Compare: Hyundai Elantra, Toyota Corolla, Skoda Octavia, VW Jetta

VW Jetta and Skoda Octavia are equally long, and longer than Toyota Corolla and new Hyundai Elantra. Octavia is wider than Jetta, then Corolla and Elantra, and it is the tallest as well. Jetta has least wheelbase, Octavia in between and the other two have identical & longest measure of 2,700 mm. When it comes to ground clearance, Toyota Corolla has the highest value, 180 mm, whereas Elantra has 175 mm, Jetta has 159 mm and Octavia has 155 mm. But turning radius of Skoda Octavia is the least at 5.2 metres, when Elantra makes 5.3 m Corolla makes 5.4 m and VW Jetta makes 5.5 m.

Petrol Engine –

Skoda Octavia has the most powerful engine in this segment which also churns out much higher peak torque than the rest. It’s 1.4 litre TSI motor produces 140 PS and 250 Nm, mated to 6-speed manual gearbox, while the bigger 1.8 litre TSI unit pushes out 180 PS and 250 Nm, but mated to 7-speed DSG automatic only. Former engine claims 16.8 kmpl mileage while latter asserts 14.7 kmpl. VW Jetta has the smallest engine options – 1.4 TSI petrol churning out 122 PS and 200 Nm, mated to 6-speed manual transmission, delivering 14.69 kmpl.

Hyundai Elantra gets a new 2.0 liter petrol engine with dual VTVT, producing 152 PS and 196 Nm, mated to 6-MT as well as 6-speed conventional automatic transmission. Mileage claims are 16.3 kmpl and 14.5 kmpl respectively. Toyota Corolla also has a large 1.8 litre motor that delivers only 140 PS and 173 Nm. It is available with 6-MT as well as 7 step CVT automatic, both versions deliver 14.53 kmpl mileage as per the company.

Diesel Engine –

VW Jetta and Skoda Octavia are propelled by same 2.0 litre TDI engine with subtle tweaks making the motor churn out little extra power and lot more mileage as well, surprisingly on the latter. The engine is capable of 140 PS max power and 320 Nm peak torque, which are much higher than diesel versions of Hyundai Elantra and Toyota Corolla Altis. 2015 VW Jetta diesel claims 19.33 kmpl and 16.96 kmpl on 6-MT and 6-DSG variants respectively, while Octavia guarantees 20.6 kmpl and 19.3 kmpl.

New Hyundai Elantra diesel is powered by 1.6 litre CRDi engine pushing out 128 PS and 260 Nm, with options of 6-MT and 6-AT. Mileage of Elantra diesel variants are 22.54 kmpl and 18.23 kmpl respectively. Toyota Corolla diesel has only 6-speed manual version that claims only 21.43 kmpl fuel efficiency, although it is driven by an underpowered 1.4 litre engine generating 88.4 PS and 205 Nm.

Price –

The newest entrant, Hyundai Elantra is the most affordable of the lot, with price starting from INR 12.99 lakh for the petrol variant and INR 14.79 lakh for the diesel variant.

Below is a detailed spec comparo of the four sedans.

	Hyundai Elantra	Toyota Corolla	Skoda Octavia	VW Jetta
Length (mm)	4570	4620	4659	4659
Width (mm)	1800	1775	1814	1778
Height (mm)	1465	1475	1476	1453
Wheelbase (mm)	2700	2700	2688	2648
Ground Clearance (mm)	NA	180	155	159
Turning Radius (m)	NA	5.4	5.2	5.5
Boot Volume (L)	NA	470	590	510
Tyres	205/60 R16	205/55 R16	205/55 R16	205/55 R16
Petrol Engine	2.0 Dual VTVT	1.8 Dual VVTi	1.4 TSI / 1.8 TSI	1.4 TSI
Power (PS)	152 @ 6200	140 @ 6400	140 @ 4500 – 6000 / 180 @ 5100 – 6200	122 @ 5000
Torque (Nm)	196 @ 4000	173 @ 4000	250 @ 1500 – 3500 / 250 @ 1250 – 5000	200 @ 1500 – 4000
Transmission	6 MT / 6 AT	6 MT / 7 CVT	6 MT / 7 DSG	6 MT
Mileage (kmpl)	14.59 / 14.62	14.53	16.8 / 14.7	14.69
Weight (kgs)	NA	1180	1260	1354
Price (INR Lakh)	12.99 – 17.99	14.01 – 18.80	16.82 – 21.13	14.87 – 16.45
Diesel Engine	1.6 VGT	1.4 D-4D	2.0 TDI	2.0 TDI
Power (PS)	128 @ 4000	88.4 @ 3800	143 @ 4000	140 @ 4200
Torque (Nm)	265 @ 1500 – 2750	205 @ 1800 – 2800	320 @ 1750 – 3000	320 @ 1750 – 2500
Transmission	6 MT / 6 AT	6 MT	6 MT / 6 DSG	6 MT / 6 DSG
Mileage (kmpl)	22.54 / 18.23	21.43	20.6 / 19.3	19.33 / 16.86
Weight (kgs)	NA	1230	1340	1401
Price (INR Lakh, ex- Delhi)	14.79 – 19.19	14.96 – 1787	18.73 – 22.70	16.07 – 21.05

This article first appeared on Rushlane.com