OK, so maybe it wasn’t Beyoncé, Cardi B, or RiRi that I was picking up, but it was a special date as I swooped up my tween and teen nieces in the 2019 Hyundai Elantra Sedan for our monthly night out.
Now, I was expecting the girls to be impressed with my whip since I was already enamored with its updated new look with triangular headlights, new hexagonal grille and origami-creased fascias. It’s a fresh-looking ride, and I felt confident, but these two are a tough pair to please. Their eye rolls and stony silences can quickly squelch any hope for a good time, so I was holding my breath.
When the tween hopped in, gave me a pound and proclaimed, “Cool car, Unc,” half of the battle was won. The teen smiled and said nothing, indicating she was reserving judgment, but the Elantra had a few tricks that would soon bring her to the light.
The Elantra has a large touchscreen for infotainment including Apple Carplay, so I let the teen have control, and in no time, we were listening to her favorite playlist while she investigated the other apps available on the system.
The Elantra’s ride is comfortable and solid on corners, giving it the feel of a much heavier car. We were cruising along, making full use of the adaptive cruise control and the active lane control, when suddenly I was cut off by some idiot in a hurry. Thankfully, the automatic emergency braking kicked in very smoothly but effectively to keep us out of harm’s way.
The two-liter inline four-cylinder engine gives the Elantra enough power to merge onto urban freeways without horns blowing while remaining truly economical with a 28 mpg rating in the city and a 37 mpg rating on the highway. The comfort, the tech package and the hot new look make the Elantra Sedan a great pick for your next ride.
Thanks to the 2019 Hyundai Elantra‘s performance on date night, I’m now the cool uncle in the family.