WHEELS
4,0 00 OV VE E R HI CL ES !
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REVIEW • MOTOR MATTERS
2016 Hyundai Elantra
2016 HYUNDAI ELANTRA
The Hyundai Elantra sedan has risen from the ho-hum ranks to become one of our more well-liked compacts, in part due to its grown-up styling and improved feature set. Its handsome, economical traits combined with a solid safety record help it outshine stalwarts like the Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla in some measures, all the while surpassing most of the field when it comes to value. The Elantra is also offered in five-door GT hatchback guise, which is covered separately. For two model years in this generation, Hyundai also offered a two-door Elantra,but slow sells had it meet its end last year. In a relatively mild rework to the Elantra sedan lineup in 2014, the accomplished styling of the current car received new front and rear end treatments, with LED fillips around the headlamps on Sport and Limited sedan models. The Elantra wears a complex set of curves that collect in a swoop toward the rear end, where the boomerang door cuts give the look a shove forward. It’s an energetic exterior backed up with a daring cockpit, with an hourglass center console defining the space and doubling as a comfy knee rest. Base Elantras are lean and efficient, with a 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine standard. Rated at 148 horsepower and 131 pound-feet of torque, this powertrain is fairly smooth and accelerates respectably through a sixspeed automatic or a six-speed manual. There’s also a 2.0-liter four in the Elantra Sport, with 173 hp and 154 lb-ft of torque. It is also available with either a manual or automatic. Generally, the Elantra doesn’t feel as energetic or engaging as the best drivers in the class—the Mazda 3, for example. Its powertrains are slow to respond to
BASE PRICE
throttle inputs, and the steering could be quicker and more responsive, while it has been improved with better on-center feel, it’s feedback is still not especially natural. Ride quality is fine, however, and the Elantra soaks up road noise as well as or better than its competitors, with sound levels about as low as in some mid-size sedans. That’s an important metric for the Elantra, since its interior space spills over into mid-size territory. The Elantra is an excellent value on many fronts. By its spec sheet, it’s a mid-size vehicle, and it shows. The sedan’s front seats could use a little more bolstering and lateral support, as in the coupe, but on either, they’re surrounded by ample space in all directions. In back, the leg room is fine for adults, but head room can be tight, even for medium-height passengers. The Elantra’s interior has lots of useful cubbies and storage bins, including a covered one that sits ahead of the shift lever: it also contains the aux jack, a power point, and the USB port in an easy to reach module, perfect for connecting smartphones. All Elantra sedans are rated at five stars overall by the NHTSA. The IIHS calls it a Top Safety Pick, with an “acceptable” rating in the new small-overlap test and “good” scores in all other categories. Those 2015 ratings should carry over to the 2016 model year, as the car is mechanically unchanged. The Elantra sedan lineup now includes the SE, Value Edition, Limited, and Sport models. All Elantras come with power windows, locks, and mirrors; keyless entry; and (on automatic models) air conditioning; cruise control; Bluetooth with audio streaming; and telescopic steering. All versions can stream audio via the Pandora app and a USB connection. A 4.3-inch touchscreen radio
‘Magic’ oil plug probably comprised mostly of snake oil BY RAY MAGLIOZZI
Dear Car Talk: I write to you today about a mystery that has been bugging me for about 60 years. Growing up in Buffalo, New York, I had never been farther west than Cleveland, Ohio. In 1957, I drove to summer school at the University of Colorado in Boulder, a journey of 1,550 miles. In those days, radio reception was poor beyond the Mississippi River. In Kansas, the only station played the Everly Brothers and an infomercial for a product that would obviate the need for oil changes for the life of the car. For $5, I couldn’t resist. I soon received a box with an ordinary oil drainage plug; soldered to the end was a tiny chain of three or four links of a whitish metal. The oil had been only slightly discolored on the long road trip from
$17,250
with a rearview camera EPA est. MPG 28/38 is now standard on the Sport and Limited SPECS • Ample interior cubbies and storage sedans, and an option • Aux jack, power point & USB Port on the SE. • Five-star NHTSA rating For 2016, Hyundai • Bluetooth with audio streaming has made several price-focused • Telescopic steering packaging changes. • 4.3-inch touchscreen radio A new Elantra Value • Rearview camera on Sport & Limited Edition does exactly sedans what the name • Excellent fuel economy implies, saving buyers a cool grand with packaged content. For just $550 more than the price of an Elantra SE, the Value Edition includes different 16-inch alloy wheels, a power tilt-and-slide sunroof, leather coverings for the steering wheel and shift knob, proximity key with push button start, heated front seats, chrome beltline molding, aluminum sill plates, turn signals integrated into the side mirrors, and a tilt-andtelescope steering wheel. The Elantra Limited now comes with proximity key and dual-zone auto climate control as standard, which represents a $600 savings. And the Elantra Sport does away with its previously standard leather seats and power sunroof to get a lower starting price. Elantra sedan fuel economy tops out at 28 mpg city, 38 highway, or 32 combined for the automatic 1.8-liter; the least-efficient variant carries a 28-mpg combined rating. www.thecarconnection.com
Buffalo, but soon became darker and darker due to a lot of driving on dirt roads, then prevalent in the Boulder area. It soon became almost coal-black, so I headed to a nearby garage for an oil change. The grease monkeys doubled over with laughter when I showed them the oil plug, which they dutifully installed. But the joke was on them: Even driving many miles on dirt roads, the oil remained clear. A year later, it was still clear. What was the composition of this drain plug and links? Thanks! -- James You found the Fountain of Youth, James. Ponce De LaSunoco spent years in search of that. I have no idea what it was, but I’m sure it didn’t work. There is no magic potion or magic links -- not even Jimmy Deans -- that obviates the need for oil changes. There’s a long history in this country of snake-oil products that separate otherwise-reasonable people from their money and don’t do diddly. And most people who fall for these scams use the same logic you did: “Hey, it’s only $5!” Although today it’s more likely to be, “Hey, it’s only $59.95!” I don’t know exactly why your oil was filthy during that first change and less filthy a year later. It could have to do with the tremendous amount of blow-by you created driving at high speeds across the country with
all of your worldly belongings in the car. Whereas once you were in Boulder, after that oil change, you mostly were driving slower on local roads, for much shorter trips, and without all your stuff weighing down the car. And it’s not unusual for oil to get very dark very quickly once it starts to get dark from contamination. Or maybe, like lots of other people who spend their money on this stuff, you see what you’re hoping to see. But whatever happened, I can assure you that those magic links had absolutely nothing to do with it. However, if you don’t believe me, I’d be happy to solder together a new set of magic links for you for only $59.95. Let me know. *** Click and Clack offer a strategy for everyone who’s shopping for a car. Find yours in the pamphlet “Should I Buy, Lease, or Steal My Next Car?” Send $4.75 (check or money order) to Car Talk/Next Car, 628 Virginia Drive, Orlando, FL 32803. *** Got a question about cars? Write to Car Talk in care of this newspaper, or email by visiting the Car Talk website at www.cartalk.com. (c) 2016 by Ray Magliozzi and Doug Berman Distributed by King Features Syndicate, Inc.