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“I’ve seen fire and I’ve seen rain…”

 

James Taylor lyrics?

 

Of course.

 

However, today’s test car, the 2017 Hyundai Elantra Sport, has experienced those conditions, too. Plans for our test driving didn’t include a trial by fire, but that’s what happened when we woke up to our Elantra covered with ashes.

If you're familiar with Hyundai you already know the automaker's modus operandi: offer a similar (or superior) product at a lower price than the competition. The company has always been a price leader, though when it entered the U.S. market 30 years ago it quickly gained a "you get what you pay for" reputation. Throughout the 1990s I was as skeptical as anyone regarding Hyundai's quality. Then I drove a 2000 Elantra for a year as part of a long-term test.