_image.jpg

http://www.thecarconnection.com/images/gallery/7994_image.jpg

I know it's the same brand but come on. They look so similar it's not even funny. I honestly hope this isn't the Elantra because compared to the camo'ed Sonata and XG this car is disappointing. And I don't see how you can mistake the XG for the Sonata since the C-pillar between the two is completely different. Maybe it's the angle of the picture but the new Spectra looks more interesting and also bigger than this supposed Elantra.

Why would Hyundai want to make the Elantra a slightly bigger Accent? The Elantra has to play with the big boys, it needs to at least look different from the Accent.

pzev

http://www.channel4.com/4car/media/spyshots/H/hyundai/03-large/Hy- undai-Talos-01.jpg

http://www.channel4.com/4car/media/spyshots/H/hyundai/03-large/Hy- undai-Talos-02.jpg

http://www.channel4.com/4car/media/spyshots/H/hyundai/03-large/Hy- undai-Talos-03.jpg

http://www.channel4.com/4car/media/spyshots/H/hyundai/03-large/Hy- undai-Talos-04.jpg

I think these pictures are convincing enough to show that the earlier pictures are NOT the Elantra. Same mirrors. Looks to have the same bulge/crease in the fender area, same honeycomb grille (Sonata and XG don't look to have a honeycomb grille), same C-pillar, etc.

Now look at Sonata spy pics and XG spy pics. Completely different C-pillars. Both look to have different mirrors and grilles, etc. Now that the hatchback has the same silver and wheels as the "Elantra" pictures they look even more similar.

smith20

You've convinced me . . .

backy

So no Elantra pics yet?

I wonder if the next-gen Elantra will get delayed to the '07 model year. Hyundai is slipping away from their 5-year cycle, with the Sonata redesign taking six years (6.5 for the U.S.) and the new Accent being delayed past five years also. Hyundai will have their hands full next year with the rollouts for the new Sonata, Accent, minivan, and maybe Santa Fe--a new Elantra might be too much for Marketing to handle in one year.

pzev

Yeah looks like the Elantra is going to be released after all those other cars. And all the articles I've read mentioned the other cars coming out in the next year or two, but no mention of the Elantra. The Elantra is getting like the Sentra, outdated and tired. The Elantra has another year left in it but that's about it. Looks like they might drag it out 2 years though.

I think also the problem is the Sonata was delayed longer than expected. They don't want to release the cars on top of each other to steal the other's thunder so everything is being pushed back a few months to a year probably.

At this rate the new Corolla may be out about the same time as the Elantra. Hyundai will really need to step up to the plate and put out a good car or else it'll get lost in the shuffle. I kind of get the feeling this has happened to the new Spectra.

backy

Outdated and tired? No more so than the Civic, which won Edmunds.com's last low-end car comparo, with the Elantra a close second--over the newer Corolla. I think the '05 Elantra still holds its own with direct competitors (e.g., compare the features, performance, and price of the GLS 5-door to others), but it will need a redesign in the next two years to keep up with the next-gen Civic, Corolla, and Sentra.

pzev

I'm no fan of the Civic. I don't agree with Edmunds giving it first place but that's a whole different matter. I didn't think the Civic was all that great back in the 2001 model year so I'm sure you can guess how I feel about it now.

The Elantra is a solid car but it's getting old enough now where I would hesitate putting in a lot of money to buy one. I think the interior is outdated compared to some of the competition and considering it's in its 5th model year this is understandable.

backy

I thought the '03 and before interior on the Elantra was definitely in need of updating, but I like what they did with the '04, especially in GT trim. It has more of a European look to it than the Japanese competitors, I think--Saab-esque, maybe a little VW. Anyway, based on what Hyundai has done with the NF Sonata's interior I can't wait to see what they do with the next Elantra.

smith20

"The Elantra is a solid car but it's getting old enough now where I would hesitate putting in a lot of money to buy one."

Ahh, but you don't have to put in a lot of money to buy one! So, there's no problem.

backy

That's really the point, isn't it? When I see dealers offering new Elantra GLSes for under $10k, and the GLS 5-door for under $12k (under $11k for us Hyundai owners), I can't think of a better value in its class. The Mazda3 is a better car IMO, but costs thousands more.

alpha01

Edmunds.com is great for its pricing tools, this awesome TownHall, and just the sharing of information. But its vehicle reviews, and especially the long term tests are a joke. (Whats long term about driving a car for 16,000 miles?... Motor Trend does the exact same thing and holds similarly little credibility, IMO) But I could go on and on. That said, I dont pay for an edmunds.com subsrciption, so I guess I cant really complain. Overall, I just think the reviews are lousy (A very funny joke is when they post a review as a "Full Test" but provide no instrumented performance test data...LMAO)

~alpha

backy

I think the "long term" tests that show what it's like to live with a car for a whole year are more valuable than the one-hour test drives from USA Today or cars.com etc., but that's just me. And obviously the editors of edmunds.com know nothing about testing cars. It's just their job.

