2024 Hyundai Elantra Quick Spin: Softened and Sharpened

The Hyundai Elantra is one of the fresher compact sedans on the market, and it gets a bit fresher for 2024 thanks to a mild … uh, freshening that consists of a styling face-lift, interior revisions and additional safety equipment. The current-generation Elantra debuted for the 2021 model year, and among its mainstream-brand rivals, only the Honda Civic (which was redesigned for 2022) and Subaru Impreza (redesigned as a hatchback-only model for 2024) boast newer designs. I took a brief drive in an Elantra Hybrid Limited during the Midwest Automotive Media Association’s 2024 Spring Rally in Elkhart Lake, Wis., to sample the 2024 updates.

Related: 2024 Hyundai Elantra Gets Safer, Sleeker

Outside of the high-performance N variant, the Elantra Hybrid Limited is the priciest model in the sedan-only Elantra roster. It starts at $30,600 (all prices include destination), and that’s more or less fully loaded. The only extra-cost options are Serenity White paint ($470) and accessory items such as splash guards and a trunk cargo net. The sole option on my test car was a $210 set of carpeted floormats that nudged the price to $30,810.

A Softer Touch

As detailed in our 2021 Elantra review, one of our primary gripes with the model-year 2021-23 Elantra is its so-so interior materials. The updates for 2024 don’t suddenly turn the Elantra into a class leader in cabin ambiance, but they are definitely a step in the right direction. The front door panels have some soft-touch surfaces that were previously hard plastic. The upper portion of the panels is still hard plastic, and the new soft-touch surfaces are still not super cushy, but they’re better than they were before. The Limited trim’s new synthetic leather upholstery looks and feels quite nice, and on my test vehicle, it was accented by heather-gray cloth accents on the door panels and front seatbacks that added some texture and visual interest.

As before, the fully digital gauge cluster and integrated 10.25-inch infotainment touchscreen also add to the upmarket feel (the latter is now standard on SEL trims and above). The sleek, one-piece look of the instrument panel and infotainment screen makes the Elantra’s dashboard look futuristic, even if the section to the left of the steering wheel is still an odd blank space that serves no function other than to visually balance the gauge cluster, I guess?

Tech Updates

Limiteds now come standard with an eight-speaker Bose audio system in place of the base six-speaker system, and Hyundai has also improved the Elantra’s ability to accommodate devices. The available wireless charging pad has been redesigned, Wi-Fi hot spot capability has been added, and the front USB-A data/charging port has been supplemented by a USB-C charging port. The previously neglected backseat passengers get a pair of USB-C charging ports on all but the base SE trim.

Sadly, you’ll still need to use that USB-A data port for Apple CarPlay or Android Auto connectivity with the uplevel trims’ 10.25-inch infotainment screen; annoyingly, this system doesn’t offer wireless Apple CarPlay or Android Auto connectivity, even though the Elantra’s base infotainment system does. Some newer Hyundais, such as the redesigned 2024 Santa Fe, finally get that functionality on their top-level screens, but the 2024 Elantra hasn’t been so blessed.

Nevertheless, the Elantra Limited gets some welcome new tech and convenience features, some of which are rare for the compact-car class, as standard equipment. Hyundai’s Digital Key 2 feature allows you to use your smartphone as a key, and a 360-degree camera system, blind spot cameras, and front and rear parking sensors expand the roster of safety equipment. Unfortunately, the Elantra Hybrid Limited only gets the Digital Key and parking sensors, and not the 360-degree camera and blind spot camera display. Even though the Elantra isn’t a big, unwieldy vehicle, I like having the added peace of mind of a surround-view camera when parking or backing up in close quarters and a blind spot camera view when changing lanes or turning, and Hyundai’s systems work well in other vehicles we’ve tested with them.

All 2024 Elantras get standard rear-seat side-impact airbags and a rear seat belt reminder, and steering-wheel haptic feedback has been added to the lane departure steering assist, blind spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert systems. The haptic feedback is a big plus in my book; I’d much rather have a smartphone-style vibration through the steering wheel than shrill warning chimes when those alerts are triggered.

