Elantra

Make
Hyundai
Segment
Sedan

Not long after the redesigned 2021 Hyundai Elantra was revealed, Hyundai teased that it would be releasing a sporty N-Line variant of the car. The teaser showed the car wearing some pretty heavy camouflage but it was clear based on the video that the N-Line would be far more than just a visual upgrade over the standard Elantra. In the standard Elantra, a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine produces 147 horsepower and 132 lb-ft of torque going out to the front wheels through an Intelligent Variable Transmission.

We expected the Elantra N-Line to offer a much more powerful engine and now a leaked document from The Korean Car Blog confirms this suspicion. As expected, the N-Line will use the same 1.6-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine as the Elantra GT N-Line.

The document rates the output of the 1.6-liter engine at 204 PS, which translates to 201 horsepower. This is the same amount found in the Kia Forte GT, which posts a 0-60 mph time of around 6.7 seconds, just edging out the Honda Civic Si. As with the Kia, Hyundai will offer either a six-speed manual or seven-speed dual-clutch transmission sending power to the front wheels, unlike the Civic Si which is a strictly-manual machine. We expect the N-Line to also receive larger brakes and suspension upgrades to match the additional power in much the same way as the hatchback Elantra GT does.

The leaked document mentions that the reveal of the Avante (the name of the Elantra in other markets) N-Line will take place in June, meaning the official debut could be just days away. This could be a reveal for South Korea only, meaning it might be longer before there is a US-specific reveal. When it goes on sale, we expect pricing to be close to the Forte GT, which starts at $22,490. This would make the Elantra N-Line cheaper than the Honda Civic Si and Volkswagen Jetta GLI which are priced at $25,200 and $26,245, respectively. Given the recent success of Hyundai's N-Line products, the Elantra N Line could be one of the best entry-level enthusiast cars around.