Review
I've owned seven little old cars in the past fourteen years, many much older than this one, and this one has given me the most trouble (mostly at the start). Every thing I do to the Elantra, every fix, is like going down the rabbit hole, even though this car is relatively easy to work on. I bought the car 20k miles ago, and with blown struts and cracked windshield and a little hitch in its shifting--I knew about all that. One week after the purchase, driving down the highway, radiator blew. So, tow bill. New radiator, and it was still overheating. This is when we realized the previous owner had reversed the hoses. New thermostat, new belts while we're at it. Two week long saga of getting the belts on juuuuuust right to get one or the other or all of them to stop squealing (never had that much trouble before). Pro tip: tighten the alternator belt. One of the pulleys is squeaking, one of the back drum brakes was squeaking, tried to get that off to fix... of course it's well and truly stuck, /fail. I did some research on the internet about the shifting, found a lot of people had had success with changing the transmission speed sensors. Bought them on ebay, installed, and... I think it's shifting somewhat better. It doesn't do the odd shifting thing anymore... mostly. Tried to change the PCV valve, unscrewed it from the valve cover... and the whole effing brass fitting came out of the plastic valve cover with it, and I had to jam it back in. It looks like it's separate, but when I ultimately bought a new valve cover, the PCV valve came with. The engine was filthy, decided I was going to wash it before working on it. Wound up flooding one of the spark plugs. Couple-day saga of changing spark plugs (which were due anyway, so whatever), Heet, wires. Apparently I'd fried the wire, too. Couple days after that, headlights went out. Both of them, at the same time. Odd, yes? Replaced the bulbs. Since then, have replaced the struts and timing belt and valve cover (the seal had started leaking and the jammed-in PCV valve was driving me nuts), all with minimum difficulty. The good, in summary: The car is responsive & fun to drive, seats are comfortable, the sunroof still works and doesn't leak, aftermarket stereo plays Pandora. Peeves: Rear foot space is sparing, little spots of rust starting on body, parts a little difficult to find, (wild goose chase, many not yet released by manufacturer so have to get them at dealer, and many are interchangeable with Kia, which scares me). Ultimately, it's a pretty good little car, and I'd buy one again.