The IT Nerd

So I’ve come to the end of my week long review of the 2018 Hyundai Elantra GT Sport Ultimate. It’s main competitor is the Volkswagen GTI, but you could toss the Ford Focus ST and perhaps the Honda Sport Touring Hatchback into the mix as well. But I believe that the Elantra GT Sport Ultimate best defines what a hot hatch is. It has a lot of go and it’s easy to live with as a daily driver. Add to that the slick transmission, the technology that’s included, and the styling that is very Euro hatchback makes the Elantra GT Sport Ultimate a winner in my books.

My final fuel economy was 7.8 L/100KM’s which is pretty impressive considering that I made liberal use of the 1.6L turbo and sport mode while driving in a mix of city roads and highways, not to mention rush hour traffic.

You can expect to pay $30,499 for the trim level that I drove this week. But you can get a Elantra GT Sport starting at $26,999 with a manual transmission. Quite simply, it lives up to its hot hatch label. If you’re in the market for this sort of vehicle, head to your nearest Hyundai dealer and test drive one. I guarantee you that you will not be disappointed.

The 2018 Hyundai Elantra GT Sport Ultimate is a small car packed with a lot of technology in it. Let’s start with the safety aspects of the vehicle:

• It has blind spot monitoring and rear cross traffic alerts. The former is great because it doesn’t just warn you about vehicles in your blind spot, but it generates those warnings based on the speed and relative distance of the vehicle in your blind spot. That adds an extra layer of safety. The latter makes sure that you don’t crash your Elantra GT Sport into anything or anyone when you are backing out of a space at Home Depot and big pick up trucks are obscuring your view.
• Headlights are of the LED variety which are not only very bright and fill the road with usable light, but also have a feature called high beam assist which flips the high beams on automatically on dark roads, and turns them off automatically when the car senses oncoming traffic.
• It has a back up camera with excellent clarity and a great range of vision. It also has lines on the screen to help you to position your car when backing into a parking space or parallel parking. However, I will note that sensors to warn you when you might be coming too close to an object are missing.
• You get a very advanced cruise control system that adapts to traffic conditions in a couple of ways. Not only will it slow down and speed up relative to the car in front of you, it is also capable of dealing with stop and go traffic to the point that it will come to a complete stop and then start itself up again. Once I learned to trust the system, I found it to be very handy in terms of dealing with the traffic that the highways of Toronto tends to have.
• You get autonomous emergency braking with pedestrian detection which will bring the Elantra GT Sport to a stop if it detects a car or a person in front of it, and you take no action to avoid said car or person.
• You get a lane departure warning system which not only warns you when you drift out of your lane, but it’s capable of automatically guiding you back into your lane by correcting your steering for you. The system has three settings and when set to normal, I found the system to be subtle when correcting my steering to the point that I wouldn’t notice it if I were not looking for it to be doing its job.
• The Elantra GT Sport also monitors how you drive the car and suggests when you should take a break. This is very handy in avoiding driver fatigue on long drives. I’ve reviewed cars with this feature, but never at this price point. Thus this is a bit of a game changer.
• Seven airbags are standard including driver’s knee airbag.

The only thing that is missing from all this safety tech is tire pressure monitoring. While not required here in Canada, it is odd in 2017 to see a car without it.

The Elantra GT Sport also comes with a lot of technology to make life easier for you:

• Android Auto and Apple CarPlay are included along with Hyundai’s own navigation and infotainment system. They’re all displayed on an 8″ screen which is extremely sharp and viewable in all lighting conditions. The key thing about this is that Hyundai has given drivers the choice of three different systems that allow them to use the infotainment system in the way that fits them. Plus any car company that doesn’t have Android Auto and Apple CarPlay is going lose sales in this day and age. One thing that I noticed was that the infotainment system was significantly faster than ones in other Hyundai products that I’ve tried recently.
• There’s a seven speaker Infinity audio system that sounds great. Everything from The Pet Shop Boys to Origa sounded great on this stereo.
• Besides having a USB connector for your phone, there’s a wireless charger that uses the Qi standard. That means that any Android phone that supports wireless charging, or the new iPhone 8 or iPhone X will work with the wireless charger.

But the key piece of technology that you should be aware of is BlueLink which is new from Hyundai Canada and it’s making its first appearance in the Hyundai Elantra Sport GT. It’s a cutting edge telematics system that gives you everything from remotely starting the car from an app on your smartphone, local search, checking on the health of your car, to automatic dialing of emergency services if you get into an accident. I did an In Depth repot on BlueLink here and I encourage you to read it so that you can see how useful BlueLink is. Another data point is that America’s version of BlueLink was ranked by Consumers Reports as the number 2 telematics system that’s out there. I fully expect that Hyundai Canada’s version will rank just as high if not higher. It’s free for five years and once you see it, you’ll want it in your Elantra Sport GT.

The final part of this review will tie up some loose ends and I’ll give you my closing thoughts on this hot hatch. Stay tuned for that tomorrow.

The 2018 Hyundai Elantra GT Sport Ultimate has a great interior that you’ll want to spend as much time as possible in. Let me illustrate this by doing a visual walk through of the vehicle.

The driver’s seat is the best part of this vehicle. It is extremely comfortable, well bolstered, heated, ventilated, and 8 way power adjustable. This is one of the best drivers seats that I have been in for at least a couple of years. The passenger seat isn’t power adjustable, but you can copy and paste the rest of what I said about the drivers seat.

You should also note the red stitching and accents on the seat. I am drawing your attention to it because that color will be a theme that you will see often in this walk through.

On the driver’s door, you get the controls for the mirrors and the windows. The chrome painted handle breaks up the black soft touch material and plastic. The pocket at the bottom of the door will hold a water bottle.

Below the red accented air vent, you get the controls to control the traction and stability system, lane departure warning system, blind spot monitoring system, and dash lighting intensity.

Chrome sport pedals and a chrome dead pedal add to the sporty nature of the Elantra GT Sport Ultimate.

The steering wheel has red accents and has the controls for the infotainment system and cruise control. It felt great in my hands, but my wife pointed out that it was a bit thick for her hands and that may turn some people off if they cannot adapt to it.

The gauge cluster is sharp, bright and easy to read. There is a 4.2″ LCD display that can be customized to display a variety of information such as speed, fuel economy, cruise control settings, etc.

The center console has the 8″ infotainment screen above controls to lock the doors and activate the hazard lights. Red accented dual zone climate system controls are below that.

There’s a cubby that has a door to keep valuables to keep valuables hidden. In it, there’s a 12V outlet, USB and 3.5mm headphone jack, and a Qi standard wireless charging pad for your phone. I will go into more details about the latter in tomorrow’s look at the technology in the Elantra Sport GT Ultimate.

You get a decent sized glove box. In this case, it is holding the manuals for the car.

The shifter is leather wrapped and on either side of it, you can see the buttons for the heated and ventilated seats. Plus there are controls for the heated steering wheel and the drive mode button.

You get a pair of cupholders that have a sliding cover. Plus you get a electronic parking brake with a button that turns on and off the auto hold function. There’s also a cubby for pens or change.

A Starbucks Venti sized drink has no problem fitting into the cupholder.

There’s a small storage compartment that has a 12V outlet in it. When closed, it doubles as an armrest.

One thing that will get your attention is the panoramic sunroof that will let the outside inside.

The back seats are roomy enough for two when I acted as a designated driver for my friends. Three back here would have been a stretch. They reported that they were comfortable and had enough headroom and legroom. Please note the red seatbelt.

The middle portion of the seat flips down to reveal a pair of cupholders.

Back seat passengers get red accented air vents.

The cargo area is pretty roomy because it is recessed so that you can get bigger items in it. If you look on the right hand side, you get a 12V outlet. And if you want some extra room, you get 60/40 fold down seats…..

Though you won’t get a completely flat cargo area when you do that. Having said that, it will still allow you to carry long items with ease.

Here’s how much space you get using our shopping baskets as a reference.

Inside the hatch are a pair of handles. Ergonomically, they are a bit difficult to use because of where they are positioned on the hatch. But they will keep dirt off your hands when you close the hatch.

Overall the interior is very upscale and well executed. Hyundai really did a great job putting the interior together. I should also note that there’s very good vision in almost every direction for the driver with the exception of a tiny blind spot towards the passenger side of the car. No rattles, squeaks, or other annoyances were noted during my week with the Elantra Sport GT Ultimate.

Tomorrow, I will be taking a look at the technology in the Elantra Sport GT Ultimate which is very extensive. Stay tuned!

Yesterday I wondered if the 2018 Hyundai Elantra GT in the Sport Ultimate trim package could live up to the hot hatch looks that it brings to the table. Well, from what the South Korean company put under the hood of this car, the answer at least from a numbers standpoint is yes. The engine that you see is a 1.6L turbocharged engine that puts out 201 horsepower and 195 pound feet with torque. It’s mated in my case to a a 7 speed dual clutch transmission. But you can also get a 6 speed manual if you prefer a clutch pedal. This combination of engine and dual clutch transmission is insanely good. It has plenty of power and torque that’s available throughout the entire rev range. And you blow by any turbo lag that may exist very quickly. What makes it even more fun is that you can dial up the fun using the Drive Mode button that’s to the left of the shifter. By putting into “Sport” mode, the steering tightens up, the transmission shifts are more aggressive, and the engine note becomes a bit more angry. At that point you now have a hot hatch that is capable of dropping people off the line, passing transport trucks with no effort, and getting you into roadside license suspension territory very quickly if you’re not careful. Oh yeah, it will leave a huge grin on your face as well that will be hard to remove. I should note that the Drive Select mode has a “Normal” mode which is fine for every day driving, and an “Eco” mode that should never be used with this car as no hot hatch should ever be put into that mode. After all, hot hatches are about having (legal) fun on the road.

What helps the the Hyundai Elantra GT to get hot hatch credentials is the fact that it has a mult-link suspension that gives this hatch a firm but comfortable ride. It corners flat, body roll doesn’t exist, and it feels stable at all times at any speed. It is incredibly agile and I get all the road feel that I need to figure out what the car is doing underneath me. Most importantly, it doesn’t beat you up while you are commuting as some hot hatches tend to do. Clearly the fact that Hyundai took this car to the Nürburgring race circuit in Germany to dial it in has payed off.

A word about the dual clutch transmission. When I review cars with dual clutch transmissions, I’m prepared to have them perform well at speed, but to be a bit “jerky” in low speed conditions like stop and go traffic. This transmission has no “jerky” aspects to it. As zip, zero, nada. Another thing to note is that it does have paddle shifters on the steering wheel that work all the time. I point this out because you often have to put a car with paddle shifters into a manual mode of some sort before they work. The fact that you don’t have to do that here is worth a tip of the hat to Hyundai.

Now a lot of what I have written thus far makes it sound like this car is a track weapon with a hair trigger for an accelerator. Not so actually. The accelerator (and brakes for that matter) are very easy to modulate. You can drive it as sedate or as aggressive as you want to with ease. That’s a hard balance to get to and kudos to Hyundai for finding that balance. The interior is quiet for the most part. Unless you are putting your foot down (in which case, you’ll hear more engine noise) or you’re doing highway speeds on some road surfaces (in which case you’ll hear some tire noise). Neither is objectionable.

In terms of fuel economy, I am getting 7.5L per 100 KM’s which is pretty good. But unlike most cars that I review, I expect that to go up as the week goes on as I admit that I have been making liberal use of “Sport” mode as it really makes the Hyundai Elantra GT Sport Ultimate really fun to drive. But from previous experience in my 2016 Hyundai Tucson Limited, it will burn some more gas in the process.

