I’m a sucker for diving deep into why a specific name is chosen for something, so after spending some time with the 2021 Hyundai Elantra I was curious where its namesake came from. Apparently “Elantra” is a play on the word “elation”, the feeling of great happiness and exhilaration. Ironically, as little as a decade ago, I wouldn’t have placed the Hyundai Elantra and the word elation in the same sentence. Heck, the entire “economy” compact sedan segment as a whole wasn’t terribly exciting than either; the Elantra was merely following the pack.
Thankfully this is a new era and not only is the Hyundai Elantra blazing a new path for itself, it’s actually proven to be one my favorites in the segment. Across its entire lineup, Hyundai has stepped up and injected energy into what used to be somewhat bland vehicles. Nowhere is that more evident than in the new Hyundai Elantra. I’m not entirely sure how many Dad Drivers out there will have a need for a compact sedan but I’m sure they’re out there. Where ever they are, this is the car they should be seeking out.
What Zoë Liked About the 2021 Hyundai Elantra
Zoë is still a terrorizing toddler with a wandering attention span but every time I opened the garage door the week I had the Elantra, her eyes went straight toward it. It’s a sharp looking car, no doubt, but if I was a betting man – and I am – I’d wager it was the “Intense Blue” paint job my test vehicle came in that drew her eye. Take a look at the photo below for yourself and feel the magic of that deep blue intoxicate your eyeballs. I recently saw another 2021 Elantra on the road that had a very respectable red paint job, but all I could think of as I admired it was how anyone would choose any other hue other than this blue. It’s definitely intense.
What This Dad Digs About the 2021 Hyundai Elantra
Cool as Ice – Texas suffered a snow and ice storm during the week I reviewed the Elantra and as it sat safely in my garage all I could think was, “This car looks so slick, even ice wouldn’t make it slip.” Bad Dad joke, I know. But it’s difficult to argue with the fact that Hyundai knocked it out of the park with this seventh generation redesign of the Elantra. It’s longer, wider and complimented with a super sexy fastback rear end. Even my Dad, who had his share of 1960s and 19070s muscle cars, spent some time admiring the sporty nature of the 2021 Elantra. From nose to tail, there are hard but aesthetically pleasing angles that give it an aggressive stance without being annoyingly so. Just when you think you’ve seen it all when it comes to car design, Hyundai manages to create originality here. I especially like the triangular side body creases, the slopping hood line that melts down into an impressive grill, and the aforementioned fast back. This car begs to be viewed from all kinds of angles.
Design and Function, Hand in Hand – Hyundai didn’t stop at exterior sleekness but also raises the bar inside the 2021 Elantra. Its Interior design is modern and eye-catching without being offensive. There are plenty of sleek touches throughout the cabin but what stands out the most is how Hyundai arranges its essential components around a functional design. What does that mean? Take the 10.3-inch digital instrument cluster for instance. I’m a big proponent of less screens in automobiles but this digital instrument cluster is unobtrusive, a breeze to manage, and easily visible even in broad daylight. There are options to change the style of the gauges, including a fun option that changes the normal round gauges into 3D boxes. On the flip side of that, Hyundai does offer a 10.3 inch infotainment screen in some of the Elantra trims but the SELECT trim I tested came with the 8-inch version. Honestly, that screen size was more than enough for a vehicle this size and allowed for physical buttons to flank the screen for easy access to essential functions.
Plus a smaller infotainment screen lends itself to the minimalist nature of the dash design. Everything expands out nicely from the center infotainment stack in the dash and flows into the classy door design. I’m still not certain what the giant hand grip that splits the passenger size from the driver’s side is meant to accomplish, but that’s not the only interesting mystery about the Elantra’s interior. More on that later.
