[jonesanto]

Hi, folks,

I know what you’re thinking….

Who would want to write an ownership review about a car no one probably knows about?

You will know why when you read this.

Before the journey:

I started my journey with Ikon 1.6 , a true drivers car. So fun to drive even by today’s standard I must say. After couple of years it started giving too many niggling issues and broke down on me twice, even after maintaining it really well. So I sold the car after using it for 6 years.

Reason to pick Elantra?

In 2006, I started travelling a lot, Bangalore to Kerala at least once a month at times twice. This demanded a diesel car. Back then choices were limited, after limiting it down to 3 cars. Octavia, Optra, Elantra. As you can see, I was looking for something powerful, all these cars were under 2.0 category, because of the highway runs I do. I felt Octavia was too cramped at the back, and it was little slow too. Optra was rejected due to a bad experience we had with a close family member. Despite many saying no to this car, I went ahead and bought the car and one of the best decisions I have taken when it comes to purchasing cars.

Booking and Delivery:

It was 2006, Hyundai hasn't started selling cars like today, they were getting recognized. I remember sales advisor was surprised and happy that I wanted to book Elantra, he pushed the top end version, called "Leather Pack", it came with company fitted leather seats other than that I don't think there were anything special. First my plan was to book white color, then I saw gold color in the showroom and I really liked it, don't think many people opted for this color. Since there were "zero" waiting period, it was delivered within a week, very smooth process. If I remember correctly it was 11.8 lakh on road. Insurance was offered for one year, mats, etc. Car came well equipped for its time.

I don't think extended warranties were available back then, even if it was offered no one was interested. It is now we know the value of extended warranties. Car came with 2 year 1 lakh kilometer warranty. Servicing this car so cheap, it was like servicing Santro, I heard Getz was more expensive Not sure if it was true.

So there began our journey…

What I liked:

GEM of an engine, CRDI is revv happy
Super highway stability
Equipment list offered
Brakes.... Oh, they are so good
Acres of space
Surprisingly it was cheap to maintain
Amazing build quality

What I did not like:

Low seating is the only thing I did not like about this vehicle
Steering

Engine, performance and braking:

If one thing this car is made for, it is the highways. Since car will be on the highways most of the time, I was looking for something very powerful, which won't lose its breath after 120 and 130. Primary reason to chose this car was its engine, 1991 CC Detroit diesel. It was fast, fuel efficient and great low end torque. Other than turbo lag, there was nothing to complain about.
Super flat and planted on the ground. Suspension is very stiff, which makes slow speed ride not so great, but with speed increase you enjoy the ride. Most of the time I drive alone and I never felt too tired at any point. Car comes with ABS, EBD, 4 wheel disks, two air bags, which was pretty good for a 2006 car. Braking of the car is amazing, par with some of the German high end cars (now age has taken its toll, still never gave me shrivels).

City drive is not that great, due to its size maneuvering through city is something that requires patience. Clutch is not that light, but not too hard either. It is a 2006 tuned engine/gearbox , so turbo lag is very much present. This also makes the city driving not very pleasant. But once the turbo opens, it’s a different story. Overtaking is a piece of cake, engine will never let you down, just make sure you’re in the turbo RPM limit. This car can achieve some serious speed on highway, the max I have touched is 180, there are lot of videos this car touching 200kmp, but anything above 120 on Indian roads is not safe, so I always keep it in 120 range. Refinement levels are good for a 2006 car, of course you can hear the big engine growling, it’s in very acceptable range, insulations are very good, I don’t see any cheap cost cutting anywhere. Car runs on Michelin now, been using Michelin for a while now, road noise is very less, not too much wind noise creeps into the cabin, overall a good job done with NVH.

Elantra is a cruiser, it will never kick you in the head when turbo opens, a linear push is what you get. Handling of the car is decent, nothing to brag about, it will just take you to A-B comfortably. Car doesn't like being push into corners. Turning radius is good for a car of its size, seating is low, so not much body roll felt. Passengers will be comfortable and happy.

Feedback from the steering is really bad in slow speeds, being it’s a hydraulics, it should be good, I never got to know why. It’s not a deal breaker either. Once you hit the highway, it weights up properly and you will like the feedback you are getting. I am very satisfied with cars ground clearance, even though the car looks low, ground clearance is good. Also car has got a very good engine guard, material used is very good and could take some serious abuse. It’s time to change my engine guard.

Gearbox has to be mentioned, it’s nowhere close to smooth , but it slots in perfectly, it has got that rugged feeling which I like. Never gave any trouble in this 11 years. You start the car, no vibration felt on gear knob or in the clutch. When driving also, no vibration, when it’s time to reduce the gear and when we don’t, usually gear knob will start dancing, noticed that in many cars, but even then, no vibration felt on this one, a 100/100.