I'm not sure what you're talking about on no instrumented performance data. Here's their data on the '05 Mustang:

http://www.edmunds.com/new/2005/ford/mustang/100464180/roadtestar- ticle.html?articleId=103665&editorialpage=page001

and on the '05 Corvette:

http://www.edmunds.com/new/2005/chevrolet/corvette/100375991/road- testarticle.html?articleId=103666&editorialpage=page002

and on the '05 Freestyle:

http://www.edmunds.com/new/2005/ford/freestyle/100448666/roadtest- article.html?articleId=103544&editorialpage=page001

There are lots more at:

http://www.edmunds.com/reviews/roadtests/fulltest/index.html?tid=- edmunds.e.roadtests.fulltest..0.*

smith20

I've been thinking about your point about a 16,000 mile "long term" test being a joke and I see what you're saying, but wouldn't a review that tests a car for 5-6 years and 75-100k or more miles have limited use as well? At that point the car would be at the end of it's lifecycle or even an extinct previous generation. It would really have no use to a new car buyer. I don't think the reviews are targeted at the used car market.

Plus, for used car information, isn't there hard data already available from the population of owners such as number of recalls, average number of problems per car for a particular model and year, safety record, and so on. It seems to me like a true long term test of a car would be redundant with that information which is naturally generated.

So I guess what I'm thinking is this: The purpose of car reviews is to predict the desirablity and future history of a car when it is not (and can't be) known. When a particular car has been around for a while and has history, just use the raw data of the population. Isn't that what groups like Consumer Reports reliability ratings are based on?

Probably every review suffers from a signifcant bias factor and thus they vary widely. If reviews were purely objective, I'd image they'd be all identical.

iluvmysephia1

but I'll say this. Edmunds provides me with just about all the information I need on a particular car I'm interested in. With the specific Town Hall threads you can read all of the posts you want and ask all of the questions you want to find out information. You can go to the Edmunds TMV for more accurate market value pricing and you can read their new car reviews. I think their car reviews are fine for a surface review of the new car written about. Now, I'm not one that needs skidpad and braking distance information on a car I'm interested in. I could give a rip about that data. I do post data concerning my Kia's and what happens to them, whether it's good or bad and I include what I feel is important in my posts about my cars. Two of those important items are time and mileage. I think it's important to provide a timeline that a certain event occurred(for instance at 64,000 miles the car had it's rotors replaced and brake pads replaced). Also, I say what month and year I got the rig and how many miles it now has. That way the reader can read whatever they want into the service record of the car I'm posting about. IMO Edmunds is the best source of internet car data and for my needs their car reviews are fine. Nuff said, Sam Elliott.

alpha01

In the past, there have been edmunds.com 'Full Tests' which have been missing acceleration numbers, braking data, skidpad, etc. I cannot think of examples off the top of my head, but I do know that I've seen in happen more than once.

In terms of long term tests, Car and Driver does 40,000 miles. They keep a relatively tight fleet, instead of having dozens of vehicles as edmunds.com does, and they are able to publish a Long Term report in an average of 16 months after obtaining the vehicle. In the recent case of the Toyota Sienna, it took them only 13 months.

I never said anything about USA today's tests. Im not a big James Healy fan, but at least theres a new one every week. Its just a perspective.

Like I said, edmunds.com is awesome, free. But I dont think their auto journalism is the best. The pricing tools, and info exchanges are world class, top-notch. Just the not reviews.

~alpha

backy

I like C/Ds reviews too. Except their 10Best, which are a sham because they give a few paragraphs and very little info on each car. Almost as bad as the MT COTY report, which used to be much more detailed years ago.

Each outfit has its own style, and value. Add them all up and they provide a lot of useful info. Edmunds.com may not drive its test cars as many miles, but the fact they do more of them helps those buyers who are looking for those cars. At least it's something to go on, and something is better than nothing. For example, Edmunds.com put an Elantra into their "long term" fleet; C/D did not. I hope when the '06 (or '07) Elantra comes out, Edmunds.com does a "long term" test on it--because I'm quite sure the boy racers at C/D won't.

alpha01

You might as well just look to Consumer Reports. All of their tests span from 4000 to 6000 miles worth of tests and data collection, far more than the common road test in any for-profit mag.

For the consumer's perspective, I do appreciate Consumer Reports. Its not perfect, but theres a lot to be said for their testing, and ratings scale that also judges comfort and convenience.

For the enthusiasts perspective, Car and Driver is great, with a good dose of realism as well.

All the others... Road and Track, Automobile, Edmunds.com, etc... are nice reads, and offer more information and opinions.. I just dont value them as highly as the other two. Consumers Digest makes me gag, I might add.

