The fourth-generation Hyundai Elantra was redesigned by Americans in Hyundai's California Studio with radically different styling from pre-2007 models. It's vastly better looking than before; the Elantra no longer announces that it's for old folks. It's 2.2 inches taller, 2.0 inches wider, and 1.6 inches longer in wheelbase than the previous-generation Elantra. Still, with all the aggressive designs on the road nowadays, a compact car like the Elantra, clean as it is, won't catch many eyes.
The Hyundai Elantra received a lot of careful design work, and could pass for being seamless. At the front and rear fascia, the seams are so tight that the body appears to be one piece, until you look very closely. That quality fitting also reveals itself in the smooth opening and closing of the doors.
The Elantra's good looks move this Korean compact car toward the world of the stylish. Its sculpture is clean, with a high beltline running along at the body-colored door handles. It's got a subtle face, with trapezoidal headlamps having rounded edges, leading down and in to a cup-shaped grille with three simple chrome bars. At the bottom of the fascia is a long, slim air intake with two bars. It lacks definitive fender flares because it doesn't need them; the Elantra doesn't shout to be seen. The wheel covers, which are silver plastic on the GLS, look good from a distance.
The 2008 Hyundai Elantra is larger than pre-2007 models, making for a roomier car than the Toyota Corolla or Honda Civic. The added width and height increased the Elantra's cabin volume to 112.1 cubic feet, among the best in the compact class.
The front seats are quite comfortable, with good bolstering, and the standard beige cloth is smooth though unexciting. There's an especially large dead pedal to support the driver's left foot.
The blue backlighting of the gauges has a youthful spirit, and makes the driver feel like it's a cool car. The arcs of the speedo and tach are a thin blue line, with red needles pointing the way.
The radio control knobs are blessedly simple, like radio knobs should be. But we didn't care for the trim on the dash; imagine a silver plastic golf ball.
In the rear, the 35 inches of leg room is a half-inch more than the Civic and Nissan Sentra, and 1.5 inches less than the 2009 Corolla, give or take a tenth. But the Elantra has good hip room.
Elantra has a large trunk. For carrying cargo, the rear seatbacks fold down to allow a pass-through into the trunk. However, the opening isn't vast like the Nissan Sentra's.
Storage compartments are abundant. There's a neat box inside the top of the dash, and a sunglasses container in the headliner. The fixed door pockets have built-in bottle holders. Below the three climate control knobs there's a small companion to the glovebox, and below that, forward of the shift lever, there's also an open storage area. There are two cupholders behind that, and a double console under the driver's elbow.
Generally, the interior is notably quiet, for a compact car. Then the wind picked up, and as we watched the dust devils ahead of us on the road, we listened to the whooshing against the glass.
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