All-new Hyundai Elantra Crashes Hybrid Party

[Hyundai NEWS]

The automotive experts at TrueCar.com recently put together their list of the most fuel-efficient vehicles in America—based on the MSRPs and fuel prices—and it’s no surprise to find out hybrids scored very well. Nine of the top 10 vehicles were hybrids, and a hybrid was noted as “the most fuel-efficient” of them all. But according to Jesse Toprak, Truecar’s vice president of Industry Trends and Insights, “If you’re looking for the most cost-effective and fuel-efficient car, the Hyundai Elantra is the clear winner.”

(Note that, per the website, “Pure electric vehicles were excluded from the list because there is no cost associated with filling up a tank.”)

A key to this accomplishment is the Elantra’s new “Nu” engine, a sophisticated 1.8-liter I4 powerplant that boasts dual-continuously variable valve timing, a variable induction system, a roller swing arm and hydraulic lash adjusters, as well as other innovative technologies. It’s a combination that produces more power than the engine in the Chevrolet Cruze, yet still delivers EPA ratings of 29 mpg city/40 mpg highway/33 mpg combined—in every Elantra model regardless of transmission. To get that kind of fuel economy in the Cruze, drivers have to pay extra for the Eco model, yet still make do with a manual transmission. And even then, both the Elantra and the Cruze have the exact same combined EPA rating.

Then there’s the second part of the Truecar equation: Vehicle cost. Here, the Hyundai’s high-value MSRP of just $14,830 compares to an $18,175 price for the Cruze Eco, and even the base Cruze opens at $16,275. Needless to say, the Elantra has an even bigger MSRP advantage against the hybrids on the Truecar “Top 10 Most Fuel-Efficient Cars” list.

“The all-new Elantra, with its 29 mpg city and 40 mpg highway standard fuel economy rating, is a perfect vehicle for consumers looking for an affordable solution to rising gas prices,” said Mike O’Brien, vice president, Product and Corporate Planning, Hyundai Motor America. “Elantra is at the core of Hyundai’s fuel economy strategy. In February, 20 percent of all Hyundai vehicles sold achieved 40 mpg on the highway thanks in large part to Elantra’s success.”