Where each one leads
Hyundai Elantra
- NHTSA rates the 2026 Hyundai Elantra at 5 of 5 stars, the 2027 Nissan Kicks at 4.
- On Canada's official test the most frugal 2026 Hyundai Elantra uses 6.8 l/100 km, the 2026 Nissan Kicks 7.4.
Nissan Kicks
- Against cars of the same year, the Nissan Kicks comes out better in New York safety inspections (fails 8% more often than average) than the Hyundai Elantra (fails 36% more often than average).
Only measures that do not depend on how many cars were sold: pass and failure rates against cars of the same age, ratings, fuel use and CO₂. How we compare
At a glance
| Hyundai Elantra | Nissan Kicks | |
|---|---|---|
| Model years in the US safety record | 1990–2026 | 2018–2026 |
| New cars registered in Europe | 21,186 (2010–2022) | — |
| On the road in the Netherlands | 122 | — |
| In traffic in Finland | 222 | — |
EEA new-car registrations (CC BY 4.0) · DVLA licensed vehicles (OGL v3.0) · RDW (CC0) · Traficom (CC BY 4.0) · generations: Wikidata (CC0).
Reliability and problems
| Hyundai Elantra | Nissan Kicks | |
|---|---|---|
| New York safety inspections failed | 2.2% | 0.9% |
| … against cars of the same year | +36% | +8% |
| Illogical odometer records (NL) | 6.0% | — |
| US owner complaints | 8,732 | 524 |
| Most complaints about | Engine | Forward collision avoidance |
| Model year with most complaints | 2013 (1,314) | 2019 (134) |
| US recall campaigns | 59 | 10 |
| Manufacturer service bulletins | 2,216 | 575 |
| NHTSA defect investigations | 49 | — |
Complaint, recall and bulletin counts grow with the number of cars sold and are not adjusted for it. UK MOT: DVSA anonymised MOT results (OGL v3.0); New York: DMV inspections; complaints, recalls, bulletins and investigations: NHTSA (public domain); odometer: RDW (CC0).
Safety
| Hyundai Elantra | Nissan Kicks | |
|---|---|---|
| NHTSA overall rating | 5★ (2026) | 4★ (2027) |
NHTSA New Car Assessment Program, most recent rated model year (public domain).
Fuel, emissions and price
| Hyundai Elantra | Nissan Kicks | |
|---|---|---|
| Official combined fuel use, Canada | 6.8 l/100 km (2026) | 7.4 l/100 km (2026) |
| Real-world use in Europe, petrol | 6.5 l/100 km | — |
| Official CO₂ of new cars in Europe | 139 g/km | — |
| Average power of new cars in Europe | 90 kW (121 hp) | — |
| Average mass in running order | 1,279 kg | — |
| Dutch list price when new (median) | €17,779 | — |
| Average odometer in Finland | 214,000 km | — |
Canada: NRCan Fuel Consumption Ratings, most frugal version of the latest year (OGL Canada). Europe: EEA monitoring of new-car CO₂ and on-board fuel meters (OBFCM), CC BY 4.0. Price: RDW catalogue price (CC0). Finland: Traficom (CC BY 4.0).