Compare the2024 Hyundai ElantraVS 2024 Honda Civic

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

Safety

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With its standard Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist, the Hyundai Elantra is better at preventing collisions with pedestrians than the Honda Civic, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety:

	Elantra	Civic
Overall Evaluation	GOOD	ACCEPTABLE
	Crossing Child - DAY
12 MPH	AVOIDED	AVOIDED
	Crossing Adult - NIGHT
12 MPH Brights	AVOIDED	AVOIDED
12 MPH Low beams	AVOIDED	-10 MPH
25 MPH Brights	AVOIDED	-22 MPH
	Parallel Adult - NIGHT
25 MPH Brights	AVOIDED	AVOIDED
25 MPH Low beams	AVOIDED	AVOIDED
37 MPH Brights	AVOIDED	AVOIDED
Warning Issued-Brights	2.1 sec	2 sec
37 MPH Low beams	-27 MPH	-18 MPH
Warning Issued-Low beams	1.3 sec	1.1 sec

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Elantra has standard Rear Cross-Traffic Collision Warning and Rear Cross-Traffic Collision-Avoidance Assist automatically engages the brakes to help avoid a collision. Only the Civic EX/EX-L/Touring/Sport Touring offers Cross Traffic Monitor and the Civic’s Cross Traffic Monitor does not include automatic braking.

The Elantra SEL/Limited has a standard Blue Link, which uses a global positioning satellite (GPS) receiver and a cellular system to remotely unlock your doors if you lock your keys in, help track down your vehicle if it’s stolen or send emergency personnel to the scene if any airbags deploy. The Civic doesn’t offer a GPS response system, only a navigation computer with no live response for emergencies, so if you’re involved in an accident and you’re incapacitated help may not come as quickly.

Both the Elantra and the Civic have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front and rear side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, driver alert monitors and available rear parking sensors.

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

	Elantra	Civic
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	142	325
Neck Injury Risk	21%	30%
Leg Forces (l/r)	66/48 lbs.	189/372 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	4 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	314	444
Neck Stress	177 lbs.	189 lbs.
Neck Compression	6 lbs.	61 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	135/61 lbs.	275/164 lbs.

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 Hyundai Elantra is safer than the Honda Civic:

	Elantra	Civic
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	83	195
Abdominal Force	239 lbs.	286 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Spine Acceleration	68 G’s	79 G’s
Hip Force	355 lbs.	516 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Max Damage Depth	11 inches	12 inches
HIC	184	260
Spine Acceleration	40 G’s	51 G’s

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

Side impacts caused 23% of all road fatalities in 2018, down from 29% in 2003, when the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety introduced its side barrier test. In order to continue improving vehicle safety, the IIHS has started using a more severe side impact test: 37 MPH (up from 31 MPH), with a 4180-pound barrier (up from 3300 pounds). The results of this newly developed test demonstrates that the Hyundai Elantra is safer than the Civic Sedan:

	Elantra	Civic
Overall Evaluation	GOOD	ACCEPTABLE
Structure	GOOD	ACCEPTABLE
	Driver Injury Measures
Head/Neck	GOOD	GOOD
Head Injury Criterion	189	205
Neck Compression	-134 lbs.	67 lbs.
Torso	ACCEPTABLE	ACCEPTABLE
Shoulder Deflection	1.1 in	1.26 in
Torso Max Deflection	1.26 in	1.85 in
Torso Deflection Rate	10 MPH	10 MPH
Pelvis	ACCEPTABLE	MARGINAL
Pelvis Force	1093 lbs.	1138 lbs.
Head Protection	GOOD	GOOD
	Passenger Injury Measures
Head/Neck	GOOD	GOOD
Neck Compression	-156 lbs.	67 lbs.
Torso	ACCEPTABLE	ACCEPTABLE
Shoulder Deflection	1.18 in	1.89 in
Shoulder Force	178 lbs.	379 lbs.
Torso Max Deflection	1.5 in	1.61 in
Pelvis	GOOD	GOOD
Pelvis Force	558 lbs.	580 lbs.
Head Protection	GOOD	GOOD

The Hyundai Elantra achieved a “Top Safety Pick” rating from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) for the 2024 model year. This recognition was based on its impressive performance in the small overlap frontal crash test, updated side impact crash test, headlight evaluations, and pedestrian crash prevention testing. The Civic last would have qualified as a “Top Safety Pick” in 2023.

Warranty

The Elantra comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire car and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Civic’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 2 years or 24,000 miles sooner.

Hyundai’s powertrain warranty covers the Elantra 5 years and 40,000 miles longer than Honda covers the Civic. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the Civic ends after only 5 years or 60,000 miles.

The Elantra’s corrosion warranty is 2 years longer than the Civic’s (7 vs. 5 years).

Hyundai pays for scheduled maintenance on the Elantra for 1 year and 12000 miles longer than Honda pays for maintenance for the Civic (3/36,000 vs. 2/24,000).

