Hyundai Elantra SR v Holden Astra RS-V – Small ‘n’ Spicy Showdown
Finally. That is the word that springs to mind after a sparring session that lasts from the city to the country between the Holden Astra RS-V and Hyundai Elantra SR.
The Astra and Elantra initially look like distant rivals: one is a European-designed, Polish-made hatch, the other a sedan made in South Korea for North America.
Both offer 1.6-litre turbocharged four-cylinder power, however, teamed with manual gearbox availability for under $30,000 before on-road costs. They each start with mirror-imaged nameplates – RS and SR – and near-equally mix kit for the cash.
Even before declaring a winner, both Holden and Hyundai finally provide buyers with a reason not to choose a Volkswagen Golf. That small hatch benchmark remains brilliant, but unless buyers stretch to a $41K GTI it certainly isn’t fast or sporty.
Not even a Mazda3 SP25 – the classic warm-to-spicy hatch or sedan – really fulfils that brief. These two rivals certainly do.
TESTEDHolden Astra RS-V ($30,990 plus on-road costs)
Hyundai Elantra SR ($28,990 plus on-road costs)
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OVERVIEW
The Elantra SR’s $28,990 pricetag almost exactly splits the difference between the $26,490 Astra RS and $30,990 Astra RS-V (all before on-road costs). The RS-V tested here delivers the slightly narrower gap, although the RS is a bottom-line star.
Despite being $2500 cheaper than the SR, the RS adds stop-start engine tech, automatic park assistance, lane-keep assistance, forward collision warning with head-up display and autonomous emergency braking (AEB) as standard.
Both get keyless-auto entry, however Holden buyers need to push $2000 beyond the Hyundai to this RS-V before leather trim with heated front seats, dual-zone climate control and auto-dimming rear-view mirror are matched. The Elantra’s sunroof also adds $1990 to the RS-V (bundled with adaptive cruise control unavailable in the SR).