Compare the2024 Nissan SentraVS 2022 Hyundai Accent

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Ergonomics
Economic Advantages
Recommendations

Safety

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For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Nissan Sentra have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Hyundai Accent doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Sentra are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Accent doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Nissan Sentra has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Accent doesn’t offer knee airbags.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Sentra has standard Rear Automatic Braking that uses rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically applies the brakes to prevent a collision. The Accent doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

The Sentra’s lane departure warning system alerts a temporarily inattentive driver when the vehicle begins to leave its lane. The Accent doesn’t offer a lane departure warning system.

The Sentra SV/SR offers an optional Around View® Monitor to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Accent only offers a rear monitor.

The Sentra has a standard blind spot warning system that uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them. Only the Accent offers a system to reveal objects in its blind spot.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Sentra’s standard Rear Cross Traffic Alert uses sensors in the rear to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side, helping the driver avoid collisions. The Accent doesn’t offer a rear cross-path warning system.

The Sentra’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Accent doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the Sentra and the Accent have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, rearview cameras and available daytime running lights.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Nissan Sentra is safer than the Hyundai Accent:

	Sentra	Accent
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Nissan Sentra is safer than the Hyundai Accent:

	Sentra	Accent
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	162	194
Chest Movement	1.1 inches	1.3 inches
Abdominal Force	196 lbs.	258 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	160	527
Spine Acceleration	45 G’s	84 G’s
Hip Force	444 lbs.	635 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	12 inches	12 inches
HIC	160	214
Hip Force	660 lbs.	880 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Instrumented handling tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and analysis of its dimensions indicate that the Sentra, with its five-star roll-over rating, is 1.4% less likely to roll over than the Accent, which received a four-star rating.

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, its standard vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, its standard vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its available headlight’s “Acceptable” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Sentra the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2022, a rating granted to only 176 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Accent last would have qualified as a “Top Safety Pick” in 2019.

Warranty

There are over 30 percent more Nissan dealers than there are Hyundai dealers, which makes it easier should you ever need service under the Sentra’s warranty.

Reliability

To reliably power the ignition and other systems and to recharge the battery, the Sentra has a standard 150-amp alternator. The Accent’s 100-amp alternator isn’t as powerful.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Nissan vehicles are better in initial quality than Hyundai vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Nissan above average in initial quality. With 8 more problems per 100 vehicles, Hyundai is rated lower.

Engine

The Sentra’s 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder produces 29 more horsepower (149 vs. 120) and 33 lbs.-ft. more torque (146 vs. 113) than the Accent’s 1.6 DOHC 4-cylinder.

Fuel Economy and Range

In heavy traffic or at stoplights the Sentra’s engine automatically turns off when the vehicle is stopped, saving fuel and reducing pollution. The engine is automatically restarted when the driver gets ready to move again. If the conditions warrant or the driver wishes, the system can be manually disabled at any time for the duration of a trip. The Accent doesn’t offer an automatic engine start/stop system.

Brakes and Stopping

The Sentra stops shorter than the Accent:

	Sentra	Accent
70 to 0 MPH	170 feet	173 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	114 feet	122 feet	Motor Trend

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the Sentra has larger standard tires than the Accent (205/55R16 vs. 185/65R15). The Sentra SR’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Accent (215/45R18 vs. 205/45R17).

The Sentra S/SV’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 55 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Accent’s standard 65 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Sentra S/SV has standard 16-inch wheels. Smaller 15-inch wheels are standard on the Accent. The Sentra SR’s 18-inch wheels are larger than the 17-inch wheels on the Accent Limited.

The Nissan Sentra’s wheels have 5 lugs for longer wheel bearing life, less chance of rotor warping and greater strength. The Hyundai Accent only has 4 wheel lugs per wheel.

