First Drive: 2017 Hyundai Elantra in Imperial Beach, CA - Afforable Style and Tech

Imperial Beach, California was the setting for the 2017 Hyundai Elantra Media Launch! From the stunning beaches to the windy mountain roads, this would be a great place to get a real feel for the Elantra. There were only Limited editions with the Tech and Ultimate packages available that comes in at $27,585.

This sixth generation Elantra brings together a bold aerodynamic design with better fuel economy, improvements to ride quality with increased noise reduction and class-leading safety features. Part of the increased noise reduction comes from this hood sound insulator as you can see in the above photo.

The trademark grill with really cool and unique vertical LED running lights and HID projector beam headlights.

Redesigned seats that are made of soybean foam, which is better for the environment instead of petroleum-based foam. The seats are also feel more comfortable and you get better support in the upper and lower cushions while driving winding roads.

With a place called Imperial Beach, the Star Wars fan in me couldn't resist a little rebel resistance! The Force is strong with the Hyundai Elantra especially in stormtrooper white! Time to hop in and test the Elantra out! Queue the Star Wars fanfare music!

The sharp looking Elantra has been redesigned with aerodynamics in mind. There are functional air curtains like the Sonata Hybrid that help to manage the airflow in the front of the vehicle. Under the vehicle you will find underbody covers and a bottom spoiler out back that help contribute to a lower
coefficient of drag.

Even the horses want to get a closer look at the 2017 Hyundai Elantra. And under the Elantra hood is a 147 horsepower, a 2.0-Liter four cylinder 6-speed manual or automatic transmission. Fuel economy is estimated to be 29 in the city, 38 on the highway and 33 combined.

Merging and passing were no problems for the Elantra. Hyundai's drive mode allows you to select between Normal, Eco and Sport driving modes. I drove in normal mode through the windy roads in the mountains. The handling and response were perfect through some pretty tight turns.

The interior is a complete redesign that reminds me of the Sonata. The wide instrument panel creates a more spacious feel. The 8-inch navigation screen with the Tech package is easy to view and interact with. A 7-inch screen is standard on the Limited trim edition. The infotainment system is also Android Auto and Apple CarPlay compatible. Both work great in the Elantra so it doesn't matter if you have an Android or an Apple smartphone.

The Tech package also adds an Infinity eight-speaker premium sound system. The Harman Clari-Fi sound processing system is included and takes lost audio data from low quality sources in real tiem for a more CD-like sound.

Blue Link is also included on the Limited edition You can use a smartphone, a wearable app or even on the web to lock, unlock, start, track the vehicle's location and other features.

The Ultimate package adds some impressive driver safety features including pedestrian detection, automatic emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, lane departure warning and lane keep assist. Blind Spot Monitor is standard.

The Hyundai Elantra has stunning good looks, a wide range of driver safety features and an easy to use infotainment system. It offers a comfortable ride with lots of room and cool tech for a price under $30,000. Add the 10-year powertrain warranty and you have a fantastic compact vehicle that looks and behaves like a larger vehicle.

*Disclaimer: Hyundai covered all of my expenses in this drive experience but all opinions are mine.*