Interiors:

Car has got good space, AC is very effective, it has got climate control, I keep it at 22 all the time with blower speed 2, which is enough even for Kerala hot climate. Super comfort drive on highways. Build is superb, I quote again, superb build quality, 11 years, very little rattle that too started very recently, I think it’s because of the EGR issue I am facing now and once I change that it will go away. Car came with glass antenna, that was something new to me, infotainment unit is from the 70’s, I still have the stock unit, in highways I use bluetooth speaker and in the city lot of radio channels are available. Then other features like, defogger , electrically adjustable mirrors, child lock, headlight adjuster, I installed normal parking sensors which is very useful. Seating is very low, so ingress and egress could an issue to elders. Once you are in, you will be spoiled by the space it offers. Driving positions and ergonomics are spot on. Each and everything is where is it should be. Got enough space to keep your things too. All the buttons are the right place, perfect. Overall visibility is good, rear view mirrors do their job, size is good, side mirrors are big enough to see the corners. Quality of the side mirrors are impressive. Boot is spacious you can pretty much keep up to 5 peoples luggage. Stock headlights were bad, changed it immediately to HID, two years back, I got a new set, night visibility is good.

FE:

City: 13kpl
Highway: 18kpl
At one point, I was running like crazy, 30-35K an year, it has reduced a lot and now I think on an average I do about 20K an year. 90 percent of the time Elantra was used in highways. Even now the above mentioned figure is what I get, last December I did a round trip, Kerala to Bangalore, car achieved great mileage.


This was our primary car till 2014, when we decided to buy the Octavia and Elantra was getting old and showing its age. After Octi started doing the duties, Elantra was taking rest and was not using much, still I made sure the car is in perfect mechanical condition.

Major maintenance:

Other than periodic maintenance and normal wear and tear there were nothing major (TOUCH WOOD). Suspension overhaul has done 3 times, timing belt 3 times, every 1 lakh, all the pipes have been checked and fixed if required changing. Tires come up to 50K minimum, running on Michelin now. Then the usual ERG cleaning, inter cooler cleaning, CAT con cleaning whenever is required. Clutch has done only twice so far, I can feel it needs to be changed soon, but it will still run for another 20K for sure. After its done 2lakh, I change oil at 5-8K interval, along with all filters.

Complete brake overhaul was done once, don't remember what mileage it was on. AC cooling coil changed twice. On an average I will spend about 15K yearly on service and maintenance. Till 2014, it was really cheap to maintain, parts were cheap too. Now parts have become expensive and depending on what it is, I source it locally at times. Considering what I spend on my others cars, Elantra is still cheap to maintain.

Conclusion:



So far the ownership has been hassle free without any major dramas. Vehicle is at 4 lakh kilometer now, (A BIG TOUCH WOOD) performance and FE is still at very acceptable range. Last year, I was planning to sell the car, but ridiculous resale value put me off. Since it sold in very less number, difficult to source parts now and it has become expensive also. But if you want, you will still get even small parts without any issue, but some parts require waiting period, some you get within two days.
At times I think, even Hyundai did not know what they were making at the time, they used the same engine in Sonata and Tuson back then. It was used in Optra also. Elantra was like a one hit one time wonder.

Since it has served us brilliantly over the years and if I sell it there is high chance who ever buying it won’t or won’t be able to take care of it because of the expense parts, I decided to keep the Elantra. Then again, I don’t think anyone would want to buy a car which has done 4 lakh kilometer. So I will be restoring the Elantra this year, new suspension, maybe clutch job, need to check the condition, it feels fine now, new EGR on the way, will keep it in pristine condition.

This is one car that aged really well. This generation Elantra was never considered good looking nor a performer. At first it was just another car for me, then I started owning other cars, first 5 years, 90% cars do its run smoothly without any issues, it's after that maintenance comes into play. Even after maintaining well, most of the cars I owned just crawled to live up to our expectation and will sell it between 5-10 years period. This is the only car my family kept more than 10 years and it kept on surprising us.


Like someone said on Team BHP, A true underdog, one whose glory was sung after demise.

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Longterm Ownership Section. Thanks for sharing!

4 lakh km . All of the cars in my garage combined have a lower reading (Jeep is the highest at 2 lakh km). In India, I've only seen a higher reading on an Innova or Qualis, but among Hyundais - yours is the topmost. Hyundai should give you an award. This should shut up all those who doubt the longevity of common-rail diesels, including that of Hyundais.

Heartiest congratulations to you & your car.

[CDM]

Lest we forget, this was the model that 'made' Hyundai in the USA.

You car is very well maintained as well!

CDM

[jonesanto]

Originally Posted by GTO

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Longterm Ownership Section. Thanks for sharing!

4 lakh km . All of the cars in my garage combined have a lower reading (Jeep is the highest at 2 lakh km). In India, I've only seen a higher reading on an Innova or Qualis, but among Hyundais - yours is the topmost. Hyundai should give you an award. This should shut up all those who doubt the longevity of common-rail diesels, including that of Hyundais.

