PETALING JAYA: Hyundai-Sime Darby Motors, the official distributor of Hyundai vehicles in Malaysia, recently allowed members of the media to preview its latest Elantra sedan ahead of its official debut.
The seventh iteration of the Elantra sedan is due to be launched in mid-December.
Order books are currently open - requiring a booking fee of RM777, for the mid-sized sedan which is expected to be priced around the region of RM135,000.
Four colour options will be provided including Polar White, Electric Shadow, Amazon White and Intense Blue. All body colours can be paired with either a Black or Light Grey interior.
In the looks department, the front end will showcase its newly styled Parametric Jewel surface design that's flanked by automatic LED headlights with integrated daytime running lights and high-beam assist.
The same design cue is reflected along the side profile that shows off its fastback shape (long front end and a short rear end).
At the rear, the 474-litre hands-free operation boot is flanked by LED light clusters that are connected by a single light bar to form an "H-design" while also acting as a third brake light.
With a 2,720mm wheelbase (+20mm), the new Elantra will come in measuring 4,650mm-long (+30mm), 1,825mm-wide (+25mm) and 1,420mm-tall (-15mm).
Power will come from a 1.6-litre (1,598cc) Smartstream multi-point injection engine that draws fuel from a 47-litre fuel tank.
Power has been rated at 123PS at 6,300rpm and 154Nm of torque at 4,500rpm - all of which gets managed by an Intelligent variable transmission (iVT) with eight virtual gears for the front wheels.
This means that the Elantra will be able to sprint from 0 to 100kph in 10.4 seconds before reaching a top speed of 196kph.
The South Korean carmaker claims that its iVT is an improvement over a continuously variable transmission (CVT) which uses a metallic belt to manage engine speeds.
Instead, the iVT uses a chain belt which improves efficiency by 4.2% while transmission losses have been reduced by 5% to 8%.
This allows the driver to gain better engine response while enjoying a shift pattern that's said to be similar to a manual transmission.
The Elantra's 1,245kg (kerb) body is suspended by front McPherson struts and a rear torsion beam as it rolls on 17-inch alloys wrapped by 225/45 Kumho Ecsta PS71 tyres. No spare tyre is found here, only a tyre repair kit. Stopping power comes from front and rear disc brakes.
Inside, the driver-centric cabin features seats wrapped by perforated leather that comes with front heating and ventilation controls as well as rear air conditioning vents.
The driver gets a 10.25-inch Supervision TFT LCD full-colour instrument cluster while an 8.0-inch touchscreen display houses the infotainment system with Aux input, USP ports, voice recognition, Bluetooth connectivity for up to two smartphones as well as Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
Other conveniences include wireless charging, electric parking brake with auto-hold function, dual-zone automatic climate controls and a tyre pressure monitoring system.
For safety, the Elantra is equipped as standard with six airbags, antilock braking system, brake assist system, electronic brakeforce distribution, traction control system,
electronic stability control, vehicle stability management and hill-start assist control.
This is further bolstered by Hyundai SmartSense - a suite of advanced driver-assist systems (ADAS), which includes lane-keeping assist, lane following assist, adaptive cruise control with stop-go functionality and forward collision avoidance assist (vehicle, pedestrian, cyclist).
There's also forward collision avoidance assist (junction), blind-spot collision avoidance assistance, driver attention warning, leading vehicle departure alert, safe exit warning, rear cross-traffic collision avoidance assist and rear occupant alert.