Sharp Styling Updates

Frankly, the Elantra’s origami-style bodywork is a bit much for me. Those sharply creased, Z-shaped slashes on the body sides make me imagine that Zorro somehow swashbuckled his way into Hyundai’s styling studio and went to town on the clay model, but the 2024 face-lift is an improvement. The front-end design is all-new, including the front fenders, and its “shark-nose” design gives the Elantra a slightly more aggressive look. The slim daytime running lights blend into a horizontal strip of aluminum trim for a slick, full-width look; this treatment stylistically syncs up the Elantra with Hyundai’s new Kona subcompact SUV and similarly refreshed-for-2024 Sonata mid-size sedan.

Powertrains Hold the Line

The Elantra’s powertrains carry over with no changes, but the hybrid variant’s powertrain continues to satisfy with its decent power and generally smooth operation. The 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine is paired with a 32-kilowatt electric motor for a total system output of 139 horsepower and 195 pounds-feet of torque. The acceleration is never thrilling, but it’s almost always enough, and the six-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission is nicely tuned; it exhibits none of the occasional bogging-and-surging feel or clunkiness in low-speed driving that plague some dual-clutch transmissions. Kickdowns for extra passing power are prompt and smooth, and the transitions from gas to electric power are also smooth, almost to the point of being undetectable. Likewise, the Elantra Hybrid is dynamically unobjectionable, with a pleasant ride, predictable handling and adroitly balanced steering with a buttery-yet-responsive feel.

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Versus the Competition

The Elantra’s competitors aren’t standing still, of course — a radically styled new Kia compact sedan named K4 is set to replace the Forte for 2025, and Volkswagen just unveiled its refreshed-for-2025 Jetta, to name a couple. Neither of those will offer a hybrid powertrain, however. Curiously, given the general proliferation of hybrid powertrains in recent years, they remain rather rare in the mainstream compact-car category. Outside of the Toyota Prius, which is really in a category by itself due to its radical 2023 redesign, the only other compact cars that offer a hybrid powertrain at the moment are the Toyota Corolla and the just-launched 2025 Honda Civic Hybrid.

I didn’t have a chance to measure fuel economy on my short drive, but Cars.com will soon publish real-world fuel economy results for this Elantra Hybrid and a Corolla Hybrid SE with all-wheel drive, so stay tuned for that. The Elantra Hybrid Limited’s EPA ratings of 49/52/50 mpg city/highway/combined are comparable with the Corolla Hybrid’s LE and XLE trims’ rating of 53/46/50 mpg. The Elantra Hybrid is also available in an entry-level Blue trim that boasts an EPA estimate of 51/58/54 mpg.

However, the Corolla Hybrid can be had with AWD, as previously mentioned, while the Elantra Hybrid is front-wheel drive only, and the arrival of the 2025 Civic Hybrid changes the competitive-set math even more. The Civic Hybrid’s EPA ratings (50/47/49 mpg) are right in the wheelhouse with the Elantra and Corolla hybrids, but it also packs 200 hp, handily outclassing the Hyundai and Toyota (the Corolla Hybrid makes 138 hp total). The new Civic Hybrid feels as zippy as its horsepower rating suggests, and it also has a Linear Shift Control feature that mimics the sound of a sporty automatic transmission crisply shifting gears. The Elantra Hybrid feels a bit staid by comparison.

The catch is that the Civic Hybrid is significantly pricier across the board — the top-line Sport Touring trim starts at $32,845, about $2,200 more than the Elantra Hybrid Limited and $4,500 more than the FWD Corolla Hybrid XLE, which starts at $28,345 but isn’t as well equipped as the Elantra.

With that in mind, the Elantra Hybrid Limited might be the ideal choice if you’re shopping for a fuel-sipping compact car and can live without the Civic’s spicier acceleration or the Corolla’s available AWD.

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