Tomorrow, I will focus on the interior of the Hyundai Elantra GT Sport Ultimate which is a nice place to be. Stay tuned to find out why I say that.

Hyundai Canada is rolling out a new piece of technology that is really going to shake things up for those looking for the coolest tech in their next car. Called BlueLink, it’s a connected vehicle system that gives you the following via an app and a telematics system connected by Bell:

Local Search: If you need some gas or coffee, you can have your car find you the nearest Esso or Starbucks.

Powered by Google, you can use your voice to say things like “find me a coffee” or “find me a gas station” to have the system find you what you need. All you need do is press the voice command button on the steering wheel. What’s cool is that when I demoed it, the voice commands worked flawlessly and the system displayed the opening and closing hours and offered to navigate you to the destination.

Vehicle Car Care Information: If you’ve ever wondered about the health of your car, you can check the health of your car on demand. You can also set up monthly health reports that will be delivered to you by e-mail. That way, you’re never in the dark about the health of your Hyundai.

All of this can be done via the app (which is available for Android, iOS, and BlackBerry, though the screenshots are from the iOS version of the app) or from the infotainment screen inside of the car.

Even if you don’t find anything amiss you can set reminders to make sure your vehicle is taken care of, and you can find your nearest Hyundai dealer should the need arise.

Automatic Crash Notifications: If the worst possible scenario should happen and you find yourself in an accident, emergency services can be automatically contacted.

As you can see from this picture, it will send your exact location in the form of longitude and latitude co-ordinates so that emergency services can find you if you can’t say where you are. It’s also great if you run into trouble in a rural part of Canada or you’re in an unfamiliar location. If however you need to get emergency services on demand, the rear-view mirror has buttons to immediately connect you.

Roadside Assistance: If you get a flat tire or some other mechanical issue while you’re on the road, the system can connect you to roadside assistance either via the app or via the button on the rear-view mirror. Here’s what it looks like from the app.

Find My Car: If you have a habit of misplacing your car in large parking lots, Hyundai can help you with that. BlueLink will show you your car’s location on a map and give you directions to get there. If you still need help once you get closer, you can flash the lights or honk the horn to lead you to your car. I’d like to show a screen shot of the Find My Car function from the app to highlight one key feature:

The Find My Car feature, along with many other features within the BlueLink app, is protected by a PIN that is independent of the phone’s PIN. The reason for that is that Hyundai makes the correct assumption that not everyone uses a PIN on their phone. Thus they have to take steps to ensure that your Hyundai is protected from someone with less than honorable intentions who happens to get their hands on your phone. This is a good call on their part as it shows that Hyundai really thought about security when it comes to BlueLink.

Remote Start: The really cool feature that you’ll love is remote start. Not only can you start your Hyundai remotely with the app, you can also set the cabin temperature and even turn on the heated steering wheel and save up to three pre-set configurations of your favorite cabin settings. Say one for winter, one for summer and one for spring/fall. I had a chance to demo this at Hyundai Canada’s headquarters recently and I was able to take this video of the iOS version of the BlueLink app starting a brand new 2018 Hyundai Elantra GT remotely:

On to of starting your car, you can also use the app to see if your doors are locked, unlocked, or open. Not to mention you can see if the trunk or hood is open or closed.

The most impressive feature of Hyundai BlueLink is the fact that you get to use it free of charge for five years which matches the length of Hyundai’s factory warranty. That’s a brilliant idea as it sets it apart from BlueLink’s competition who offer free service for much shorter amounts of time. Plus I imagine that you will be more likely to pay for it once the five years is up because you’ve been immersed in the technology for so long.

BlueLink is rolling in Canada out starting the the aforementioned 2018 Hyundai Elantra GT which is coming to Canada shortly. As Hyundai refreshes their lineup over the next couple of years, BlueLink will make appearances in those vehicles as well. If you’re in a market for a car, and you like to have your car as part of your connected life, you should take a look at Hyundai vehicles equipped with BlueLink as it clearly is going to make waves in the automotive landscape.