Elantra N?

Also, this video's pretty fun (though that's true for all the Throttle House reviews, IMHO):

There's more differences than similarities between the two cars.
The N is a performance bargin. But to achieve that you forego a nice interior. It's also a little ugly IMHO. Resale value on Elantra's have been historically poor but the N may be the first exception. While Hyundai has come a long way it still may not hold up as well as a Toyota or Honda product in the long term.
I entertained both N offerings but I'd rather have a more well rounded Integra at this point in my life.

From what I'm reading about the Elantra N, it is better than anything I ever thought Hyundai could make. Although I probably won't get to test drive one, I'm sure I'd like it. We have been travelling a lot lately, and I always try to rent different brands of cars. We rented a similar Kia overseas that had a smaller turbo engine and I have to say, again, it was better than I expected.
However, I've been purchasing Honda cars without even test driving them since 2002 when we got an Odyssey Van that we kept for 10 years and 92,000 miles. We had exactly 2 non-maintenance repairs - a $2 clock light, and a $100 sensor during those 10 years. Have purchased or leased 3 Accords, another Odyssey and a TLX since. They may not have been as near flawless as the first Odyssey, but I still haven't been sorry yet.

It would definitely be on the shortlist of ones to check out if the Integra doesn’t pan out for me. It looks like a hoot, and I know that it placed first in a Car and Driver three-way comparison with the GLI and the Civic Si, where they praised how good it was despite an overabundance of settings and it’s general obnoxiousness. I kind of love it, but the only thing that gives me pause is whether or not I could live with it for a long time. The pops and bangs sound super fun, but I wonder if that would get old in a short amount of time, and as much as I wish I was solely concerned with the driving experience, I don’t know how livable the interior is. It’s got a lot of bells and whistles, sure, but it also seems like it might feel kind of cheap, even compared to the Si. I’m also a fairly large dude and I’d have to make sure I fit comfortably in those bolstered seats. I’d have to try one out, tbh.

benzaccord said:

From what I'm reading about the Elantra N, it is better than anything I ever thought Hyundai could make.

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I love me a hot hatch, but I would take this over the Veloster N any day of the week, for sure.

I feel like in 30 years time this is going to be looked back on like some sort of weird performance variant on an otherwise unremarkable car that was way better than it should’ve been. (Think the Dodge Omni GLHS, hahaha.)

It sounds like a great drive and 276 HP with 6MT or DCT is very appealing. But I really dislike Hyundai’s exterior design language as of late, and I’d want a 5-door.

houndrunner said:

I love me a hot hatch, but I would take this over the Veloster N any day of the week, for sure.

I feel like in 30 years time this is going to be looked back on like some sort of weird performance variant on an otherwise unremarkable car that was way better than it should’ve been. (Think the Dodge Omni GLHS, hahaha.)

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Omni GLH? 1986 or so? They made a Neon in the 90's, 00's (I think) with a crazy engine too, but I forget what it was called. They used to have rebadged Mitsubishi's as their hot hatches too - Dodge Colt Turbo?

With the Corolla GR, Elantra N, Civic R, and hopefully the Integra Type S - Times have not been better for those of us who want to drive a manual, and don't want to pay premium German brand prices. For those of us who have the $, may all of this will get BMW to start selling 6MT's again too.

Leehro said:

It sounds like a great drive and 276 HP with 6MT or DCT is very appealing. But I really dislike Hyundai’s exterior design language as of late, and I’d want a 5-door.

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If you want the added storage/practicality of a hatch, that narrows the field quite a bit, and the Elantra N is particularly egregious with the cross bracing behind the seats, even folded down. Absolutely a plus in the Integra column.

benzaccord said:

Omni GLH? 1986 or so? They made a Neon in the 90's, 00's (I think) with a crazy engine too, but I forget what it was called.

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Oooooh, was it the SRT-4 from the early aughts? That's a great call! Most people might simply go "ugh, a Neon" (and maybe they'd be mostly right), but folks in the know understand that car had the goods, especially for its time.


The thing ripped 0-60 in 5.6 seconds -- which is still faster than the current Si! Sheeeeeesh!

houndrunner said:

The pops and bangs sound super fun, but I wonder if that would get old in a short amount of time, and as much as I wish I was solely concerned with the driving experience,

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The pops and bangs can all be turned off, even in the custom N mode setting, which is cool. There's a dealership up in Prescott (about three hours north of me) that has one in ceramic white, but they've got a $3,800 markup in addition to (optional) add-ons. Sure wish it was closer to at least test drive; no one in Tucson has one.

Oh totally, but it's the principle of it. If it can do the pops and bangs, doesn't that mean it should do the pops and bangs? 😏

Either way, in reality I'd probably have to keep it quiet most of the time as I'm sure my wife and dog would hate it. Neighbors probably wouldn't be too stoked either. Although in the car's defense, even if you do shut it off, it's not like it's the most subtle car on the road. 😂

Just got a call about one in Phoenix coming in first week of June: MSRP of $35,095 + $5,000 market adjustment + $1,897 in required add-ons. Yet another sign of the apocalypse?

I guess another way to put it is this: If I got something as loud (figuratively and literally) as the Elantra N, I would kind of want to lean into it. I'd love to get one in Performance Blue and just embrace it for what it is as much as possible. But at the end of the day... maybe I should lean into being an adult instead lol

Woof -- just saw your post about the one in Phoenix. At over $40K, I'd 100% go with the Integra over the Hyundai at that price, pops and bangs be damned.

It's a crazy world, to be sure. Gives me more respect, for lack of a better word, for dealerships that don't add a markup and have reasonable and/or optional add-ons. Both the Toyota (Precision Toyota) and Subaru dealerships down in Tucson are that way, even for the high-demand GR86 and BRZ.

Just to wrap this up, I've been texting a rep from the three Hyundai dealerships in/around Tucson, and he said they've only gotten 1 MT Elantra N (and 1 Kona N, though those are all automatic, goofy little CUV rockets that they are) since they've gone on sale, which is crazy. They've been out for what, five months now? They've got none scheduled for the next 90 days with the exception of an automatic. And there's currently only 1 MT available in the state of Arizona right now (that white one up in Prescott). Insofar as customer orders, it's possible but the time frame is 6-9 months. No wonder dealers are adding market adjustments if Hyundai doesn't make these available--seemingly at all.

Glad at least that Acura appears to be building/releasing Integras at a faster clip.

I considered the Elantra N but the stick isn’t available with the moonroof. For me, that’s a deal breaker.

Agreed--the front end is pretty ugly as is now. This looks better.

I like the Savage Geese guys and they just put out their Elantra N review--I don't think I've seen them impressed by anything in this segment the way they were with this one. That said, they favored the DCT over the 6MT and made it clear that the N was much better as an track car straight off the lot than a daily driver.... and I'm still glad the Integra is coming: