With the 2023 Elantra compact sedan, Hyundai offers something for almost everyone. The base Elantra SE costs less than half the average for a new car in America, and if you have more room in your budget you can upgrade to the SEL or Limited trim levels, the latter looking and feeling more upscale than its price tag suggests.
Elantra Hybrids get between 50 mpg and 54 mpg in combined driving, depending on whether you pick Blue or Limited trim. And they look exactly the same as a standard Elantra except for a discreet “Hybrid” badge.
If you like to drive, the sporty turbocharged Elantra N Line might be right for you. Or you can upgrade to the performance-tuned, 276-horsepower Elantra N, the “N” standing for Germany’s fabled Nürburgring racing track, where Hyundai performed much of the car’s development work, as well as Namyang, South Korea, home of Hyundai’s global R&D center. It is legit.
Across the lineup, from the Elantra SE to the Elantra N, prices range from $21,545 to $33,245, including a $1,095 destination charge. Our Elantra Limited test vehicle landed smack in the middle of this range, with an optional set of carpeted floor mats bringing the manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP) to $27,395 with destination.
For the 2023 model year, changes are few and far between. The SEL Convenience option package adds the 17-inch wheels from the Limited trim, and both this package and the N Line model get a 10.25-inch digital instrumentation panel paired with a 10.25-inch touchscreen infotainment system. The N Line is no longer available with a six-speed manual transmission, making the Elantra N your only choice if you want to row your own gears.
Now, as far as the Elantra’s look and feel are concerned, the exterior styling is somewhat controversial. We like it, but recognize that the design isn’t appealing to everyone. These days, that seems to be the way at Hyundai.
The same is not true of our test car’s interior. Decked out in what Hyundai calls Melange with Gray, the light gray leather seats and interior panels offered sharp contrast against the otherwise black cabin. Furthermore, the Melange descriptor presumably refers to the natty, tailored, upscale fabric Hyundai pairs with the Gray leather upholstery as a trim element. Hey Hyundai, Volvo much?
Add the test car’s undeniably original style, classy nighttime illumination and ambient lighting, and high-tech displays, and a 2023 Elantra Limited’s cabin is anything but entry-level. Well, except for the unfortunate hard plastic coating the upper door panels, which is the only disappointment in an otherwise sensational cabin for the price.
Review the Hyundai Elantra Limited’s spec chart, and you’ll come away unimpressed. Nobody gets excited about a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine making 147 horsepower at 6,200 rpm and 132 pound-feet of torque at 4,500 rpm. Add the standard continuously variable transmission (CVT), which Hyundai calls an Intelligent Variable Transmission (IVT), front-wheel drive (FWD), and the torsion-beam rear axle suspension, and people who know cars will fall asleep before they finish reading this sentence.
Surprisingly, the Elantra Limited’s driving dynamics defy expectations. Obviously, this Hyundai is not fast. Or even quick. But it is peppy, and the CVT/IVT is the best one in the compact car class. Plus, despite exploring its handling qualities on our mountainous, Southern California testing loop, the Elantra Limited averaged 33 mpg during the evaluation drive, coming close enough to the official EPA fuel economy rating of 34 mpg to call it good.
If you want an independent multi-link rear suspension instead of the test car’s torsion-beam rear axle setup, pick the N Line, either of the two Elantra Hybrids, or the Elantra N. However, before you spend the extra money, we’ll say that most people won’t care about the cost-effective standard underpinnings. Based on our evaluation, it doesn’t compromise the ride and handling to a noticeable degree.
In city and suburban driving, the Elantra Limited offers a communicative yet compliant ride, a properly calibrated brake pedal, and suitable steering effort levels. On the highway, the car is remarkably quiet for the segment.
Driven across the Santa Monica Mountains with enthusiasm, the Elantra Limited displayed remarkable composure. The car isn’t outright fun to drive like the Elantra N Line or, especially, the fantastic Elantra N. But it delivers consistent and repeatable handling qualities that engender trust in its driver.
Undoubtedly, the 17-inch wheels and 225/45 tires assist in this endeavor, but the suspension also attenuates excess motion almost immediately without feeling too firm or stiff. The car demonstrates a flat cornering attitude, the rubber rarely squeals, the stability control doesn’t freak out, and over rumpled sections of road the Elantra remains stable and predictable.
If there’s anything holding the Elantra Limited back, aside from outright power, its steering that doesn’t feel particularly quick or sharp in the canyons, and doesn’t produce much feel for the road. Also, the test car’s brakes did heat up and start to shudder a little bit, but they didn’t fade.
Overall, we find that the Elantra Limited’s driving dynamics amount to more than the sum of its specs chart, making for an unexpected but pleasant surprise.
Though the 2023 Elantra exudes style, it doesn’t come at the expense of practicality and utility. This is a roomy compact car that can easily serve a family of four.
Our test vehicle had proximity-sensing keyless entry, which means you don’t need to take the fob out and press a button to unlock the doors. Instead, the car recognizes the key fob is present, and allows the driver to enter the vehicle.