The Sentra has a standard easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The Accent doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

Suspension and Handling

For superior ride and handling, the Nissan Sentra has fully independent front and rear suspensions. An independent suspension allows the wheels to follow the road at the best angle for gripping the pavement, without compromising ride comfort. The Hyundai Accent has a rear torsion beam axle, with a semi-independent rear suspension.

The Sentra has standard front and rear stabilizer bars, which help keep the Sentra flat and controlled during cornering. The Accent’s suspension doesn’t offer a rear stabilizer bar.

The Sentra has vehicle speed sensitive variable-assist power steering, for low-effort parking, better control at highway speeds and during hard cornering, and a better feel of the road. The Accent doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Sentra’s wheelbase is 5 inches longer than on the Accent (106.6 inches vs. 101.6 inches).

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the Sentra is 2.9 inches wider in the front and 2.6 inches wider in the rear than the track on the Accent.

The Sentra SR handles at .89 G’s, while the Accent Limited pulls only .81 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Sentra SR executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1 seconds quicker than the Accent Limited (27 seconds @ .63 average G’s vs. 28 seconds @ .59 average G’s).

Chassis

To almost totally eliminate engine vibration in the passenger area, the Sentra has an electronically controlled liquid-filled front engine mount. A computer-controlled electric current in the liquid changes its viscosity, allowing the mount to dampen the engine completely at all RPMs. The Accent uses conventional solid rubber engine mounts.

The front grille of the Sentra uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The Accent doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

Passenger Space

Because it has more passenger and cargo room, the EPA rates the Sentra a Mid-size car, while the Accent is rated a Compact.

The Sentra has 5.9 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Accent (96.1 vs. 90.2).

The Sentra has 1.7 inches more front legroom, 1.8 inches more front hip room, 2.2 inches more front shoulder room, 1.4 inches more rear legroom, 2.5 inches more rear hip room and .8 inches more rear shoulder room than the Accent.

Cargo Capacity

The Sentra has a larger trunk than the Accent (14.3 vs. 13.7 cubic feet).

Ergonomics

The Sentra’s driver’s power window opens or closes with one touch of the window control, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths. The Accent’s standard driver’s power window switch has to be held the entire time to close it fully.

The Sentra’s speed-sensitive wipers speed up when the vehicle does, so that the driver doesn’t have to continually adjust the speed of the wipers. The Accent’s manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

The Sentra has a standard automatic headlight on/off feature. When the ignition is on, the headlights automatically turn on at dusk and off after dawn. The Accent has an automatic headlight on/off feature standard only on the SEL/Limited.

While driving with high beams on, sensitive light sensors standard on the Sentra detect other vehicles which could be blinded and automatically switch to low beams. The Accent doesn’t offer automatic dimming high beams.

The Sentra’s optional rear view mirror has an automatic dimming feature. This mirror can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on it, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Accent doesn’t offer the luxury of an automatic dimming rear view mirror.

On extremely cold winter days, the Sentra SV/SR’s optional heated steering wheel provides comfort, allowing the driver to steer safely and comfortably before the car heater warms up. The Accent doesn’t offer a heated steering wheel.

The Sentra (except S)’s optional dual zone air conditioning allows the driver and front passenger to choose two completely different temperatures so people with different temperature preferences won’t have to compromise. This makes both the driver and front passenger as comfortable as possible. The Accent doesn’t offer dual zone air conditioning.

To keep a safe, consistent following distance, the Sentra SV/SR has a standard Intelligent Cruise Control, which alters the speed of the vehicle without driver intervention. This allows the driver to use cruise control more safely without constantly having to disengage it when approaching slower traffic. The Accent doesn’t offer an adaptive cruise control.

Economic Advantages

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Sentra is less expensive to operate than the Accent because it costs $164 less to do the manufacturer’s suggested maintenance for 50,000 miles. Typical repairs cost less on the Sentra than the Accent, including $15 less for a starter.

Recommendations

The Nissan Sentra outsold the Hyundai Accent by over four to one during 2022.