Hyundai Elantra N Review: 46/70

The Buyer's Guide

We scored the car as a 2022-on Elantra N sedan with the 2.0-litre turbo four, the six-speed manual and front-wheel drive, and it landed at 46 out of 70, with a verdict of Buy a 2022-23 manual, recalls run.

This car is for someone who wants a quick, well-sorted front-drive car with a proper back seat and a manual, and who accepts paying more for that than its power usually costs, then watching the price keep falling.

All money figures use a fixed set of assumptions so they can be compared to other cars we cover: 12,000 miles a year, insurance for a 40-year-old with a clean record on full coverage, and premium fuel at $4.00 a gallon. Prices are Kelley Blue Book private-party in Good condition, on the 2022 model year. We scored the six-speed manual. Most Elantra Ns were sold with the eight-speed dual-clutch instead, which weighs 3,296 lb against the manual's 3,186 lb and carries a recall the manual does not. This is not the Elantra N Line, which is a different, lower trim.

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The Deal

~ our estimate, not a measured or quoted figure · * there is a caveat, and the note under the table explains it. Why we mark figures

Kelley Blue Book values a 2022 Elantra N at $20,450 in Good condition private party. KBB does not say what mileage that assumes. The condition spread on the same page runs from $18,300 for Fair to $22,050 for Excellent.

We priced the 2022 because that is what you will be shopping. When we looked, Cars.com had 534 listings for a 2022 and 638 for a 2023, then 5 for a 2024 and 9 for a 2025. The later cars are on the books, at $23,370 for a 2024 and $26,170 for a 2025, but there are very few of them to buy.

The asking market sits well above book. The 2022 listings averaged $25,915 and the 2023s $27,262. Across all four model years the average comes to about $28,694, which is 1.40 times book. That is an average of each year's average rather than a true median, so read it as direction.

Two figures decide the Deal score, and both count against it. What you lose: KBB's value for a 2022 went from $30,682 in 2023 to $26,236 in 2024 and $21,110 in 2025, falling about 17% a year, which is about $3,487 a year on the $20,450 buy-in. What you get: $20,450 buys 11.5 lb per hp, against about $13,854 for what that power-to-weight usually costs across our Board, so you are paying 1.48 times the going rate. That is $74.1 per horsepower on book and $104.0 on the asking average. A car that holds its value or costs less for its power earns points here; this one does neither yet, and that is why the Deal is a 3.

For a named comparison, the Veloster N is $19,500 on book for 275 hp.

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The Drive

276 horsepower at 5,500 to 6,000 rpm and 289 lb-ft from 2,100 to 4,700 rpm, in 3,186 lb. That is 11.5 lb per hp. MotorWeek ran a 2024 manual to 60 in 5.4 sec, and through the quarter mile in 14.0 sec at 101 mph.

The engine is Hyundai's Smartstream 2.0-litre turbo four, and the manual gets it at its base rating. N Grin Shift, the 20-second push to 286 hp, belongs to the dual-clutch only. Hyundai's own figures put the manual at about 25% of Elantra N sales in the latest year it reported, so the car we scored is the minority on the lot.

The part of this score that needs explaining is the Veloster N. It uses the same family of 2.0-litre turbo, makes 275 hp in 3,106 lb (11.3 lb per hp) and ran 5.2 seconds to 60. On paper it is a touch quicker. We rate powertrain character a 4 on both. The whole one-point gap, a Drive of 8 here against the Veloster N's 7, is steering feel: we put the Elantra N's at 4, accurate and confidence-inspiring with some filtering, and the Veloster N's at 3, precise but numb. No figure in our table measures that. It is a judgment call, and we would rather say so than dress it up. What the Elantra N brings to the front axle is a limited-slip differential, adaptive dampers, N-specific chassis bracing and square 245/35R19 Michelin Pilot Sport 4S, and we think it shows through the wheel.

Cornering is not in this score; that is The Limit.

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The Upkeep

About $5,248 a year: $1,920 in fuel, $2,282 in insurance, $596 in tires and $450 in service.

