Edmunds dealer partner, Bayway Leasing, is now offering transparent lease deals via these forums. Click here to see the latest vehicles!
Options
Popular New Cars
Popular Used Sedans
Popular Used SUVs
Popular Used Pickup Trucks
Popular Used Hatchbacks
Popular Used Minivans
Popular Used Coupes
Popular Used Wagons
Comments
Sounds like a real winner. My wife will like the leather seating. I'm going to pay another visit to my Hyundai dealer soon!
Also, does anyone know where to find the specs. for the car, in particular the interior room. The limited pics I have seen indicate that it is going to be more of sloping hatch like a Saab, which looks nice but will cut back on the storage and space behind the back seat.
I also have a question for the more technically oriented folks. Do the suspension and handling modifications (see post # 88 [bigger anti-roll bars, gas shocks, etc.]) seem like they will make a significant difference?
One final note, any current Elantra owners out there? Happy with your car? This looks like a great deal and just the type of car I am looking for, but I want to be sure.
Note: if you check Hyundai's US web page, you will now see a pic of the Elantra GT with a message that says "launching soon".
With respect to the suspension tweaks in the GT model, my *guess* is they will make a difference but not the significant type favored by enthusiasts. Though the ride will probably be stiffer, it won't be so stiff as to turn Joe & Jane Consumer away from the car. After all, this is not a rally vehicle -- under the skin it's still a passenger car built on a modest platform. I think the real plum in those upgrades are the rear disc brakes. You don't have to be a race driver to appreciate those!
Happy motoring.
And can you really configure a fully loaded one with ABS, sunroof, and automatic?
One question:
Will their be a limited supply for the GT, i'm going to my dealership this weekened to ask them too and will the price be reduced to like 10K like all the other hyundais where they pretty much take of 5K off the sticker value. I went to one hyundai dealer closer to me but i felt like i was talking to a monkey. I said do you have any information about the elantra gt and he was like "gls" and i was like no GT and he went "G-L-S?" I walked away from taht idiot very quickly. Am i gonna look like an idiot to my Hyundai dealership when i go in there saying "GT"?
This experience worried me that HMA is not passing the word around to its dealers about the new vehicle. Or did I just get stuck talking to a lunkhead? I also hope the Hyundai dealers are willing to bargain on the GT. For its features, it might be a deal at sticker and a total steal at invoice or less.
But anyway, i really hope i don't make a fool out of myself taking to a chimp that can only say "gls". Do you think the aftermarket people are gonna finally recognize hyundais, i mean they are pretty quick cars, i pulled of 7 sec today, my brother was counting and we both couldn't believe it.Engine mods would be nice and with the nice suspension and manual transmission its gonna be a hot car.
Appears we will be getting two models of the GT, one without leather and the toys and another model with leather and a sunroof, etc. With any luck the local dealers will start to have some more information shortly. Still looks like a pretty good deal with the only car being even close to it being the Acura 1.7EL which is unfortunately not available in the US.
http://www.canadiandriver.com/news/010402-6.htm
Nomi
On the issue of dealers, I have also found talking about new models to sales people at the dealership less than useful. I think that they are focused on moving the cars on the lot, or making a sale that day, and that they really are not all that interested in helping you on a purchase that may happen two or six months down the road. However, I have gotten good responses to e-mails sent to dealers. If you are looking for info. on new models, this is a good way to get it.
By the way, I really love the interior of the Elantra. I agree that the seat pattern is ugly, but I really like the quality of the dash and controls. At night, I think the greenish hue looks very classy. I'm sure the blue VDO gauges on the hatch will look even better! Keep in mind, by the way, that the U.S. seats will not have that ugly seat pattern. Most of the interior is black, I believe.
JK
NOw about the dealers, i'm having second thoughts on goin there on saturday. I don't want to drive 20 min. to get a "hatchback?,u mean gls?" i swear i will slap the guy in the back of the head if i hear gls in a questionable way. I live in LI and the only people that know their is gonna be a GT is my dad,my bro and my gf(who i made memorize the specs of the car and wat i'm gonna do to it after i get it). I'm planning to trade in my moms 97 elantra and then give my mom my 2000 elantra that i'm still paying for. Good idea or no?
Now is it just me or does the GT bear a more-than-passing resemblance to the forthcoming Kia Rio Wagon?? And with respect to the oddball interior fabrics noted by posters above, maybe Hyundai ought to change its tagline from "Driving is Believing" to "Funky Inside, Funky Outside".
Seriously though, I appreciate Hyundai's unique styling efforts. I wouldn't want my car to look like every other "CiviCorolla" on the road...
Have a nice weekend!
