Hyundai Elantra Problems

GENERALLY the Sportwagon was a good car with plenty of features for the price. Hyundai mechanics report the engine starts to use oil once it clocks up 100,000km. Look for a well-cared-for car and get it checked by a mechanic. Also consider a Mazda 626 wagon or a Toyota Camry. It's hard to beat the Camry.

TRACING wind noise can be tricky because it can come from several sources. The door seal is an obvious one, but that could be eliminated by applying a strip of tape over the gap between the door and the body after the door has been closed. If the noise goes away, the seal could be the problem. If not, check around the rear-view mirrors. These are often a source of complaint. As cars become better built and more refined, some noises are eliminated, which means others that you didn't notice before become more obvious.

I'VE had at least one previous report of a similar clutch failure on an Elantra, but it was some time ago and was never explained. A mate who runs a Hyundai dealership told me at the time that it was very much out of character for Hyundai, given his experience with the brand. Your friend's diagnosis might be on the mark, that it's a random failure because of the quality glitch with the spring in your car. If you still have it, I would speak to Hyundai head office and ask that you be able to show it to their technical experts. If it's a quality issue, you might have a chance of getting some of that $1100 back. Warranties don't normally cover worn-out clutches; they are considered normal ``wear and tear'' items, along with brake linings, filters and tyres, etc.

I'M NOT surprised Hyundai wasn't interested. To change a speedo face is a big job. Unless it has received a flood of complaints, the company is hardly likely to do anything. You should have checked it during the test drive. You signed on the dotted line. You should have made sure the car was what you wanted before you bought it.

A SPEEDO must not indicate a speed lower than the actual speed, but it can indicate a speed higher than the speed within a tolerance of 10 per cent plus 4km/h. Your car seems to fall within that tolerance. The check you have done against the highway speed indicator suggests that it is within the band laid down by the ADR, and the check against your husband's car confirms that result. The dealer check is confusing, but also seems to confirm the other two results, in that when your speedo is showing 100km/h your car is actually doing 95km/h.

IT SHOULD certainly be repaired under warranty, unless it has been damaged in the course of driving. Ask your Hyundai dealer to inspect the joint and replace it as needed. If he doesn't agree, go direct to Hyundai. You may face a battle if you have had your car serviced elsewhere. Hyundai may claim it hasn't been properly serviced, but if you believe it has, stand your ground.

THE Australian Design Rule calls for a speedo to be accurate to plus or minus 10 per cent, so at 100km/h your speedo could be showing anything from 90km/h to 110km/h. If it is showing 112km/h when you're actually doing 100km/h, it doesn't comply with the standard. The problem I have with your dyno test is that you don't know the accuracy of the dyno. It is also a machine with tolerances and you need to know what they are to determine the results' accuracy. Remember the speedo is built with tolerances so is unlikely ever to be 100 per cent accurate. Many other factors affect the accuracy of the speedo reading: the rolling diameter of your tyres, wear on tyres, inflation pressure and so on. The RACV regularly checks speedos for accuracy and results show speedos of modern cars are much more accurate than those on older cars. Most speedos checked fall on the conservative side -- that is, the indicated speed is higher than the actual speed.

We haven't had any significant reports of premature clutch wear on the Elantra, but it is an issue that seems to be creeping into the car business generally. We have had numerous reports of premature clutch wear on a number of makes and models, such that it could be concluded that carmakers are cutting back on clutches in order to save money. Two clutches in less than 50,000 km is not fair wear and tear, and I would be having Hyundai or its dealer show me the worn parts and justify to me that it isn't a component problem and their responsibility.

THE 90,000km service is important, and part of that is changing the camshaft timing belt. Though it is done as a precaution, the consequences of not changing it far exceed the cost of replacing it at the recommended time. Should the belt fail, you will probably badly damage your engine, the repair of which would cost thousands of dollars.

FIRST go out and check the accuracy of the odometer. Markers on posts used to line many highways are quite accurately placed by the road authorities. Head out on a nearby highway and locate one of these markers and stop safely alongside it, noting your odometer reading. Reset your trip meter to zero, then drive off to the next marker and stop again, noting the reading on your odometer and trip meter. Preferably do this over a distance of 5-10km, and repeat it a number of times to improve the accuracy. That will give you an indication of the accuracy of your odometer.