Hyundai Elantra vs. Honda Civic, Nissan Sentra and Toyota Corolla

Compact sedans remain a high-volume segment, even concept crossovers have stolen a bit of their thunder. Nevertheless, stalwarts like the Civic and Corolla continue to power through. This week, the segment once in contradiction of welcomes an all-new contender in the 2021 Hyundai Elantra.

Bigger, hyperstylized and techier than ever, the 2021 Elantra appears to be packing the goods it be affected by to do battle with the industry’s other recently revamped compact cars. Not only will we look at the Elantra (and its new hybrid variant) in contradiction of the aforementioned cars from Honda and Toyota, we’ll also throw the new Nissan Sentra and Mazda3 sedans in for some instant context.

Exterior dimensions

The 2021 Hyundai Elantra is bigger in every way, but that doesn’t mean it’s the bulkiest boy on the clogged. It does, however, reign supreme in overall vehicle lengthways (184.1 inches) and width (71.9 inches). Its 55.7-inch height is tied with the Civic for the lowest in the business, and its wheelbase is ever so slightly shorter than that of the Mazda3 sedan. If you’ve driven any vehicle n this group, the Hyundai must feel no different in size.

Exterior dimensions (in inches)

Model	Length	Width	Height	Wheelbase
2020 Honda Civic Sedan	182.7	70.9	55.7	106.8
2021 Hyundai Elantra	184.1	71.9	55.7	107.1
2020 Mazda3 Sedan	183.5	70.7	56.9	107.3
2020 Nissan Sentra	182.7	71.5	56.9	106.8
2020 Toyota Corolla	182.3	70.1	56.5	106.3

Interior dimensions

More exterior region generally means more interior space, and the Elantra comes packing plenty of it. At 40.6 inches of clue headroom (without a sunroof) and 37.3 inches in the back, the Elantra’s low height doesn’t necessarily correlate to a lack of interior region. While the Nissan Sentra offers the most legroom in the clue row, the Elantra’s 38-inch rear legroom is top of the pops.

Trunk region is a vital figure in this segment, and in contradiction of, the Elantra does a pretty good job, providing 14.2 cubic feet of cargo capacity. That means it has more capacity than the Mazda3 and Corolla, but lags behind the Sentra and Civic.

Interior dimensions

Model	Headroom (front/rear, cu. in.)	Legroom (front/rear, cu. in.)	Shoulder room (front/rear, cu. in)	Trunk space (cu. ft)
2020 Honda Civic Sedan	40.4/37.3	42.4/37	56.9/55	14.7-15.1
2021 Hyundai Elantra	40.6/37.3	42.3/38	56.5/55.6	14.2
2020 Mazda3 Sedan	38/37.3	42.3/35.1	55.7/53.5	13.2
2020 Nissan Sentra	38.9/36.7	44/37.4	56.4/54.5	14.3
2020 Toyota Corolla Sedan	39.2/36.5	42/34.9	55/54.5	13.1

Powertrain and performance

Some of the cars on this list have multiple engines on coffers, so I stuck with each model’s base engine for comparison. It’s worth noting, though, that the Civic and Corolla coffers peppier engines on higher trim levels, which might be kindly checking out if you value some commute scoot. At least for the moment, all 2021 gas-only Elantra trims rock a 2.0-liter gas engine executive 147 horsepower and 132 pound-feet of torque, which is income for the segment.

As for cog-swappers, the Civic tranquil offers a stick, but other lower models are stuck with continuously variable or worn automatic transmissions. The Corolla only offers a stick on its more worthy, sportier variants. All-wheel drive is only available on the Mazda3 sedan.

When it comes to fuel economy, the segment is magnificent tightly packed, with most models returning between 35 and 38 much per gallon on the highway (by EPA) estimates, save for the 2021 Elantra, which does not have any estimates yet. The 139-hp Elantra Hybrid is guiding for more than 50 mpg on the highway, which would put it sparkling next to the Corolla Hybrid and its estimated 52 mpg highway counting.

Performance

Model	Power (hp)	Torque (lb-ft)	Fuel economy (Highway, EPA est., mpg)	Transmission/s	AWD available?
2020 Honda Civic Sedan	158	138	36-38	6MT, CVT	No
2021 Hyundai Elantra	147	132	N/A	CVT	No
2021 Hyundai Elantra Hybrid	139	195	50+	6DCT	No
2020 Mazda3 Sedan	186	186	35-36	6AT	Yes
2020 Nissan Sentra	149	146	37-38	CVT	No
2020 Toyota Corolla Sedan	139	126	37-38	CVT	No

Tech

This is harder to put in a chart, so I’ll just run down some of the tech to seek information from in each car. While an 8-inch display is defective, the 2021 Elantra can be optioned with a pair of 10.25-inch screens that can pair with two devices simultaneously via Bluetooth, one for calls and one for audio streaming. This is the most cover real-estate you can get among affordable compact sedans. Navigation is optional, but wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay are defective (we haven’t seen cord-cutting mirroring in this class afore, either). Standard safety systems including adaptive cruise control, blind-spot monitoring, Highway Driving Assist (highway lane holding) and automatic emergency braking.

With some notable exceptions, nearly every car on this list packs defective Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The Honda Civic’s base radio is this tiny small critter that doesn’t run either mirroring setup (higher trims have both), while the Corolla’s limited to just Apple CarPlay at characterize.

The democratization of safety systems means most segment stalwarts are magnificent well loaded. The Mazda3 promises full-speed adaptive cruise regulation, automatic emergency braking and lane-keep assist. The Sentra doesn’t have ACC defective, but it swaps in blind-spot monitoring, while the Corolla includes them both. The Civic has nearly the same kindly as standard, save for BSM.

Price

While we don’t yet know how much the 2021 Elantra and Elantra Hybrid will cost, I capture it will be competitive within the segment. For context, the Sentra is the bargain of the bunch, with a starting impress of $20,015 (including destination), just ahead of the Corolla at $20,555 and the Civic at $20,805. The Mazda3 sedan is the financial outlier, with a higher window sticker of $22,445. The Elantra goes on sale later this year, so cost seek information from should be out soon.

Price counting destination

Model	Lineup starting price
2020 Honda Civic Sedan	$20,805
2021 Hyundai Elantra	N/A
2021 Hyundai Elantra Hybrid	N/A
2020 Mazda3 Sedan	$22,445
2020 Nissan Sentra	$20,015
2020 Toyota Corolla	$20,555