The Hyundai Elantra N is almost five years old and it’s still one of the most fun new cars you can buy under $75,000. Not only is it much quicker in the real world than a Toyota GR Corolla, it’s communicative and playful to a degree that no other current front-wheel-drive car can quite match. This includes Honda’s pedigreed Civic Type R.
However, there is one way in which the Elantra N is objectively on the back leg compared to the Honda Civic Type R, and that’s power. While Hyundai’s sport compact pumps out 276 horsepower and 289 lb.-ft. of torque, Honda’s hottest hatch makes 315 horsepower and 310 lb.-ft. of torque. That’s the sort of difference you’ll notice on a power-friendly racetrack, but it seems that Hyundai has a plan. The marque’s teased the next Elantra N’s engine on Instagram, and it might just be growing in displacement.
The teaser video starts with an absolutely glowing downpipe. A downpipe that doesn’t look like the one on a standard Elantra N. See, the two-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine in the current Elantra N uses a four-bolt flange to connect its downpipe to its turbocharger. In this shot, we can clearly see that this downpipe is sealed to the hot side of the turbocharger using a V-band. While it would be easy to brush this off as simply another sort of turbocharger, not only has Hyundai used V-bands for this in other applications, another shot in the teaser video gives us much to be excited about.
Hang on, that isn’t the valve cover of the G4KH two-liter motor in a regular Elantra N. Judging by the ribbing of the cover and the location and depth of the oil filler hole, it looks like the valve cover for the 2.5-liter G4KP engine seen in models like the Sonata N-Line. In Hyundai’s aforementioned reasonably spicy midsize sedan, this unit pumps out 290 horsepower and 311 lb.-ft. of torque on regular gas. That’s 14 more horsepower and 22 more lb.-ft. of torque than the Elantra N does on premium fuel. Crucially, it comes hitched to the same sort of eight-speed wet-clutch DCT that’s already available in the Elantra N, just without the sport compact’s limited-slip differential.
It definitely seems like Hyundai’s testing something special because although it’s fielding one entry in the standard two-liter TCR class, it also has two entries in the SP 4T class, both bearing the designation “RP.” Could that stand for Race Prototype, perhaps? The SP 4T class is for turbocharged cars with up to 2.6 liters of displacement, lending additional plausibility to the 2.5-liter theory. Underneath the dazzle camouflage, it’s fairly obvious these RP cars feature a different aerodynamic package than the TCR car, and Hyundai has confirmed that “The brand-new cars are powered by a pre-production version of a new engine, intended as the replacement for the current two-litre powerplant that lies at the heart of the road-going Elantra N.”
Given how Hyundai’s familiar 2.5-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine already makes strong power, can probably have a few more ponies juiced out of it on premium fuel, and is part of Hyundai’s latest Smartstream engine family, it would be a logical choice for the next Elantra N. If Hyundai does just that, the power gap between the Elantra N and the Honda Civic Type R could basically be eliminated.
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Regardless of what’s under the hoods of these prototypes, we’re going to find out how they perform at the ADAC 24h Nürburgring next month, with race weekend happening from May 14 to May 17. Considering how bumpy and punishing the Nordschleife already is, running these pre-production engines around the clock on what is generally considered the world’s greatest racetrack sounds like a solid stress test. Hyundai already did it once with the two-liter engine in the current Elantra N, so we can likely expect more details on this new powertrain relatively soon.
Top graphic image: Hyundai
Sounds promising. I’ve driven my neighbor’s and my only complaint is the FWD. There are too few RWD options if you don’t want to deal with German reliability.
They should take the money they’re putting in power train upgrades and use it on the interior instead. I tried to like the EN but the touchpoints still felt like the rental-spec version on which the car is based.
People had the same complaint about the EVO back in the day.
It was my complaint with the WRX too, but that was more infotainment related. I was coming out of a Mazda so my standards may have been skewed.
I like the Elantra N, it gets you most of what a Type R does for less, but I still would go Type R over Elantra N even if I was a more budget minded shopper. The resale on the Type R is strong enough that I’d wager if you looked at a total cost of ownership the Type R comes out ahead. Of course this only matters if buying new.
Put the $10-12k you save by buying the Hyundai in the market. You will absolutely come out ahead that way financially.
CTR is great but it’s 35% more in cost and definitely not 35% more car, especially when a GRC is only 15% more than the EN.
This! And don’t forget about that tax and insurance difference. But even accounting for this, I looked at recent comps on Cars and Bids for both vehicles and 2 year old Elantra Ns sold for 28% off MSRP. The Civic Type Rs lost 33%. Dealers are pricing used CTRs at $40+ but I think they aren’t selling for anywhere near that.
