The Elantra is classified by the E.P.A. as a midsize sedan, joining the Cruze, Jetta, Focus and Nissan Sentra. The result is a sedan with the most front legroom in the class and one of the roomiest trunks at nearly 15 cubic feet.

On paper, the Hyundai has its internals in order as well. You get four-wheel-disc brakes with brake assist, compared with cheaper rear drums on the Jetta and some other competitors. A new 1.8-liter 4-cylinder engine delivers a healthy 148 horsepower. The engine is mated to a 6-speed automatic transmission developed in-house that is especially nimble and refined. And in a neat twist to the usual stability-control functions, the electric steering can automatically dial in a few degrees of countersteer to steady the car when it begins to lose traction or veer off course.

I drove a top-of-the-heap Elantra Limited, whose special PZEV version (for Partial Zero Emissions Vehicle) trims pollution levels to hybridlike lows. That PZEV model is offered in California, Oregon and several Northeast states that conform with California’s stricter air-quality rules.

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Once in motion, the Hyundai turns out to be slightly less than the sum of its parts.

The engine is an especially eager revver, but gets vociferous in its upper register. More distressing is the ride over rough stuff: the Elantra feels choppy, loud and unsettled compared with many of its rivals, especially the creamy-feeling Civic and Cruze.

The structure, too, can feel as jiggly as fresh panna cotta. Slamming the doors or trunk produces a hollow echo rather than a reassuring thunk.

Yet the steering is accurate, and I still enjoyed driving the Elantra and even tossing it around.

Since the E.P.A. adjusted its test procedures to deliver a closer real-world accounting, I’ve been able to achieve — with only a little conscious effort — the window-sticker mileage in almost every car I test. But these new 40-m.p.g. compacts seem to be gaming the system, using tricks like insanely tall overdrive gears that help to beat the test.

Hyundai, for its part, has trumpeted the fact that every version of the Elantra — not just special models like the stick-shift version of the Cruze Eco — is rated at 40 m.p.g. on the highway.