Nomi
To those involved: for your convenience, I've sent you emails, so you will have the opportunity to re-edit your posts if you'd like. Thanks for your participation. ;-)
Pocahontas
Host
Hatchbacks/Station Wagons
With any luck, the site will later today or tomorrow include sneak photos of the elusive Hyundai Elantra GT. I'm not certain when Hyundai's press conference is to be held, but my guess is sometime today (4/12).
I'll be attending the show tomorrow so I'll be sure to post whatever info I can obtain about the vehicle. Hopefully HMA will be forthcoming with details.
Happy motoring!
First, the good news...the car looks a sharp in person as it does in pictures. Many people on the show floor were gushing about it. It does not have the "satellite dish" alloys, but rather a cleaner 5-spoke design (like the Canadian version). A rear wiper appears to be standard. The cargo hold appears to be at least as large as the Kia Spectra.
Now, the bad news...according the to Hyundai marketing people I met at the show (who seemed very reluctant to give me information; they were fond of referring people to the catalogs), the GT will be released between October and December as a 2002 model. The rep I spoke to said "most likely Christmas". Also, the car I saw did NOT have a leather interior. Perhaps this was a prototype. Anyway, the fabric pattern was a muted grey which seemed classier than the "marble" pattern found in the Elantra GLS. Lastly, the GT does indeed have the 4 wheel discs and upgraded tires.
I was unable to climb inside the car since Hyundai elected to display it on a raised platform. All my observations are based on the closest possible looking I could do.
Lijonson, maybe you will have better luck. No one at Hyundai's booth seemed willing or able to discuss the GT, despite me prodding them. If you find out anything new, please post.
The fact that the GT may not be available until XMas will probably mean I won't buy one (my wife and I can't wait that long). However, I was impressed as hell with the other Hyundai vehicles so we will continue to shop that brand. I can say with confidence that the GLS stacks up very well against nearly every other compact car I saw yesterday. The GT should do just as well.
Good luck and enjoy the show. Check out the HCD6 concept car. They ought to build that one. It'd sell like hotcakes. Rumored to contain a V-8 (although the show car doesn't even have a motor in it!).
The warranty would have been nice, but the extra $5,000 in my wallet is even nicer (not including the $1000 I saved in taxes and registration fees, or the money I save in insurance (the insurance on a 2001 Elantra is more than twice as much as my 1978 Porsche, the Saab is only 33% more)).
I will keep my Elantra GT site up because I like the car, but I am no longer eagerly anticipating its arrival.
Tom
Glad you got a car you wanted at a favorable price. Like you, I also don't want to wait until December for the GT. My wife and I will probably shop the Elantra GLS or Sonata. Funny that you bought a Saab since the GT so closely resembles one! Glad you are keeping your GT site up. You really beat Hyundai to the punch with all your info.
I forgot to include this tidbit in my ealier post, but I got it from one of the Hyundai reps at the NY Auto Show that HMA killed off the Elantra Wagon for 2001 so it wouldn't steal sales from the Santa Fe SUV. I can only guess that HMA keeps putting off the introduction of the GT for the same reason.
The longer HMA waits on the GT's arrival, the more competiton it will face. The Protege 5, Pontiac Vibe/Toyota Matrix, Kia Rio Wagon and Focus 5-door are all waiting in the wings.
And good job tmundar. The saab is my favorite car, i think thats why i liked the elantra gt too. oh well, but i will get all the info i can.
Tom
Also, FYI, I live and work in the Harbor Area of LA and I pass by the Hyundai storage dock every day where the ships off load the cars from Korea. It's one of four or five such facilities in the US. If I/as soon as I see GTs on the lot, I'll post that info here. It's a big lot, but with the right location and equipment, I can see everything that's there.
So let's review...
1. Hyundai's NY auto show press relase says Summer, 2001
2. A decal on the window of the GT at the NY auto show said the car will be avaialble Fall, 2001
3. The Hyundai reps at the NY auto show said Christmas, 2001
OK, I'm confused. What gives? Hyundai should think about setting a firm release date lest they lose sales to the Protege 5 and Focus ZX5.
If I can find out anything more I'll post details.
Do you know what the numbers look like for the Northeast?
velly
Now, if only they made a Sonata 5-door. That would be the ultimate hatchback.
David
Nobuynissan - June 6? That's encouraging. I'm in NJ (E.Coast) so I'll contact a dealer soon about availability. Maybe those Hyundai reps at the auto show didn't know what they were talking about. You should be able to fit your dog in with the seat folded (unless you're going to let him drive). It's my estimate that the GT will have at least as much cargo space as the Kia Spectra.
BTW, if the GT never materializes I think we might just go with the GLS. What the heck, it's a neat car -- I'll just buy a bike/ski rack for the roof!!
CJA