The interior of the Hyundai Elantra Sport is all black with red stitching.
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Fast facts
- Model: 2017 Hyundai Elantra Sport - Exterior color: Ceramic White - Interior color: Black - Engine: Four-cylinder, 1.6-liter turbo - Horsepower: 201 - Transmission: Seven-speed automatic, dual-clutch - Fuel economy: 33 mpg highway, 26 mpg city - Local dealer: Long Hyundai, International Drive - Price (as tested): $26,101
The formula for adding a "sport" trim to any car line is tried and true.
Black out the interior and the grill, grow the wheels, slap on a deck lid spoiler, encase the exhaust tips in bling, and add $1,000-$1,500 to the base price.
Hyundai, the Korean car-maker, is gaining a reputation as a company that likes to walk up to the chalkboard, erase the established formula and dazzle the world with a new one.
The new, 2017 Hyundai Elantra Sport compact sport sedan is a good case in point. Hyundai has taken a competent compact car and raised its performance profile in meaningful ways. In addition to the cosmetic upgrades often associated with a "sport" trim, Hyundai tore into the guts of the base Elantra to equip it with bigger brakes, a multilink rear suspension setup, and a new 1.6-liter turbocharged engine.
In the process, it transformed the Elantra from a solid compact with a bullet-proof warranty, to a competitive sports sedan capable of battling the likes of the VW Jetta GLI and the Ford Fiesta ST.
After several days in our tester provided by Hyundai, the description that comes to mind is "Audi lite." The Elantra Sports build quality is impeccable; this is as solid a car as has ever been built for this price. It also has the smile-inducing body lines often associated with the work of designer Peter Schreyer, a former Audi design star.
Our tester lists for $26,110, which includes a bountiful "premium package" ($2,400) with such goodies as navigation, 8-speaker Infinity audio, sunroof, blind-spot detection and rear cross-traffic alert. The base price before freight and options is $22,760.
The sales management staff at the Long Hyundai dealership on International Drive says it may be some weeks yet before the Elantra Sport drops here. So, check with them frequently if you are interested in a test drive. The Elantra is the dealership's best-selling model.
Hyundai is said to have sold about 10 million Elantras since the car was introduced in the 1990s. The company expects the new Sport model to account for about 10 percent of Elantra sales.
STYLING AND COMFORT
When we first tested the redesigned Elantra a year ago, we noted that Hyundai designers had traded "flash for class." The new car is more buttoned-down than the more flamboyant previous-generation Elantra.
Design-wise, the "Sport" model doesn't stray far from the base car. Gorgeous 18-inch alloys, more aggressive front and rear fascias and wrap-around LED running lights give the Sport a bit more presence and personality. A coup-like roof-line results in an aggressive profile that knifes through wind resistance and helps yield a 33 mpg highway (26 mpg city) fuel economy rating.
Inside, the all-black interior is assembled with high-quality materials including attractive plastics, imitation carbon fiber accents and high quality hides on the seats. Front seats are wide through the hips - a plus for us older drivers - and rear-seat leg room is good.
The dash design is clean and functional. Large rotary gauges are easy to read and an eight-inch touch screen does a good job of showcasing an excellent telematics system that includes Apple's CarPlay and Android Auto.
Standard equipment includes 1.6-liter turbocharged engine that improves horsepower to 201, about a third more than Elantras equipped with normally-aspirated engines. Also standard on the "Sport" are leather upholstery, a flat-bottom steering wheel, 18-inch alloys, SiriusXM radio and alloy sport pedals.
PERFORMANCE AND DRIVING IMPRESSIONS
The 2.0-liter, four-cylinder engine (147 hp) on most Elantras is entirely sufficient for most situations, but the turbocharged 1.6-liter engine on the Sport changes the car's driving dynamics entirely. The turbo can even be paired with a manual transmission for more driver involvement, but its available seven-speed dual-clutch automatic is the real show-stopper. Much like VW's duel-clutch trannys, the Hyundai gear-box makes swift, smooth shifts without interrupting torque to the wheels.
We did notice a little stutter in the shifts from time to time, but the DCT sorts itself out quickly and gets down to business. The little turbo moves the Elantra Sport from zero-to-60 mph in the mid-six-second range (according to Car & Driver) - quick enough to send trickles of adrenaline through your body.
The sport-tuned suspension makes sprinting up our mountain roads more fun than you should be allowed to have in an under-$30,000 machine.
BOTTOM LINE
Great price, baked-in fun, and a 100,000-mile power-train warranty: What's not to like? The Elantra stable now has a thoroughbred.
Contact Mark Kennedy at mkennedy@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6645. Follow him on Twitter @TFPCOLUMNIST. Subscribe to his Facebook updates at www.facebook.com/mkennedycolumnist.