Before I bought my car, I was deciding between the Civic, Altis and Elantra.
Test drove the Elantra. The minute you step into the car, you can feel that the car was developed without any heart or soul. The materials are all plasticky. The dashboard looks like it's from the nineties. There're so many features lacking. The ride was just so so.
That's probably the reason why you don't see the new Elantra on the road at all. The developers didn't put any love into it when designing it. Also, they're giving out hefty discounts for the top variant.. I think you can get one for about RM90k plus. Now, if a company has to go through such drastic measures to sell a car and yet there aren't many sold, you know there's something wrong there.
I don't think it's got anything to do with it being a 'korean' car or whatever
As for the Civic... the moment you step into the car, you get that adrenaline rush. The design of the car, the accessories, the features, the turbo engine, the overall package. It makes you feel like wow ... I got to buy this car. I actually got the same feeling when I was test driving the Altis. The only reason I didn't get it was because it was out of my price range.
End of the day, even after reading all the forums in the world, you have to go and test the car. And not just go 1 km, U turn and come back. Test the sound system and blast it. Take out your phone and test the decibels if your requirements are a good NVH cabin. Take it out on the highway and rev it if your main priority is power. If your priority is good service, then stick with a well known brand with a good service track record.
Bro Shahrul .. I noticed that you've been hanging around this thread for quite some time. Still undecided on whether to get the Civic? Just pull the trigger bro.

Yes very true. The new elantra exterior design is ok. but once u step inside and look at the interior.. already no mood looking at the dashboard. Is so so old design and all hard plastics. Can even feel more pleasant in City/Vios which is 1 segment below. Kia Cerato dashboard is better. Until today hardly see 1 latest elantra OTR .. the 2.0 now is almost 20k cheaper than civic 1.8... About RM95k+/- after disc