The manual is rated 25 mpg combined, 22 city and 31 highway, on fueleconomy.gov's own page for it. Those are not the N Line's figures, which are higher and often turn up on Elantra N listings by mistake. Dealers and spec pages say the N wants 91-octane premium to make its rated power. We could not find the owner's manual's own wording on whether that is required or recommended, so budget for premium.

Insurance is the line to read carefully. MoneyGeek's $2,282 is an average across the whole Elantra range, from the base car up. They break out the N Line at $3,036 a year and have no row for the full N at all. So our figure is almost certainly low for this car, and we have not borrowed the N Line's number to cover it. Against the $20,450 book, even the average is 11% of the car a year.

The tires are simpler. The N runs 245/35R19 at all four corners, so the set rotates. Tires are on our Board tire rule, the same for every sedan we cover: a Continental ExtremeContact Sport 02 in the factory sizes, priced at SimpleTire, one set every 24,000 miles. That is $297.99 a tire, a $1,191.96 set, or $596 a year. The factory tire is the Michelin Pilot Sport 4S, which SimpleTire does not sell. Against the Veloster N's $4,940 a year, the Elantra N costs more to keep.

What year one costs, by condition

These are our estimate, and the caveat matters more than usual. They are built for a car at 120,000 miles, and no Elantra N is anywhere near that yet: the first cars are about four years old. So they come from part costs rather than from high-mileage history: a set or two of tires at $1,191.96 a set, a clutch at an estimated $900 to $1,500, spark plugs and fluids at about $600 to $900, and a brake service at about $500 to $700. The recalls cost nothing and are not in the table.

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The Risk

No catastrophic failure is on record for this car, and the costliest thing on our list is a clutch, at an estimated $900 to $1,500 with independent labour. That is wear, and with no catastrophic mode on record it would read an 8. We hold it at a 7 for age: a four-year-old generation has not had the time to show what fails at 120,000 miles, and the Veloster N sits on 7 on the same short record.

There are three safety recalls in scope, all free to fix regardless of warranty, and all visible on a VIN check at nhtsa.gov.

The one that matters for a used buy is 24V-528, because it covers the 2022 and 2023 cars that make up the market. On 8,533 cars built from September 15, 2021 to November 23, 2023, the high-pressure fuel pump's control valve can wear and let in excess fuel, richening the mixture enough to cut power at low speed. The fix is an ECM update, plus a new pump if code P0088 is stored.

22V-746 covers the dual-clutch's electric oil pump on 1,165 cars from the 2022 model year. It can drop the car into a fail-safe mode and then lose drive entirely. It does not reach the manual we scored, which is one more reason to buy the manual.

26V-254 is recent. Reported on April 21, 2026, with owner letters from June 11, it covers 2025 cars whose B-pillar side-impact sensors may have been misassembled, which can delay the airbags in a crash. About 2,931 Elantra Ns are in the shared campaign, and the dealer inspects them and replaces any that need it, free.

A technical service bulletin is a different thing, and this one is worth understanding. TSB 24-EM-010H covers every 2022 to 2025 car. Water can get into the knock sensor's connector in heavy rain or at a car wash, set code P1326 with no real knock, and put the car into limp mode. It is a warranty repair, not a recall: covered while the car is inside Hyundai's warranty, and yours to pay for after. Out of warranty the labour alone is about $255, plus parts we have not priced.

NHTSA's complaint file holds 39 complaints across 2022 to 2025: 17, 14, 1 and 7 by model year. We also found one owner on Hyundai's own forum reporting a declined engine warranty claim on a stock 2022. It is a single account with no cause or cost attached, and we note it as nothing more than that.

The inspection checklist

1. Confirm it is the six-speed manual
2. Run all three recalls by VIN, and get proof the fuel-pump recall was done on a 2022 or 2023
3. Check for stored code P0088 or P1326
4. Hose down the engine bay and watch for a warning light or limp mode
5. Check the clutch's bite point, and whether it slips in a high gear under load
6. Ask for the service history, not just the mileage

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The Daily

Five seats, four doors and a 14.2 cu ft trunk. This is a proper sedan, and it answers the category's real question, whether it could be the only car you own, with a yes.