Cars like this are hobbies, not investments. Buy the car you want to drive.
It absolutely is.
I wonder if the defunct Veloster with the truncated body would be better suited to go up against the Golf and GR Corrolla?
Eh, I’d rather see an AWD system for putting that kind of power down rather than trying to chase the Type-R’s horsepower rating and track times through FWD. This seems like it would appeal to the rare soul who will actually utilize it for track events. Or for the Street Bois who want on-paper specs for their big-winged fart-rockets.
“Not only is it much quicker in the real world than a Toyota GR Corolla”
In which ways, specifically? The N is only a half-second quicker around VIR in C&D’s Lightning Lap (and that’s the regular GR, the Morizo is quicker) and in their standard instrumented testing of manual versions the GR is faster in every metric but the 5-60 where turbo lag shows up.
N DCT vs GR w/ torque converter auto is a different story. But those aren’t the droids you’re looking for.
The morizo is only faster because of the cup 2 tires, which the N doesn’t get.
OK, but the regular GR is still only a half second slower than the N on a 3-minute course and faster than the N in most C&D test metrics. Thomas claimed the N is “much quicker in the real world” but provides no evidence to back that claim.
The Morizo and its tires aren’t the core argument here.
I was just bringing up the fact that the N is plenty capable without needing the weight/complication of AWD. Op is correct though that AWD would be nice.
Happy owner of a GR Corolla here. More HP, all wheel drive, and I think it looks better. (I will give you that the interior is very much generic commuter car.)
I’ve never quite understood the recent disdain heaped on the current Corolla’s interior. I like the clean minimalist dash design, it’s made of padded materials, and the build quality seems solid. Granted, in lower trims the door panels are hard plastic but in the upper trims they padded and stitched. It’s a nice interior for an economy car.
I suppose at the GR’s pricepoint, they probably should have made the upgraded touchpoints standard.
I may also be skewed by my Fiesta ST. You want to see a plasticky rattletrap interior that gets louder and junkier with every passing mile?
I think it’s just with the higher $ people expected more refinement? It doesn’t both me at all, I added some CF overlays to the piano black bits. The seats are comfy. Nothing rattles (yet).
Or maybe people just like to complain? That seems possible.
The lack of rear seat room would be a deal breaker for me. I didn’t buy my N for legroom but the second row has been SO useful with my nephew being born a week before I got the car.
I’ve driven a Elantra N, while fun and definitely the budget friendly choice, I couldn’t shake the “Temu Type R” feeling from it. The owners know that too because their first thing is to always bring up that “it’s cheaper than a Type R though, and almost as fast” Hyundai hasn’t quite nailed that overall feeling that Honda has. Plus, the whole Octane learning is just lazy ecu programming out of the box. I am glad though they’re serious about continuing on with it since we need more affordable enthusiast choices in the market.
I’d take a hard look if its comes in manual,has a better interior than GRC , and doesn’t come with those legendary CTR dealership markups
The current EN has a better interior than the GRC, the Corolla interior is kinda crap. FWIW you have been able to get a Type R for MSRP for the past 2 years. It just takes more than 10 minutes of looking around. I have 3 friends that all bought FL5s for MSRP in the past year without much trouble.
Here’s hoping the price doesn’t balloon along with the displacement. And the don’t forget to prioritize fun as they start chasing more speed.
I misread.
I read this as a Hyundai Wagon.
I was very excited for a second, and then, saw an Elantra sedan, and was disappointed.
Make it a hatchback and you somewhat have my attention. I want to buy a fast, fun hyundai. I don’t want to buy premium at every fill-up. I’m considering an aftermarket ECU for my Miata just to make it worth the cost of premium.
In any case, I want a small (ish) hatch / wagon that offers enough fun to scratch two itches.
I do not love my Forester and would be thrilled to have a reason to get rid of it.
Don’t modern ECUs self calibrate to whatever fuel and air they have to work with? Especially on turbo engines it seems almost necessary to do that. My mom’s Volvo S40 would noticeably stumble for a couple seconds and ping for a moment then regain its composure the first time you gave it wide open throttle at low engine speed after filling the tank with regular when it had been running on premium. I suspect it’s much more than just adjusting the spark advance even if it feels that way.
My Miata is old (2001). I don’t believe the ECU has the ability to adjust for octane. It just goes full send or limp mode if it senses detonation.
I’m OK with premium on a non-commuter car, it was the genesis SUVs that took premium that I was annoyed about. I’d put this hyundai in the commuter / daily category.
It might be more common or maybe necessary on a turbo, bur the engine in that Volvo was actually a Mazda, same series as the Miata.
