Enterprise Library - Hyundai

author: Anthony   

Claire Peng

By Claire Peng

Elantra

The Hyundai Elantra is a compact car produced by Hyundai since 1990. It is now in its sixth generation. Following the 2015 launch of the Avante in South Korea, the sixth generation Elantra was announced to be released for sale in February 2016 for the 2017 model year in North America. The design of the car has been changed to a more conservative appearance. The "fluidic sculpture" design that persisted across the Hyundai portfolio since 2011 is gone in the sixth generation Elantra. The car has less curves overall with pentagonal head and tail lights, a hexagonal grille, and redesigned body panels and bumper emphasizing straight lines along the body. The windshield is drawn back from the hood further than the prior generation, making for a more traditional sedan look. The interior is also less curved, with a cockpit, audio/temp controls and glove compartment in a single bow line across the dash. This was done without reducing the interior cabin space of the prior generation at 110.2 cubic feet. While the Elantra is sold under the compact class, it classifies as a mid-size sedan according to the EPA.

The Elantra is Hyundai's best-selling nameplate in the U.S., with sales up 10 percent to 173,238 vehicles through August, 2015. Under the hood, the Elantra offers a 1.6-liter direct-injection gasoline engine or 2.0-liter Atkinson cycle power-plant. Hyundai is also deploying a version with a 1.6-liter diesel. In the U.S., the Elantra ranks No. 3 in the compact segment behind the Toyota Corolla and Honda Civic.

Sonata

Hyundai Sonata is a mid-size car produced by Hyundai since 1985. It is spacious and fuel efficient, making it a worthy rival to America's best-selling family sedans, from the Toyota Camry and Honda Accord to the Ford Fusion and Mazda 6. That's a tough list of competitors.

Redesigned for 2015, the seventh-generation Sonata adopted more conservative looks and greater refinement. Flamboyant styling of the previous generation is replaced by a more subdued look inside and out. A new 7-inch color touchscreen audio system for 2016 includes an Android Auto smartphone interface. The 2016 Sonata Limited gets the Sonata Sport model's more aggressive front bumper.

Hyundai continues to offer a Sonata Hybrid sedan, with similar updating for 2016, but also has added a new Sonata Plug-in Hybrid, capable of traveling up to 24 miles on battery power alone.

One of the lighter cars in its class, Sonata was among the first to adopt a lineup with nothing but four-cylinder engines. The base 185-horsepower, 2.4-liter four and the turbocharged 245-hp 2.0-liter four are free-revving engines that deliver power fairly quietly, nearly free of vibration. Both mate with a 6-speed automatic transmission that provides smooth, quick shifts and has manual controls. Sport 2.0T models have paddle shifters.

All Sonatas get a three-mode selector that alters shift timing, throttle operation, and power-steering assist through Eco, Normal, and Sport modes. Eco mode really impedes downshifts.

In crash testing by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Sonata has earned five-star scores all around. All categories except the small-overlap test were rated Good by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

IONIQ

The 2017 Ioniq is claimed by Hyundai to be the first car in the world to offer three different types of green powertrains on a single platform. There are types including Ioniq Hybrid, Ioniq Plug-in Hybrid, and the Ioniq Electric. The Electric model arrives first, in the fall of 2016. Then the Hybrid is on sale over the winter, followed by the Plug-in Hybrid in time for the summer of 2017.

An aerodynamic 5-door, 5-passenger hatchback model, the 2017 Hyundai Ioniq boasts a coefficient of drag measuring 0.24 cd and features both an aluminum hood and aluminum rear liftgate. Ioniq Plug-in Hybrid model  has 25 miles of EV range while Ioniq Electric model has 110 miles of EV range. It's equipped with BlueLink app compatible with Apple and Android smart watches.

Standard equipment includes bi-Xenon headlights, LED positioning lights, and 15-in. aluminum wheels. The Plug-in Hybrid comes with standard LED running lights, LED taillights, a 3-stage active grille shutter, and unique 16-in. aluminum wheels. The Electric model features a closed front fascia, special rear lighting signature, and "eco-spoke" 16-in. aluminum wheels.

Hyundai employed "an ecologically sensitive focus" when selecting interior materials, and uses both sugar cane and volcanic rock to reduce the amount of pure plastic inside of the car. The automaker also took numerous steps to quiet the Ioniq, ranging from insulation and damping materials to thicker window glass and noise-cancelling windshield film.

Anthony

Anthony C. LoBaido is a journalist, ghostwriter and photographer. He has worked in 53 nations around the world – from Laos to Lebanon, from Belize to Botswana and from Nepal to Namibia. He also published a book on the Kurds. Some of LoBaido’s favorite stories include attending the British Army’s jungle warfare training in Central America, retracing Lawrence of Arabia’s World War I trek through Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Saudi Arabia, investigating the blood diamonds of Sierra Leone as popularized in the Leonardo DiCaprio film by the same name, meeting “CNN hero” Aki Ra at one of his landmine digs in northern Cambodia, working with Time Magazine’s “Hero of Asia” Lek Chailert on her crusade to assist injured and abused elephants in Southeast Asia, rescuing HIV/Aids throw-away babies in the garbage dumps of Cape Town, South Africa, as well as visiting a leper colony in Myanmar. LoBaido’s articles have been cited by Ivy League universities such as Princeton and the University of Pennsylvania. As a photographer, LoBaido made National Geographic in 2014.