As Spacious as a Compact Car Gets – Being a tall Dad requires me to duck and contort myself to enter and exit smaller vehicles which is what I fully expected to do in the 2021 Elantra. Thankfully I was proved wrong. There is enough space in the Elantra’s interior that I almost forgot this was a compact car. Leg room in both front and back were very generous and headroom, even in the backseat, was accommodating. Placing Zoe’s car seat directly behind the driver’s seat did leave little room for her legs but when place in the middle of the backseat, she was fine. There isn’t a whole lot of space throughout the cabin to store all your baby/toddler accessories but the generous trunk space makes up for it.
Bright Driving – Words like spunky, energetic and peppy come to mind when describing the “behind the wheel” experience of the 2021 Elantra. While it won’t launch powerfully from a complete standstill, the 2.0-L Inline 4 engine under the hood produces more than enough propulsion with its 147 horsepower and 132 lb-ft of torque. You’ll hear this puppy whine a little if you push it into higher gears quickly but it’s to be expected. Handling felt confident enough, even if I didn’t always feel quite as grounded as I would have liked. If you’re looking for power and true speed, Hyundai offers performance options in the Elantra N line.
Safety from a Low Perspective – In the driver’s seat of the Elantra, you’ll feel lower to the ground so it’s slightly unnerving to traverse streets that are filled with large vehicles. Thankfully, all trim levels of the 2021 Elantra come standard with automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection, active lane control, and automatic high beams. Various other safety features like blind spot monitoring and automatic rear braking are also available as an add-on.
What this Dad Down-voted on the 2021 Elantra
A Price Bordering on Steep – The base version of 2021 Elantra starts at $20,645 and comes with nifty features like an 8 inch touchscreen. This is actually a great price, especially considering that I was fan of that smaller screen, but after experiencing the amenities of the higher trims, it will be difficult to settle for anything less. Problem is, the top tier Limtied trim starts at $26,445. You get upgrades like a bigger screen and a wireless phone charger but that price tag is flirting dangerously close to being too steep, particularly for a compact car. The Select trim, which is the trim level I tested, seems like a more manageable level to be at. The screen is the right size and with the added premium package – which brings along the 17-inch alloy wheels and dark chrome – it comes in a grand less at $25,100.
Is this the right size car for a Dad Drivers – During my week spent driving the 2021 Elantra, I kept trying to picture myself picking up and dropping Zoe at various places throughout the various stages of her life. Dropping her off at the sitter for the day is one thing, when all I have is a car seat and one bag. But what happens when she’s a teenager and I’m picking her and her friends up after school from lacrosse practice? Will there be room for everyone and their gear? It’s a specific hypothetical situation to imagine, I know, but it made me realize how quickly I could run out of space in the Elantra as Zoe grows up and as my wife and I add more members to our family. If you’re a light traveler, the Elantra might be a perfect fit but for this Dad Driver, it might just be a fun car to drive on solo runs. Now, if Zoe was already 18 and needed a car to get around in, I would take a seriously hard look at this Elantra as her ride. The Elantra feels like a perfect starter vehicle for a teenager.
The Elantra Summed Up in a Kick-Ass, Random Circle
My admiration for the Elantra can be summed up in one of its interior quirks: Directly to the left of the digital gauge cluster is a dashed, circular pattern with a horizontal line floating in the middle. At first I expect this to do something or become part of the gauge cluster in some interesting way once I turned the car on. That didn’t happen and touching the design didn’t initiate any cool hidden features. I began to wonder if this was space used for a feature on another trim level of the Elantra, but after some research I discovered that it wasn’t.
Apparently this is simply an added design element that has no function. Now, I’m all for added design elements but it surprised me that Hyundai placed one is such a prominent place and with no direct tie to the rest of the car’s interior design. Its mysterious and enigmatic, not to mention ballsy.
And maybe that’s exactly what the compact car segment needed: someone to be ballsy.
Phillip is a filmmaker, an award-winning playwright, screenwriter and craft beer aficionado. He writes about cars, car tech, and various other cool Dad things. He lives, works and plays in Dallas, Texas.