I’m very curious how this next N car turns out. Hyundai has had a great run of really fun N products, and part of that reason is because they didn’t focus on one-upping their competitors. I never needed my Veloster N to “beat” a Type R; I just needed it to be really fun at a mercifully attainable price. I’m worried that performance creep will mean price creep as well as self-seriousness creep. I’m also worried that since (I don’t believe) the 2.5T was ever offered with a stick, it would be a huge miss if this new N compact doesn’t come in 3-pedal spec. We shall see.
Shame the Elantra is so ugly that none of this matters.
But the depreciation curve is impressive.
No uglier than the Type R or GR in my book.
My kingdom for this kind of hardware in a mature wrapper.
What if we stopped referring to motor vehicles as “weapons”? We wouldn’t really lose anything, would we?
Given the rash of pedestrian fatalities around my neck of the woods lately (DC), it’s unfortunately warranted.
“If you want to murder someone and get away with it, run them over with your car.”
A Metal Gear Solid reference? In THIS economy?!
Can you get it with that wrap?
Hyundai is never going to surpass the CTR, and I said that as a Kona N owner. Even if they make a car that’s better in every measurable and conceivable way they’re never going to have the reputation or pedigree that Honda has…and the Civic Type R has achieved an absolutely mythical status at this point.
It’s probably the single most venerated attainable car of the last decade. I actually don’t want to go test drive one because I’m afraid that it’s been so universally praised at this point that I’ll inevitably be disappointed. But anyway…it’s not happening.
Some of it is fair (Hyundai should stop building cars that blow up, murder children, are easily stolen, etc), some of it JDM bro/fanboi groupthink…but it’s never going away.
That mythical status is very much tied to your age at the release of The Fast and the Furious.
For people older or younger at that age it was either “slightly interesting forbidden fruit” or “I can do better than that with a stock Civic and a few thousand on ebay.”
I shopped the Type R on my last purchase and it doesn’t live up to its pricetag. You look ridiculous stepping out of it if you’re over 27 years old. It doesn’t offer much more power than competitors (or even the lower versions on the same chassis). That power just comes from more stress put on the same engine, meaning that it’s going to be more expensive to maintain / repair.
On the contrary, at 53 I look super duper cool stepping out of a Type R. Everyone says so.
Came here to say this as a 30-year-old with two little kids that love my FK8. I’m the “cool dad” in the pickup line.
Power isn’t everything. My FK8 feels significantly more motorsports focused than my Si did before. My FBO MK7 GTI may have been faster in a straight line but couldn’t hold pace on a twisty road with the Type R. Don’t get me started with autocross or track times too. Also maintenance wise the only expense more than the Si is brakes. Im at 110k miles on my Type R and so far only the pads and rotors for the 4 piston Brembos upfront cost a bit more comparatively.
As background, I was raised on Gran Turismo but have always found Fast and Furious revolting. I always respected the whole Honda Type R thing, never had an inkling of desire for one. S2000 yes, but Type R didn’t raise an eyebrow. When FK8 came I couldn’t believe my eyes. Let’s just say it wasn’t for me. But when I first got to check one out at an auto show, I was gobsmacked by how practical it was. I knew everyone loved how it drove, and thought jeezus if this thing weren’t hideous I’d have one.
I knew from the first test mule pics of what would be the FL5 I was going to have to have one. I didn’t get one right away due to markups being too crazy, but finally got it in late 2023. I felt it lived up to the hype, and most of the criticisms were overblown. Still, I traded it away after a year. What did it in was that my GR86 was so much more fun to drive that it felt like a bit of a waste having an FL5 as effectively a winter beater. I traded it for something more practical (if that was even possible!) and automatic 🙁 so that my wife could drive at least one of my vehicles. She can drive stick just fine but basically won’t do it unless a life is on the line.
My plan is to get another FL5 in a few years to be my fair weather daily once my oldest kid gets his license and I give him the keys to my current daily (and I make some more garage space.) I can’t imagine anything else might come to sway me from that plan, but I will definitely be keeping my eye on the Hyundai. Hyundai is currently semi-irrationally disqualified from consideration for a new car by me, but I try to keep an open mind and if the new Elantra N steps up closer to the Type R in the ways I appreciate and the price is right I could see giving it a go.
I, too, agree that Hyundai will never surpass Crash Team Racing. It was the closest Sony ever got to a Mario Kart type game.
Good luck with that. Yeah…. Think I would be sticking with the Honda versus whatever this thing might be, which given its a Hyundai of late means its going to eat the engine bearings and drink quarts of oil between fillups- just like not just my former boss but my current boss and his Santa Fe.