India-bound Hyundai Elantra facelift spotted testing
New spy images have appeared online of the facelifted Hyundai Elantra being tested. The Elantra has been on sale in India since 2016 and this is a routine mid-cycle update over the course of the car life-cycle.
These images show the car to have slight visual tweaks to bring it up to date. The front and rear bumpers have been tweaked and have a more substantial look to them. The front LED DRLs are new while the LED taillamps are now of horizontal shape, rather than the earlier hexagonal design. The interior should also receive updates like a reworked infotainment system, new materials and minor design changes.
While the international market car is expected to come with a new Smart Stream engine option, it is unknown if this will be available on the Indian cars. Present engine options are a 1.6-litre diesel with 126PS and 260Nm and a 2.0-litre petrol with 152PS and 192Nm. These are paired with six-speed manual and automatic transmissions.
The Hyundai Elantra competes with cars like the Toyota Corolla Altis, Skoda Octavia and the upcoming Honda Civic. The new car will likely build on the qualities of good features and engine refinement of the earlier car but it would do good to improve on the ride and handling package of the last car.