In 2000, Hyundai introduced the third generation of the Elantra in a few shapes and sizes. The Sedan was one of the best-selling version,
The car barely made it into the compact segment, according to those years' standards. It was a new era for Hyundai, and it showed it, especially from the outside. Another strong point for Elantra was the reliability index, which grew when compared to its predecessor.
The Elantra sedan featured a four-door and three-box bodywork. At the front, it featured angled headlights with sharp lines and distinct headlamps inside the same clear-glass cover. Its V-shaped grille was continued on the hood with two long lines connected to the A-pillars. On the sides, the beltline started from the wheel arches end went all the way to the taillights. The sloped line of the rear window started to descend above the rear seat passengers area.
Inside, the Elantra featured a simple dashboard and instrument cluster, with a rounded center console. Its front seats featured more adjustments, including on the vertical axis. In the rear, there was limited headroom for adult passengers, but enough for children.
Hyundai installed a choice of three engines for the Elantra. The base version offered enough power for a daily driver, and it was fuel-efficient, while the top-performer featured a 2.0-liter gasoline engine, quick enough to keep the rhythm with other European compact vehicles.