We’ve been doing our research, and we think we might buy a 2002 Hyundai Elantra. We don’t know anybody who has one, so I was hoping someone in Doperland might have some anecdotal opinions about them. We’re thinking about something a couple of years old so someone else has taken the new car depreciation hit, but we still get a car with lots of life still in it.
So, opinions?
The only thing I have heard about later model Hyundai’s is to have them checked out by a mechanic first and include a compression check of the engine. And avoid those with automatic transmissions.
I don’t know about the 2002 model year but I love my 2004 Elantra. After a quick google it appears that the 2004 did not change much from the 2002.
Likes:
Nice interior
Quick enough to merge on the freeway w/o a problem
Roomy
Good fit and trim
Good gas milage
Comfy seats
The rear seats are roomy.
Decent standard stereo/casette
Clear gauges/ easy to read
Fold down seat has a trunk pass through so you can put in long things (think skis)
Dislikes
The dent I put in it 
The Trunk is HUGE. The trunk opening IS NOT huge. You can fit a lot of stuff in the trunk but big things won’t fit in.
Ummmm…
It’s not a Corvette
I am really happy with the car.
I do not know how much you are planning on paying for the used Hyundai but you might think about getting a new one. I got mine for 9K. Brand new with 14 miles on it. The asking price was ~14K. I wasn’t even planning on buying a car the day I got it. I was going to go look at different cars. Then the salesman asked me what I would pay for it. I started really low and the salesman came back with a price that I would have paid. But this was a negotiation so I went up a bit and he went down a bit and I feel that I got a great deal. I love the car.
Slee
We were planning on getting a manual transmission.
So, 9K USD, eh? That’s about $11,250 CAD. The 2004 Elantras are much more expensive here. The 2002 we’re thinking about is $12,988 CAD.
I have a 2002 Elantra with 97,000 KM on it.
The car has run perfectly from day one. Not a single problem. We replaced the tires a little earlier than I might have hoped, but the car itself has run absolutely wonderfully. It’s an automatic, BTW.
Someone else we know bought an Elantra based on our experience; again, a perfect record so far.