~alpha

iluvmysephia1

might as well stick to toasters and clothers dryers. I think that any of us could step in at that magazine and not only do as well as them but probably better. Not worth the paper it's printed on in its present state, indeed.

backy

I agree that Consumer's Digest is pretty worthless. But I do like the different perspective Consumer Reports provides. I think they may do the most objective reviews (not to say they have no biases), plus they offer the long-term reliability surveys. I think they are also the clearest on how they evaluate cars. So even if you don't agree on how they do it, at least you know their methodology. My main beef on CR is that in 4+ years of the life of the current Elantra, they've only managed one review, of a '01 GLS. I'd think in that time they could have managed to review the GT 5-door. The GLS acquitted itself pretty well, and is one of the lowest-priced cars CR has tested in its class. I wonder how the GT would have fared. I guess we'll have to wait until the next-gen Elantra comes out before CR will take another look.

alpha01

Doesn't retest many small cars. I'd have sooner preferred a retest of the vaunted Focus, given that its equipment configurations, and more importantly, powertrain options, have changed over the years. Overall, I think it hard to say that an Elantra GT would score significantly better than the GLS. Yes, the suspension is a bit tighter... but CR doesnt place a premium on handling unless its at one end of the scale or the other. And any perceived detriment to the ride would surely be noted.

The one caveat that I have with CR is that they are slow to take note of changes to models. I get annoyed that CR continues to report the fuel economy figure of the 02 Camry XLE V6 they tested, which has a powertrain combination that hasnt been available for almost two years (non VVTi engine, 4 speed auto), for example.

And they never seem to get pricing right in their little summary comparisons.

Finally, I used to appreciate that they reported the sample vehicles number of defects, as well as the wet braking distance from 60. LISTEN UP, CR, LOL.

Happy Thanksgiving to all... off to spend some time with the family.

~alpha

pzev

http://www.thecarconnection.com/index.asp?n=178&sid=178&a- rticle=7782

This is more believeable as the next Elantra, not the previous one which was probably either the Accent or Rio.

smith20

Quite a revealing pair of photos, considering they're two years before it goes on sale. Thanks for passing that along.

backy

What are the dual exhausts for? I don't know too many 4-bangers that use dual exhausts.

alpha01

Anything is possible, and a V6 option would sure make for a very enticing GT version of the Elantra.... but I'm a little skeptical.

Our non-turbo H4 2005 Legacy has dual exhausts, for what its worth.

~alpha

backy

Well we can always dream. The Elantra-based Tuscon has a V6...

pzev

pzev "2006 Hyundai Sonata" Sep 17, 2004 11:51am

Notice how similar the front part of the two cars look. Almost exactly alike! I would think one of the two cars front ends will be changing. Even the mirrors are duplicates.

There's no way the car in the link above is the Elantra because it's so big. In the other link the car looks smaller and more the size of the Elantra. Maybe the angle makes it look smaller when it really isn't. Even 4car thought the Optima was the Elantra.

I think the 4car pictures of the Optima?? look good though. Very nice looking car.

backy

Edmunds.com says the new Elantra is coming next year. I'll be glad to see that, but will believe it when I see it.

 

What Edmunds.com Says: The Elantra should slide into Hyundai's lineup between the upmarket NF Sonata and the entry-level Accent

 

What We Know: When the 2006 Elantra appears in the fall of 2005 as part of Hyundai's mammoth, two-year product offensive, it will feature brand-new sheet metal as well as a completely different interior, most notably, a much larger cabin. This upscale Hyundai model will also receive a brand-new engine, as well as different suspension. The Elantra, as it has in the past, will be marketed as a more upscale vehicle than the Accent, and the price will certainly reflect this.

 

http://www.edmunds.com/future/2006/hyundai/elantra/100496581/prev- iew.html?tid=edmunds.f.photos.leftsidenav..0.Hyundai*

backy

Does the '06 Elantra (link to picture in previous post) look familiar to anyone else?

 

http://www.edmunds.com/new/2005/toyota/corolla/100394568/photogal- lery.html?pg_type=Sedan&imgsrc=%2Fpictures%2FVEHICLE%2F2003%2- FToyota%2F100074067%2F022971-T.jpg

themanx

I give up... a Toyota Corrola!??

backy

Don't you think there is moore than a hint of resemblence?

sandpaper

Not really.

 

I think both of them seem to have a taller stance and a high beltline.

 

The Elantra seems more squared off, while the Corolla is rounded.

batman47

Will somebody help me to find information about the future new re-designed Santa Fe. Some information said that the new Santa Fe will be produced in the middle of 2005, another said in the midle of 2006.

Where Can I find information about this new Santa Fe.

backy

This is off topic, but try this...

http://info.detnews.com/autosinsider/sneakpeek/index.cfm?id=16493

backy

Could this be the next-gen Elantra hatchback?

http://members.chello.nl/mel.rozeboom/geschiedenis/gf626d.gif

csandste

Unfortunately Koreans are becoming conservative in their styling changes, like the Japanese.

backy

Maybe--but who knows if this is really a pic of the new Elantra 5-door...