Inside there is a 10.25-inch touchscreen and a 10.25-inch digital cluster in one panel, with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto by cable. Some later Elantra marketing mentions wireless, but we could not confirm it on the N, so plan on the cable.

Against the Veloster N, the difference is doors and seats: the Veloster N seats four, has one door on the driver's side and two on the other, and carries 19.9 cu ft in its hatch. The Elantra N has the smaller trunk and the easier back seat.

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The Limit

G Street, on the 2026 SCCA Solo rules, where Appendix A names the “Elantra N (2022-25)”. Some buyer's guides still list it in D Street; the current rulebook says G. It also appears in B Street Touring and F Street Prepared, but those are classes for prepared cars, not a second answer to where a stock one runs. It shares G Street with the WRX.

The hardware is good for a front-drive car: a limited-slip differential as standard, adaptive dampers, N-specific bracing and square 245/35R19 Michelin Pilot Sport 4S under 3,186 lb. The Limit is still a 7, because our rubric caps a front-drive car there whatever its class and whatever its differential. The Civic Type R is the front-drive exception at 8, on 1.02 g of measured grip. We have no grip figure for the Elantra N: one exists, but from an outlet outside the sources we use.

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The Mods

The first step is cheap. An ECU tune from N75 Motorsports is about $606 and needs no hardware, and tuner dyno results put the gain at 40-50 whp over a stock car in the mid-260s to 270 whp. One dual-clutch car went from 273 to 314 whp on it. Those are the tuner's own sheets rather than an independent test.

Scaled to 100, that tune costs about $1,478 per +100 whp, but read that figure carefully: it is the tune-only rate multiplied up. A real +100 whp needs supporting hardware such as a downpipe, intake and larger intercooler, and we have not priced it.

Forum owners put the stock bottom end's comfortable limit near 300 to 350 whp. A tuned car around 310-314 whp already sits inside that range, and nobody has proved the ceiling on a dyno, so treat anything past a tune as engine money. The aftermarket is active and growing: N75 Motorsports, SXTH Element, KDM Tuners and Tork Motorsports all sell for it, and Hyundai's own forum keeps a running parts list. It is newer than the Civic Type R's, with fewer years behind it. Against the Veloster N's $1,250 flash, it sits on the same rung, a 7.

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The Verdict

Buy a 2022 or 2023 manual with its fuel-pump recall done, and price in about $3,487 a year going back to depreciation. It scores 46 out of 70: an 8 for the Drive and an 8 as a real four-door, a 7 for the Risk, held down by a Deal of 3, where you pay 1.48 times the going rate for its power and resale falls about 17% a year.

The 2022 and 2023 cars are the market, with hundreds of listings each against single digits for 2024 and 2025. Run every recall by VIN, hose down the engine bay for the knock-sensor fault, and drive it enough to feel the clutch.

This car is for you if you want 276 hp, a limited-slip front axle and a manual in a sedan your friends can sit in the back of, and the depreciation is a cost you have planned for. It is not for you if you want the power for less money: the Veloster N is $19,500 on book for 275 hp, in a hatch with fewer doors.

The Long Read: Should You Buy a Used Hyundai Elantra N?

We scored the Elantra N as a 2022-on sedan with the 2.0-litre turbo four, the six-speed manual and front-wheel drive, and it landed at 46 out of 70, with a verdict of Buy a 2022-23 manual, recalls run.

So you want a fast front-drive car with a manual and a back seat people will actually use. A used Elantra N gives you 276 hp, a limited-slip differential and five seats for $20,450 on book, every recall on it is a free fix, and the worst thing likely to wear out is a clutch. What counts against it is the price, and how fast that price is falling.

We scored the six-speed manual, priced on the 2022. Most Elantra Ns were sold with the dual-clutch, and most of the used market is 2022 and 2023 cars, so both of those choices are about what you will actually find for sale.

How much does a used Elantra N cost?

