Did The 2011 Hyundai Elantra Just Make HYBRID & ELECTRIC Vehicle Lives Harder?

If you weren't paying attention to the second day of the 2010 Los Angeles Auto Show, boy did you miss out.

Hyundai unveiled the 2011 Elantra. Yeah, there wasn't much to see because we have already seen the car uncloaked for several months now. However, the big news was the car's packaging. With a base price of $14,830, a good amount of features, 29 in the city and 40 on the highway, and significant interior space, it pretty much just turned the compact car market upside down.

Additionally, we just received some spy shots from our photographer Fred Khaz. This guy's gotta be working overtime because we have so many new shots from him! Long story short, although we did see the car on the show floor, now you get a taste of what it looks like on the road.

Give us your verdict, Spies.

But here's the question of the night: with the styling, mpg, features and pricing of the 2011 Hyundai Elantra, does this make buying a hybrid or electric car even more difficult?

Let us know in the comments down below...

[Photography: Fred Khaz]


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MBdude - 11/19/2010 10:53:54 PM

+13 Boost

"With a base price of $14,830, a good amount of features..."

Huh?

At that price, you don't get air conditioning, a radio or power windows.

I would call that "a good amount of features."

Joe_Limon - 11/19/2010 11:55:53 PM

+8 Boost

lol +1, it's a more expensive accent.

g2ok - 11/20/2010 12:51:32 AM

+2 Boost

Still looks good on the road. I think if people want a hybrid they will still get one. This will compete with the small-mid car segment very well.

Lamont_from_Sanford_and_Son - 11/20/2010 12:58:35 AM

+3 Boost

Is this the Korean car pictured? Because this car has HID lights and the specs for the American car does not list these headlights. Along with a ton of other stuff the Korean car has the American version doesn't.

Lamont_from_Sanford_and_Son - 11/20/2010 1:18:22 AM

+1 Boost

Korean version of Elantra called Avante:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rcj9b0pWZRs&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vA_uvrynGbk&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFj97P-9u8U&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VCPKxiu5Jsg&feature=related

Notice all the differences between Avante and the Elantra.

tennis_player - 11/20/2010 10:51:43 AM

+3 Boost

Junk, I will never think to buy one this.

kuvakas1 - 11/20/2010 4:13:04 PM

-2 Boost

yeah...but then you have a Prius!

kuvakas1 - 11/20/2010 3:46:02 PM

+1 Boost

It's a great looking car but I don't think it will have any impact on the hybrid market. We all know that the majority of hybrid owners (not all so hold the deboosts) are not really seeking the best mileage (or value for that matter). They want the "hybrid" mystique. This is why no one bought the Accord hybrid. It wasn't immediately identifiable as one of the "in" cars. This Hyundai will do well but the hybrids are safe.

Agent001 - 11/20/2010 5:01:22 PM

-7 Boost

I would disagree. The hybrid aspirational demographic is a younger, low income, ultra left/progressive female that is looking for an environmentally responsible vehicle in the mid teens at most. The Elantra will be $15k street price nicely configured and comes close enough to sell in extremely high volumes.

001

kuvakas1 - 11/20/2010 5:08:00 PM

+9 Boost

Interesting. Is that the actual demographic or is it the demographic the makers think they are addressing? From what I've seen on the streets, the hybrid buyers seem to be more middle aged, upper middle income families. Of course, my observations are only seat-of-the-pants impressions.

Agent001 - 11/20/2010 5:18:36 PM

-3 Boost

I'm saying that the demo I described is a huge unserved market and where the most potential environmentally concerned customers live right now.

If there was a good hybrid or electric for 15k they would be selling 10's of millions.

001

kuvakas1 - 11/20/2010 5:48:38 PM

+3 Boost

I think you're right. But I'm not sure the manufacturers that are producing hybrids by the thousands are aiming at that market. If so, we would have more competitive offerings and, if that's the core of the hybrid market....the Honda Insight would have been a run away sales leader. I think models like the new Elantra will do very well with the demographic you describe.

edeus123 - 11/20/2010 5:14:09 PM

-3 Boost

I think that it will have a great impact on the market because its competitive. For crying out loud the base price is 14 g's and if you go up to 20 g's, you would still be under the baseline of a Prius or a Honda. And if it doesn't out sell the "hybrids" then it will show that people who buy hybrids are not real intellectuals, but rather people who want to tout that they have a hybrid and "supposedly" saving the earth. This car will expose anybody who goes out and buy a hybrid.

kuvakas1 - 11/20/2010 5:42:20 PM

-3 Boost

I agree with this viewpoint. I think it's ironic that everyone in Hollywood went from Hummers to Priuses overnight because it became cool, not because they were trying to save money on gas.

acronis - 11/21/2010 10:20:19 AM

-4 Boost

This redesigned Elantra will do well competitively in its class. As for the debate regarding how it will do against Hybrids or electrics(?),

Consumers seeking Hybrid like MPG at an affordable price point will be drawn to this based on the price and packaging.

quizz - 11/22/2010 11:09:09 AM

0 Boost

Great price, great performance, great warranty... Hyundai has its ducks in a row and the Japanese are reeling.

The Carolla was never this good.