The all-new Honda Civic takes on one of its top rivals in the compact sedan class, the Hyundai Elantra in a couple of ¼ mile drag races.
Overview
The Honda Civic and Hyundai Elantra are both amongst the most popular compact sedans out there. The Civic for instance has been in production for fifty years and is now in its 11th generation. Granted that these cars mainly represent affordable and reliable transportation for the masses, however, I’m sure that most of you out there would be curious as to which one of these two is faster. Well, YouTuber Sam CarLegion also had the same idea and he hence set up this duel.
2022 Honda Civic Touring
In the grey corner, we have the top-of-the-line 11th generation 2022 Honda Civic Touring model. It features a 1.5-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine that produces 180 horsepower and 177-pound feet of torque and is mated to a front-wheel-drive CVT transmission. The Civic weighs 3054 pounds, has a power to weight ratio of 0.059 horsepower per pound, and costs $24,000.
2021 Hyundai Elantra
In the blue corner, we have a base model 2021 Hyundai Elantra. The Hyundai features a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine that produces 147 horsepower and 132-pound feet of torque. Just like the Civic, the Elantra’s engine is also coupled to a CVT transmission and features a front-wheel-drive layout. However, Hyundai’s compact sedan is a couple of hundred pounds lighter than the Civic, tipping the scales at 2,725 pounds, has a power to weight ratio of 0.054 horsepower per pound, and is considerably cheaper at $20,000.
Here is Sam’s Take
According to Sam, while it would have been nice to compare the Touring Civic to the N-Line, he has chosen to pit it against the base model instead, because the N-Line makes more horsepower than the Civic Touring. While the base Elantra might be down on power, it is lighter than the Civic.
Round 1
On the first pass, it was your regular run-of-the-mill, off-the-lights race. Both cars are in their normal mode. The hammer drops and surprise surprise, it’s the Elantra that’s in the lead. Even Sam couldn’t believe it. The Elantra was easily a car length in front of the Civic, but as the speeds built, the Honda finally managed to get past the Hyundai.
Round 2
For the second run, both cars are set to sport mode with the traction control turned off. This time around, the Civic gets a better start, and it's pretty much neck and neck with the Elantra for a bit. But as the speeds climb, the Honda eventually begins to pull away from the Hyundai, but not by much.
Roll Race 1
For the third pass, both cars do a rolling start from 50 kph (31.07 mph). They go past the cone and once again, it's the Hyundai in the lead and not the Honda. Sam has his foot on the gas and yet, it wasn’t easy for him to catch up with the Elantra. Mercifully, he managed to get past the Hyundai, but just.
Roll Race 2
For this final run, it’s a roll race once again from 50 kph (31.07 mph), with both cars now set to Sport mode. They fly past the cone and just like on the previous pass, the Hyundai is ahead of the Honda. You can hear the Civics CVT working overtime as the cabin gets quite boomy. Sam just can’t believe the results. The Civic makes more horsepower than the Hyundai, how is this possible? The Elantra took this one, with the Civic close behind.
To Sum It Up
It was interesting to see how well the Elantra fared. When Sam showed up on track, he thought that the Civic would destroy the Elantra. The car is obviously packing some low-end grunt, and even Sam came away surprised by the Elantra’s performance. But in the end, the Civic still managed to just about get the Hyundai, but not by much. Sam says that he will eventually pit the Elantra N against the latest generation Civic Si (yet to be launched). Watch this space.
Watch the entire race below