Kelley Blue Book values a 2022 Elantra N at $20,450 in Good condition private party, with Fair at $18,300 and Excellent at $22,050. Asking prices run higher: 2022 listings on Cars.com averaged $25,915 and 2023s $27,262. Across 2022 to 2025 the average comes to about $28,694, or 1.40 times book.

The market thins out fast after 2023. We counted 534 listings for a 2022 and 638 for a 2023, then 5 for a 2024 and 9 for a 2025. KBB prices a 2025 at $26,170, but there are very few to choose from.

How fast does the Elantra N depreciate?

Fast. KBB's value for a 2022 went from $30,682 in 2023 to $21,110 in 2025, about 17% a year, which is about $3,487 a year on the $20,450 buy-in. And the buy-in is already 1.48 times what 11.5 lb per hp usually costs across our Board, about $13,854. You pay more than the going rate for the power and then lose it quickly, which is why the Deal scores a 3 on a car that is otherwise sound.

What goes wrong with the Elantra N?

Not much yet, and it is too young to be sure. No catastrophic failure is on record, and the costliest thing on our list is a clutch at an estimated $900 to $1,500.

There are three safety recalls, all free. The fuel-pump recall, 24V-528, is the one to check on a used car: it covers 2022 and 2023 cars whose high-pressure fuel pump valve can wear and cut power at low speed, and the fix is an ECM update and a pump if needed. The dual-clutch oil pump recall, 22V-746, does not apply to the manual. The newest, 26V-254, was reported in April 2026 and covers misassembled side-impact airbag sensors on 2025 cars.

There is also a service bulletin, TSB 24-EM-010H, for water getting into the knock sensor connector and putting the car into limp mode after heavy rain or a wash. That one is a warranty repair rather than a recall, so it is free while the car is under Hyundai's warranty and about $255 in labour plus parts after.

Is the Elantra N expensive to run?

About $5,248 a year. Fuel is $1,920 at 25 mpg on premium. Insurance is $2,282, but that is MoneyGeek's average for every Elantra, and they put the N Line alone at $3,036, so expect the N to cost more. Tires are $596 a year on our Board tire rule, on a square set of 245/35R19s that you can rotate, and service is about $450.

How does the Elantra N drive?

Quickly: 276 hp and 289 lb-ft in 3,186 lb is 11.5 lb per hp, and MotorWeek ran a 2024 manual to 60 in 5.4 sec. It shares its engine family with the Veloster N, which has 275 hp in 3,106 lb and is a touch quicker on paper.

The Elantra N's Drive is an 8 and the Veloster N's a 7, and the whole gap is steering feel. We rate the Elantra N's a notch sharper. That is our judgment from behind the wheel, not a figure anyone has measured, and we would rather tell you that than pretend otherwise.

Can an Elantra N be your only car?

Yes. Five seats, four doors and a 14.2 cu ft trunk, with CarPlay and Android Auto by cable on a 10.25-inch screen.

Is the Elantra N any good at autocross?

It runs in SCCA's G Street, the class the current rulebook names for it, alongside the WRX. It has a limited-slip differential, adaptive dampers and square Michelin Pilot Sport 4S. Front-wheel drive holds its Limit to a 7 on our rubric all the same.

Should you tune an Elantra N?

It is cheap to start: an ECU tune is about $606 and tuners report 40-50 whp from it. Past that you need hardware we have not priced, and forum owners put the stock bottom end's limit near 300 to 350 whp, which a tuned car is already inside. The aftermarket is growing, with several dedicated vendors, but it is younger than the established turbo-four platforms.

Elantra N buy or skip: the verdict

Buy a 2022 or 2023 manual with its fuel-pump recall done, and price in about $3,487 a year going back to depreciation. Run every recall by VIN, hose down the engine bay to check for the knock-sensor fault, and feel the clutch.

The Elantra N finished at 46 out of 70 on our Board. It loses points to a price above the going rate and resale falling about 17% a year. It wins them back with a Drive of 8, a Risk of 7, and five seats and four doors you can live with every day.