Get behind the steering wheel, which has two lower bars that serve as perfect hand rests for long trips, and you’ll find the Limited model’s leather-wrapped, six-way power driver’s seat to be quite comfortable. In addition, the test car had dual-zone automatic climate control and heated front seats, but ventilated front seats are available only in the Elantra Hybrid Limited.
Hyundai thoughtfully provides a manual seat-height adjuster for the front passenger, but rear-seat occupants may not find the Elantra as satisfying a place to spend time. The backrest is too reclined, forcing a slouched seating position. Also, the Elantra lacks rear air conditioning vents and USB charging ports. Taller people won’t like the hard plastic panels on the front seatbacks, either.
A hands-free trunk release feature is standard on some Elantra models, or you can use the deftly integrated trunk release button on the lid. The trunk offers 14.2 cubic feet of cargo space, and you can stow full-size suitcases on their sides, helping creative packers to make the most of the space. In addition, the Limited model’s 60/40-split folding back seat expands utility when necessary.
This year, Hyundai broadens availability of the Elantra’s 10.25-inch digital instrumentation and infotainment displays. Now you can get them in the SEL Convenience package and as standard equipment with N Line trim.
These screens carry over from before in the Elantra Limited, and they’re terrific. You don’t expect this kind of technology in a compact car from a mainstream brand, so it elevates the Hyundai the moment you press the engine start button and they come to life.
With this setup, standard infotainment features include Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, satellite radio, connected services, dynamic voice recognition, a navigation system, and wireless smartphone charging. Unfortunately, only the Bluetooth supports a wireless connection. To use Apple CarPlay or Android Auto, you’ll need to connect to a USB port.
We find this system easy to set up and use, and the voice recognition feature passed most of our tests. But when telling the system we wanted to listen to reggae music, it was unable to comply. Directing it to tune to the Bob Marley channel on SiriusXM produced success.
You’re also supposed to be able to control the climate system using voice commands, but in this case, the tech failed. After asking the digital assistant to change the temperature to 72 degrees, the car instead cranked the heat to the highest level and turned the seat heaters on to their highest setting. That’s not what we wanted.
Hyundai equips the Elantra Limited with a Bose premium audio system, but it doesn’t sound as good as it should. Bose components in some of the Elantra’s rivals, such as the Honda Civic and the Mazda Mazda3, produce appealing sound quality. That’s not the case here.
Our test vehicle also had Digital Key technology that transforms a compatible smartphone into the vehicle’s key. Elantras also offer something called Leading Vehicle Departure Alert, which ought to be standard equipment in every car. If you’re not paying attention while stopped in traffic or at a light, and the car ahead of you starts to move, this feature alerts you that it is time to go.
If it sounds like the 2023 Hyundai Elantra is hard to fault, you’re not going to find any reason for it when it comes to safety. The generous package of standard safety features includes automatic high-beam headlights, forward-collision warning with pedestrian detection, automatic emergency braking, lane-departure warning, lane-keeping assist, lane-centering assist, and a safe exit warning system. Other standard features include a driver monitoring system and a rear-seat reminder system.
Our Elantra Limited test car built on this foundation with cyclist detection, an intersection turning assist system, blind-spot monitoring, rear parking sensors, adaptive cruise control with stop-and-go capability, and Highway Driving Assist, which marries the adaptive cruise control with the lane-centering assist for highway driving.
We tested the Elantra’s driving assist systems on the Pacific Coast Highway (a.k.a. Route 1) in Camarillo, Ventura County farm roads, and on the notoriously busy 101 freeway, and it worked beautifully. From navigating the curve at the Sycamore Canyon Beach intersection to trudging up the Conejo Grade, all systems were go except for when the car encountered some mud-obscured road markings on a rural two-lane road.
The difference here is how smooth and subtle the driving aids are. For example, you can feel the lane-centering assist adding small steering inputs, but they’re barely evident rather than sudden or abrupt. It’s hard to trust technology that doesn’t seem sure of what it’s doing, but the Elantra’s Highway Driving Assist system is nothing but calm, cool, and collected. Better, you rarely feel like you need to override the tech’s inputs, and when you do, it’s easy rather than a struggle.
The 2022 Elantra earned a Top Safety Pick rating from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). As we wrote this review, the IIHS had not carried that rating forward for 2023. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) did give the 2023 Elantra a five-star overall rating, as well as five stars in all crash-test categories except frontal crash protection, where it received four stars.
Affordable by modern standards, the 2023 Hyundai Elantra is a cost-effective choice in a compact car, and that’s true before you consider some of the ownership perks associated with buying one.
Every new Hyundai gets the automaker’s industry-leading 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain warranty and five-year/50,000-mile bumper-to-bumper warranty with roadside assistance. Every new Elantra also comes with three years or 36,000 miles (whichever comes first) of complimentary scheduled maintenance and, when equipped with connected services, a free three-year subscription to Blue Link service.
In short, no matter if you’re buying the entry-level model, the fuel-efficient Elantra Hybrid, or the downright thrilling Elantra N, this Hyundai is one of the best deals on wheels.