Heartiest congratulations to you & your car.

Thanks, GTO, means a lot coming from you. I always thought CRDi's were pretty reliable, but T badge is the master of reliability. Along with giving an award if Hyundai could reduce the parts price for their discontinued models, that'd be great news for people who wants to keep their workhorses in pristine condition

Thanks, CDM, car still has the original paint, only bumpers have been painted. It was always parked in closed parking, that might have helped.

[jonesanto]

There's one thing which always puzzled me whenever I am washing the car, the sticker on the glass. Back in 2006, it was legal to tint your car, so most of them came out of the showroom with 100% tinted windows, if possible 200%. I never asked & neither I was asked if I wanted tinted glass. Car was delivered with tinted glass. By looking at the pics, do you think it was company made? I think it was company tinted glasses. What are your thoughts?

[aboveallkaran]

Very happy to see your engine cross 4 lakh kms mark. I drive a 2009 hyundai sonata crdi which shares the same engine. Have done 160000 kms till now.

[qr20de]

@jonesanto: RESPECT

Obviously people will attribute to the fact that your car has reached 400,000km because of Hyundai reliability, durability etc. But bottom line, its because you have maintained it in exceptional condition.

I really hope you have a service/ownership record of your experience with the car. You've definitely reinforced the idea of 'value what you have'

[landcruiser123]

That is one hell of a good looking car- it's superbly maintained.

400k km is a huge milestone and Hyundai should reward you for it and get some publicity too. :P

I doubt you'll ever get a buyer who would treat the car well.

Hope you hit 500k soon.

[i74js]

Amazing. My Ford Escort DLX 1997 did 2,40,000 km is now parked happily @ Pune. It was extremely reliable except for its poor suspension that ensured scraping at every possible opportunity if I am not cautious.

Very similar to your case, the Ford dealer was ready to offer me INR 40,000 (in 2016) for it at the time of purchase of my EcoSport and I decided against it; not sure if it was the correct decision as I have stopped driving it.

It is heartening to see Elantra in such good condition after 400k km.

Cheers !

[yogesh.8984]

It is already mentioned above by everyone but cant resist mentioning again. 4L KMs on odo is a mind-boggling number for any car. Even after all these miles, car looks in good shape and credit to you jonesanto for the way you kept it that way.

On a lighter note, I am not sure if Hyundai will reward you, but Team-BHP might - making you "BHPian" from a "Newbie" although it is not far away

[Ramsagar]

Hat's off "Jonesanto". You really have all the patience in the world to maintain this beauty. It is one heck of car. Looks pristine. Please dont SELL this. Use it as long as you can & shelve it in a safe/nice place. This would become a "CLASSIC". After-all, it had severed you faithfully all these years. It needs some respect.

BTW: Have you got the "GOLDEN LETTERING/LOGO" along with the car, as it was the top-of-line variant or was it an option back then. I see couple of Elantra's with similar lettering's.

[NiInJa]

I was just drooling over this beauty of a car. Immaculately maintained !
Congrats on completing 4L km. Sometimes a car ages so well it becomes a member of your family. The best thing you can do to a car is keep her driving

Originally Posted by jonesanto

By looking at the pics, do you think it was company made? I think it was company tined glasses. What are your thoughts?

Yes, this is true, GM's factory fitted glass on our Beat came with a transparency of 80%, I had to remove the tinted cover once the police caught me and I saw the same etched on the glass. My wife's Brio does not have anything of that sort. So I guess its a premium feature

[arnieshwartz]

No doubt, that is a truly exceptional car! Amazing condition too, atleast based on the images. I'd say the longevity of the vehicle should be attributed to your maintenance routine as much as it should be to Hyundai's engineering.

Here's to many more miles and smiles!

[vinayrathore]

Wow! Just Wow!

I too have a similar vintage 2004 Dec Accent Viva CRDi. It has done about 290k Kms and still going strong. However, in my case, the engine had to be opened once due to my stupidity. I had a good FNG nearby whom I trusted to maintain the car after the warranty got over.

The timing belt was changed at 90k and instead of going with a more expensive original Hyundai one, i bought it from an unknown parts shop for less than half the price. The FNG had warned me but I did not pay any heed as both looked the same to my eyes. However, within 15k at 105k Kms, one fine evening it broke

Bent valves, bent piston rods and a 1.5 lacs bill later, i was a wiser man.

The car still does duty with my Wife who drives it to work daily. Seen me through all kinds of roads and no roads. Inspite of owning many cars after it, I still feel at home whenever i drive it. I would never sell it.

[sumeethaldankar]

Congrats on hitting the 400k mark and keeping the car looking good. Does it have a turbo charger? If so did you practice the idle rule before switching off the engine after a long drive?

Thanks.