Reliability

To reliably start during all conditions and help handle large electrical loads, the Elantra has a standard 760-amp battery. The Civic’s 500-amp battery isn’t as powerful.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Hyundai vehicles are better in initial quality than Honda vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Hyundai above average in initial quality. With 2 more problems per 100 vehicles, Honda is rated lower.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the statistics that show that Hyundai vehicles are more reliable than Honda vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Hyundai third in reliability, above the industry average. With 82 more problems per 100 vehicles, Honda is ranked 24th.

Engine

As tested in Consumer Reports the Hyundai Elantra is faster than the Civic LX/Sport 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder:

	Elantra	Civic
Zero to 30 MPH	3.3 sec	4.1 sec
Zero to 60 MPH	7.9 sec	9.7 sec
45 to 65 MPH Passing	4.4 sec	4.8 sec
Quarter Mile	16.2 sec	17.6 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	90 MPH	86 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Elantra gets better mileage than the Civic Sedan:

			MPG
Elantra
	Auto	SE 2.0 DOHC 4-cyl.	32 city/41 hwy
		2.0 DOHC 4-cyl.	31 city/40 hwy
Civic Sedan
	Auto	LX 2.0 4-cyl.	31 city/40 hwy
		Touring 1.5 turbo 4-cyl.	31 city/38 hwy
		Sport 2.0 4-cyl.	30 city/37 hwy

On the EPA test cycle the Elantra gets better mileage than the Civic Hatchback:

			MPG
Elantra
	Auto	SE 2.0 DOHC 4-cyl.	32 city/41 hwy
		2.0 DOHC 4-cyl.	31 city/40 hwy
Civic Hatchback
	Manual	1.5 turbo 4-cyl.	28 city/37 hwy
		2.0 4-cyl.	26 city/36 hwy
	Auto	EX-L 1.5 turbo 4-cyl.	31 city/39 hwy
		LX 2.0 4-cyl.	30 city/38 hwy
		Sport Touring 1.5 turbo 4-cyl.	30 city/37 hwy
		Sport 2.0 4-cyl.	29 city/37 hwy

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Hyundai Elantra uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Civic EX/EX-L/Touring requires premium for maximum efficiency, which can cost on average about 82.8 cents more per gallon.

Environmental Friendliness

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Hyundai Elantra higher (7 out of 10) than the Honda Civic (6 to 7). This means the Elantra produces up to 1.1 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Civic every 15,000 miles.

Brakes and Stopping

The Elantra stops shorter than the Civic:

	Elantra	Civic
70 to 0 MPH	175 feet	176 feet	Car and Driver
60 to 0 MPH	116 feet	124 feet	Motor Trend

Suspension and Handling

The Elantra has standard rear gas-charged shocks for better control over choppy roads. The Civic’s suspension doesn’t offer gas-charged shocks.

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the Elantra is 1.7 inches wider in the front and 1 inch wider in the rear than the average track on the Civic.

The Elantra Limited handles at .88 G’s, while the Civic Touring Sedan pulls only .83 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Elantra Limited executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Civic Sport Sedan (27 seconds @ .63 average G’s vs. 27.9 seconds @ .6 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Elantra’s turning circle is .7 feet tighter than the Civic LX/EX/EX-L’s (35.4 feet vs. 36.1 feet). The Elantra’s turning circle is 2.7 feet tighter than the Civic Sport/Touring’s (35.4 feet vs. 38.1 feet).

Chassis

As tested by Car and Driver, the interior of the Elantra Limited is quieter than the Civic Sport Sedan:

	Elantra	Civic
At idle	35 dB	40 dB
Full-Throttle	79 dB	84 dB
70 MPH Cruising	68 dB	72 dB

Passenger Space

The Elantra has 1.3 inches more front headroom, .2 inches more rear headroom, .6 inches more rear legroom and 1.6 inches more rear hip room than the Civic.

Cargo Capacity

To make loading groceries and cargo easier when your hands are full, the Elantra SEL/Limited’s trunk can be opened just by waiting momentarily behind the back bumper, leaving your hands completely free. The Civic doesn’t offer a hands-free gesture to open its trunk, forcing you to put cargo down if your hands are full.

Ergonomics

The power windows standard on both the Elantra and the Civic have locks to prevent small children from operating them. When the lock on the Elantra is engaged the driver can still operate all of the windows, for instance to close one opened by a child. The Civic prevents the driver from operating the other windows just as it does the other passengers.

The Elantra’s variable intermittent wipers have an adjustable delay to allow the driver to choose a setting that best clears the windshield during light rain or mist. The Civic LX/Sport’s standard fixed intermittent wipers only have one fixed delay setting, so the driver will have to manually switch them between slow and intermittent.

Economic Advantages

IntelliChoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Hyundai Elantra will be $1770 to $2662 less than for the Honda Civic.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Hyundai Elantra and the Honda Civic, based on reliability, safety and performance.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Elantra third among compact cars in owner reported satisfaction. This includes how well the vehicle performs and satisfies its owner’s expectations. The Civic isn’t in the top three.

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