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Hyundai Elantra vs Nissan Sentra

Hyundai Elantra vs. Nissan Sentra

Compare repair costs, reliability, and owner reviews

Hyundai Elantra

$452

Average Annual

Repair Cost

Nissan Sentra

$491

Average Annual

Repair Cost

Overall Reliability Rating

Excellent

The Hyundai Elantra Reliability Rating is 4.5 out of 5.0, which ranks it 8th out of 36 for compact cars. The average annual repair cost is $452 which means it has excellent ownership costs. The severity and frequency of repairs are both much lower than other vehicles, so the Elantra is one of the more reliable vehicles on the road.

Excellent

The Nissan Sentra Reliability Rating is 4.0 out of 5.0, which ranks it 14th out of 36 for compact cars. The average annual repair cost is $491 which means it has lower than average ownership costs. The severity of repairs is average and the frequency of those issues is low, so major repairs are uncommon for the Sentra.

Cost

Average annual repairs total

$452

inexpensive

expensive

$491

inexpensive

expensive

Frequency

Average annual repair shop visits

0.27

not often

very often

0.23

not often

very often

Severity

Percentage of annual repairs that are urgent

not urgent

urgent

12%

not urgent

urgent

Overall Car Ratings & Details

(79 Reviews)

(65 Reviews)

5		(12)
4		(37)
3		(22)
2		(5)
1		(3)

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The Hyundai Elantra ranks highest in value and ranks lowest in safety.

“Own this car since 1992, still runs OK after 18 years. Auto tranny still works fine. At 30K defective cam seal ruined the engine; rebuilt under warranty. Replaced: tires (50 and 100K), battery (50...”

“Own this car since 1992, still runs OK after 18 years. Auto tranny still works fine. At 30K...”

1144 known problems

74 known recalls

5		(5)
4		(30)
3		(22)
2		(6)
1		(2)

Read reviews

“Brought my 91 Nissan Sentra new and traveled with it throughout the United States and during my years in the military it was shipped to a couple of overseas bases. With a little over 130K, this is...”

“Brought my 91 Nissan Sentra new and traveled with it throughout the United States and during my...”

1451 known problems

90 known recalls

Vehicle Comparison Rundown

The Nissan Sentra and the Hyundai Elantra are two competing compact cars. Both are available as four-door sedans, and both come with front-wheel drive.

Power ratings on their standard engines favor the Hyundai Elantra, which has 147 horsepower, compared to 124 for the Nissan Sentra. Optional engines are more closely matched, with the Sentra coming in with 188 horsepower, and the Elantra putting out 201 horsepower.

In the space race, the Nissan Sentra and the Hyundai Elantra are very close. The Sentra has 95.9 cubic feet of passenger space and 15.1 cubic feet in the trunk. The Elantra gives you 95.8 cubic feet of passenger space and 14.4 cubic feet of trunk space.

If you’re looking for the latest advanced driver assistance technologies, these two compact sedans are not up to the levels of class leaders Toyota and Honda. The Sentra does offer standard automatic emergency braking on every model, but other important features are not consistently available. The Elantra provides standard blind spot detection, rear cross-traffic alert and lane-change assist on all models except the base Elantra, but automatic emergency braking is not available.

These are both worthy choices if you’re interested in a compact sedan. Drive them, price them, and see which one makes more sense for you. One possible tie-breaker might be the Elantra’s 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain warranty, which the Sentra does not have.

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