The eighth-gen Hyundai Elantra adopts a gorgeous, retro-futuristic look

In the Philippines, the Hyundai Elantra returned to the market last year at the 2025 Manila International Auto Show in its seventh-generation, facelifted form. Despite being launched a few years back, it was still a current-generation model, and we didn’t even know that there was a new one on the horizon, which was just revealed at the 2026 Busan Mobility Show.

The eighth-generation Avante, or Elantra, as it’s known in other places of the world, was unveiled at the show, debuting an all-new design that’s gloriously boxy and retro-futuristic, taking cues from the facelifted Grandeur and the N Vision 74 concept car.

It adopts the new Art of Steel design language seen in other models, complete with strong lines and a boxy silhouette, plus a new H-Edge lighting signature, which forms the “H” logo front and back with the lighting elements.

Resembling the current Sonata, the main headlights are integrated in the bumper with the air ducts, while the turn signals and rear taillight elements extend all the way to the sides, aiding with visibility.

The side profile now features the traditional same three-box sedan silhouette, with a clearly defined front, rear, and passenger cell. It’s got large, flared-out fenders that also frame the aerodynamic 18-inch wheels, and it’s been stretched by 55mm and widened by 30mm, now sporting dimensions of 4,765mm long, 1,855mm wide, 1,425mm tall, and with a wheelbase of 2,750mm.

The eighth-generation Avante/Elantra also adopts the new interior layout we first saw in the Ioniq 3. A slim instrument cluster mounted in the driver’s sightline, a single 12.9 or 14.6-inch infotainment screen running the Pleos operating system based on Android Automotive with physical controls below, and a new curvy interior design motif.

It also has additional features like a Bang & Olufsen premium sound system, a built-in dashcam, dual wireless chargers with a 100W USB-C port, the Digital Key 2, walk-away locking, and over-the-air updates.

The powertrain choices are now down to two: a 2.0-liter four-cylinder gasoline motor making 149 horsepower (which replaces the 1.6-liter four-banger in our market), and a hybrid that mates the 1.6-liter four-cylinder gas engine and an electric motor that makes a total of 157 horsepower, but this features the latest generation hybrid system that features “Smart Regenerative Braking 3.0” and a higher capacity for the battery to allow for more features such as a “stay mode” to use accessories when not powered on fully, and Vehicle-To-Load (V2L) capabilities.

More information for the all-new Avante or Elantra will be revealed as the car gets closer to its official launch, but what do you think of the huge change made to the model?

^{Photos from Hyundai}