Used 2011 Hyundai Elantra Touring for Sale nearChicago, IL

Is this the modern five-door family funster? Hyundai has always combatted negative associations with its name, although it seems to have turned this around and made it work for them during our currently listless economic situation. Truly, it's one of only a handful of manufacturers seeing sales rise as economical becomes chic. Still, one recession does not a corporate strategy make.

The Hyundai i30 has been a wild success everywhere it’s been introduced – pretty much everywhere but here – winning Car of the Year awards across the globe. Still, when Hyundai decided to offer the i30 to Americans, they named it the Elantra Touring? Known for making sure “cheap” and “economy” are forever intertwined, the Elantra is everything the i30 isn’t. Europeans have been enjoying high-quality economy cars for years, and the i30 is no exception. Certainly a rose by any other name would smell as sweet, but why ice-skate uphill?

Illogical naming aside, the Elantra Touring made a splash upon its introduction here in the States back in 2009. For the 2011 model year, Hyundai is upping the value of an already good deal by adding standard features to its two trims, the GLS and sporty SE.

Both GLS and SE trim levels will now come standard with Hyundai’s “EZ Lane Change Assist” feature, a system that initiates three sequential blinks of the turn signal with just one touch for easy highway passing. The headlight welcome feature is also now a standard feature on all trims, lighting the headlights when the car doors are unlocked with the key fob.

The SE got some attention as well, with standard leather seating, and both trims have the option of three new colors – Atlantic Blue, Shimmering Silver and Titanium Gray Metallic.

Truly, the jump between trims is a stepped one, as the features included in the Popular Equipment Package for the GLS are all included as standard on the SE. That package adds a telescopic steering wheel with audio controls, trip computer, power driver’s seat and silver roof rails, along with smaller incidentals. The SE, however, tries to create sport appeal with a leather steering wheel and shift knob for the B&M sport shifter, foglights and 17-inch alloys. There’s also a touch of luxury added with heated leather seats and a power sunroof.

Does any of this make the Elantra Touring the logical successor to the Griswold’s chariot? It’s certainly a fair deal, with even the most decked-out versions barely passing the twenty grand mark. But looking a bit deeper, the Elantra Touring fails to stand as king of the compact wagon hill. The MAZDA3 offers a “wagon” configuration that has a better engine and a much better suspension. The Volkswagen Jetta does the same, and perhaps better. This doesn’t negate the value or quality of the Hyundai, and perhaps only reinforces what a good job Hyundai has done in making itself competitive with brands that don’t suffer the same branding woes. Besides, what’s in a name?