2022 Hyundai Elantra vs 2022 Honda Civic Hatchback

In the past, the Hyundai Elantra's design was unremarkable, blending into the crowd without drawing much attention. However, the 2021 redesign transformed the Elantra into a striking vehicle with a longer wheelbase, wider stance, and lower roofline, giving it a dramatic four-door-coupe silhouette. The new design, reminiscent of the midsize Sonata sedan, features unique styling elements like a "Z" shape on the doors, adding character and differentiation from its competitors. Inside, the Elantra's material quality and design were above average for its class, despite some hard plastics. The 2022 Elantra came in four trims: SE, SEL, N Line, and Limited, with the N Line offering sporty styling elements like N Line design front and rear fascias, chrome twin-tip exhaust, and 18-inch alloy wheels. The interior of the N Line featured sport seats, a leather-wrapped steering wheel, and aluminum pedals, enhancing its sporty look and feel.

The 2022 Honda Civic Hatchback aimed to capture a significant share of the hatchback market, with its redesigned model rolling out of an Indiana factory. The new Civic hatchback shared its front design with the Civic sedan but featured a different grille pattern and unique wheel designs. From the rear, it appeared more balanced, although it still suffered from a "stubby butt" look. Inside, the Civic hatchback's Sport Touring trim added sophisticated digital instrumentation and infotainment displays, along with metal honeycomb dashboard detailing that hid the air vents. The overall interior design was modern and high-quality, although the CVT shifter operation was slightly janky.

The 2022 Hyundai Elantra offered multiple powertrain options. The SE, SEL, and Limited trims came with a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine producing 147 horsepower and 132 pound-feet of torque, paired with a CVT and front-wheel drive. The Elantra Hybrid featured a 1.6-liter Atkinson-cycle four-cylinder engine combined with a 32-kilowatt electric motor, delivering 139 horsepower and up to 195 pound-feet of torque. The N Line trim had a turbocharged 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine with 201 horsepower and 195 pound-feet of torque, available with either a six-speed manual transmission or a seven-speed DCT. The N Line's sport-tuned suspension, steering, and multi-link independent rear suspension provided smoother and more confident handling. The N Line's front brake rotors were also larger, offering more stopping power. However, the sport seats in the N Line were less comfortable for long-distance drives.

The 2022 Honda Civic Hatchback offered two engine options. The LX and Sport trims had a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine producing 158 horsepower and 138 pound-feet of torque, with the LX only available with a CVT and the Sport offering a choice between a CVT and a six-speed manual transmission. The EX-L and Sport Touring trims featured a turbocharged 1.5-liter four-cylinder engine with 180 horsepower and 177 pound-feet of torque, available with either a CVT or a six-speed manual transmission. The Civic hatchback's suspension used MacPherson struts in front and a multi-link independent design in the rear, providing a firm and satisfying ride. The Sport and Sport Touring trims rode on 18-inch aluminum wheels with 235/40 Continental all-season tires. The CVT worked well with the turbocharged engine, and the paddle shifters on the Sport and Sport Touring models were useful. The manual transmission in the Sport Touring trim was praised for its short throws and fluid gear engagement. However, the brakes were not up to repeated hard use, and the all-season tires were less effective on winding roads.

The Hyundai Elantra's compact size made it easy to navigate tight spaces, and its instrumentation and controls were user-friendly. The Elantra offered plenty of storage options, and the seats were comfortable, although the N Line's low seating position made it harder to get in and out. The Elantra provided excellent outward visibility and sufficient rear seat space for children, although taller adults might find the rear headroom limited. The trunk offered 14.2 cubic feet of cargo space, which was adequate for a weekend's worth of luggage. However, the trunk's narrow opening made it challenging to reach the area closest to the seatbacks. The power tilt-and-slide moonroof produced a droning noise when fully open, and the lack of USB ports and rear air conditioning vents were sources of irritation for back-seat passengers.

The Honda Civic Hatchback offered a generous 24.5 cubic feet of trunk space, with a 60/40-split folding rear seat for additional cargo capacity. The load floor was not flat, but the innovative two-piece cargo shade made it easy to cram everything into the car. All seating positions were comfortable, with sufficient legroom, although the front passenger seat lacked a height adjuster. The rear seats did not have air conditioning vents, which was a drawback on hot days. The driver enjoyed an eight-way power-adjustable seat, and both front seats were heated. The Civic hatchback's interior featured black fabric seats in the LX and Sport trims, while the EX-L and Sport Touring trims had black leather upholstery. Automatic climate control was standard, with a dual-zone system in the EX-L and Sport Touring trims.

The Hyundai Elantra came with a surprising level of technology for its price. The base SE trim included an 8-inch display audio touchscreen with a rearview camera, HD Radio, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, Bluetooth, four speakers, and dual USB ports. The SEL, Hybrid Blue, and N Line trims added two additional speakers, satellite radio, and Blue Link connected services. The Limited and Hybrid Limited trims featured a 10.25-inch touchscreen with navigation, an eight-speaker Bose premium audio system, a 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster, dynamic voice recognition, and wireless device charging. However, only wired versions of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto were available with the 10.25-inch touchscreen. The N Line and Limited trims also included Hyundai Digital Key, which allowed unlocking, starting, and driving the car via an Android-compatible smartphone.

The Honda Civic Hatchback featured a new infotainment system. The LX, Sport, and EX-L trims had a 7-inch touchscreen display with physical power/volume and tuning knobs, and wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The Sport Touring trim added a 9-inch touchscreen display, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, SiriusXM satellite radio, wireless smartphone charging, navigation, and a 12-speaker Bose Centerpoint 2 surround-sound audio system. The inclusion of physical knobs for sound system controls addressed a long-standing criticism of Honda's infotainment systems. The Civic hatchback also featured a small shelf at the bottom of the display screen to steady the hand while operating the touchscreen. The voice recognition system worked well, and the digital instrumentation included a 7-inch screen with a traditional analog speedometer in the standard arrangement, while the Sport Touring trim had a 10.2-inch display panel.

The Hyundai Elantra's standard SmartSense suite of driver-assist tech included forward-collision warning with pedestrian detection, automatic emergency braking, blind-spot warning with rear cross-traffic warning, lane-keeping assistance, lane-departure warning, and lane-centering assistance. Additional standard safety features included driver-attention warning, automatic high-beam headlights, a rear-seat reminder system, and Safe Exit Warning. Higher trims offered intersection turn assistance, adaptive cruise control with stop-and-go capability, rear automatic braking, and Highway Drive Assist. The Elantra received five stars from the NHTSA for overall crash protection and top "Good" ratings from the IIHS in all six individual crash tests. However, the lower-level trims with halogen headlights received a "Marginal" rating, while the Limited trim with LED headlights received a "Good" rating.

The Honda Civic Hatchback came with the Honda Sensing collection of safety features, including adaptive cruise control, forward collision warning, automatic emergency braking, lane-departure warning, Road Departure Mitigation, and Lane Keeping Assist. New standard features included low-speed following capability and Traffic Jam Assist, available only with the CVT. The EX-L and Sport Touring trims included a blind-spot warning system, and the Sport Touring trim also had a rear cross-traffic warning system and Low-Speed Braking Control. All Civics featured a rear-seat reminder system, rear seatbelt reminder, automatic high-beam headlights, and new frontal-impact airbags designed to reduce head and brain injuries. The Civic hatchback earned a "Top Safety Pick+" rating from the IIHS. However, the driver aids were not entirely transparent, sometimes braking too hard or being too obvious in their lane-keeping efforts.