Hyundai Elantra vs Nissan Sentra: which is more reliable?
The Hyundai Elantra and the Nissan Sentra are level on the federal record — 73/100 against 74/100 across the years we score. Which one to buy is decided by the model year, not the badge.
The record, side by side
Hyundai Elantra
- 15 model years scored
- 6,464 owner complaints on record
- about 40 complaints per year on the road
- 46 recall campaigns, 29 safety-critical
- best year 2025 (88/100) · worst 2013 (34/100)
Nissan Sentra
- 15 model years scored
- 3,094 owner complaints on record
- about 27 complaints per year on the road
- 46 recall campaigns, 33 safety-critical
- best year 2012 (93/100) · worst 2013 (42/100)
Mean score is the average across model years from 2013 on, where both records are comparable. How the score works.
Year by year: Elantra against Sentra
The comparison that decides the purchase. A nameplate is not one car — a redesign can move the record sixty points inside two years, and the two nameplates rarely move together.
| Year | Elantra | Sentra | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 88 BUY | 79 BUY | +9 |
| 2024 | 86 BUY | 84 BUY | +2 |
| 2023 | 79 BUY | 91 BUY | -12 |
| 2022 | 76 BUY | 85 BUY | -9 |
| 2021 | 76 BUY | 77 BUY | -1 |
| 2020 | 73 BUY | 69 CAUTION | +4 |
| 2019 | 80 BUY | 75 BUY | +5 |
| 2018 | 81 BUY | 83 BUY | -2 |
| 2017 | 35 AVOID | 76 BUY | -41 |
| 2016 | 82 BUY | 65 CAUTION | +17 |
| 2015 | 84 BUY | 71 BUY | +13 |
| 2014 | 78 BUY | 63 CAUTION | +15 |
| 2013 | 34 AVOID | 42 AVOID | -8 |
| 2012 | 35 AVOID | 93 BUY | -58 |
| 2011 | 42 AVOID | 87 BUY | -45 |
What owners actually complain about
Hyundai Elantra
- Engine — 1,787 complaints
- Electrical System — 911 complaints
- Steering — 752 complaints
Nissan Sentra
- Power Train — 1,068 complaints
- Unknown Or Other — 476 complaints
- Engine — 424 complaints
They do not fail the same way: the Elantra's complaints concentrate in Engine, the Sentra's in Power Train. That difference matters more to a buyer than the score gap, because it says which repair bill you are taking on.
Years to avoid on each
Hyundai Elantra — avoid: 2011, 2012, 2013, 2017.
Nissan Sentra — avoid: 2013.
A year scores below 45 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns. Every car’s years to avoid.
What each costs today
A recent used Hyundai Elantra prices at about $24,100 and a Nissan Sentra at about $24,100 — they price within $1 of each other, which at this level is the same money, and they return 31.0 against 34.0 MPG combined.
Class-level estimates re-priced to your country, not a valuation of one car. Method.
FAQ
Is the Hyundai Elantra or the Nissan Sentra more reliable?
On the NHTSA record the Nissan Sentra scores 74/100 against the Hyundai Elantra's 73/100, averaged across every model year we hold. The gap is small enough that the model year matters more than the badge.
Which Hyundai Elantra and Nissan Sentra years should I avoid?
Hyundai Elantra: 2011, 2012, 2013, 2017. Nissan Sentra: 2013. Each of those scores under 45 out of 100 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns.
What goes wrong on the Hyundai Elantra and the Nissan Sentra?
The largest complaint group on the Hyundai Elantra is Engine (1,787 complaints); on the Nissan Sentra it is Power Train (1,068).
Is the Hyundai Elantra or the Nissan Sentra cheaper to own?
A recent used Hyundai Elantra prices at about $24,100 and a Nissan Sentra at about $24,100, before insurance and the maintenance band. Both pages carry the five-year running-cost figure.