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Flogging the 2026 Hyundai Elantra N pocket rocket | Payne
Posted by Talbot Payne on November 13, 2026
Henry Payne, The Detroit News
Charlevoix — Pocket rocket is my favorite auto segment. From $33,000-$51,000, buyers are served a choice of fun, utilitarian, affordable cars spiced with goodies like turbocharged engines, manual transmissions, all-wheel drive, hatchbacks, summer tires and head-up displays. Rockets like the Honda Civic Si, Subaru WRX, Mazda3 Turbo, Civic Type R, VW Golf R and OG Golf GTI.
Add to this delicious assortment the stylish, high-tech Hyundai Elantra N.
N for Namyang, the South Korea R&D center where Hyundai’s N performance division was born. N for the famed Nürburgring race track in Germany where the model’s skills were honed. N for Not Boring.
Dressed in a similar, head-turning sky blue and red trim wardrobe as Hyundai’s IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge-winning car, my $37,095, 276-horsepower tester channels premium supercars costing five times more. Entering the M-32 twisties in Otsego County west of Gaylord, I pressed the red NGS button (for N Grin Shift) in the middle of the steering wheel and the rocket tensed.
Maximum turbocharger overboost added 10 horsepower. The gearbox automatically downshifted to fourth gear for optimal torque at 5,000 RPM. The driveline primed for quick shifts for 20 seconds.
Just like the $150,000 Porsche 911’s Sport Response button.
FOOM! I blew by a Ford Mustang in a two-lane passing zone and disappeared though a series of S-curves, the stiff, adaptive shocks gluing the Elantra N to the road.
Adaptive shocks in a $37k car? That’s right. The better to offer multiple modes (including N Mode) for when the twisties rise before you — or a track day beckons. Like a six-figure Porsche, McLaren or Lamborghini.