Things may be different on my 2013 GT with 1.8L engine, but on my car, the cover ends about half-way back on the engine, leaving both the oil drain bolt well-exposed and enough room for getting the filter out. (I do use a cap-style oil filter wrench as there is little room for a strap-type wrench.)

- Mark

 

I will go out on a limb since I don't have your car.................... I find this very hard to believe. Neighbor has a 2011 (or 12?) Elantra and access is easy.

No dealer or shop would put up with this.

Are you sure there are not removable covers or that drain and filter are not blocked?

Above post#2 sounds right.

 

Some Mercedes and BMW's have full under body covers. The only way to access drain plug and/or filter is to remove the entire cover some will have up to 10-15 bolts holding the big thing on.

 

Agree with covers. The wife's Tucson "had" a circular disc-shaped cover where the oil filter resides. Pull the disc, remove the filter, reinstall. I kind of liked the concept. Like that old movie title, it's gone with the wind, I guess. I'm not even gonna ask. Not worth the 30 minutes it will take to hear the story...no matter how good a yarn she spins.

 

My Tundra has a skid plate that needs to come off. 5 bolts, tilt and slide to the side and off it is. About 2 minutes to the oil change. Haven't look under my 2013 E but if it's anything like the Tundra probably an extra couple of minutes so I'm not going to worry about it. Even better if there are access holes to get at everything though.

 

yes it sucks that is Hyundai's way of screwing the consumer under the guise of making the vehicle more "aerodynamically fuel efficient" they want you to take the vehicle into their service department to do the oil change to generate more revenue and cost you more money even their mechanics dislike doing oil changes because it is a pain in the ass. Why couldn't they put an inspection port like on the santa fe to do the oil change would it make it any less "aerodynamically fuel efficient" ? NO just another rip off . I am on my third Elantra I have a2014 Elantra Limited I am about to remove the under body shield I doubt that my mileage would decrease substantially and use Mobil One oil synthetic 5/30 and a Fram Ultra oil filter and not have to worry about an oil change for 15,000 miles or one year I think that the Hyundai engineers deliberately dropped the ball on this one . Don't get me wrong this is my third Hyundai Elantra but this is plain stupidity and greed

 

Maybe just trim it down some. 2011-13 splash sheild is much smaller and has easy access for oil changes. I'd worry about losing the protection, from road debris.

 

our 2016's have the bf splash shield. however, with age comes reason. parts(of, syn oil, towels, gloves, etc) alone would cost at least 30 bucks. then, there is possible mess, jack up and down labor(ramps dont get the car high enough for me), and then dispose of old oil. and, the older i get, the more muscles(?) i discover i have not been using on a regular basis the next day. so, for 54 bucks including tax, i just take it to the local independent. come home, take a nap, then go pick it up. heck, i might use up 24 bucks worth of ben gay if i do it myself. and i can think of several other things i like to do in place of running around buying oil and stuff, then taking old oil to the disposal.

 

The style was changed for the 17, it now has 2 holes in the full shield for easy access to the drain plug and filter. The full shield on those Elantra's isn't the best design but at least it's not the newer model Genesis sedan, those ones have the worst shield for changing oil.

 

The '14 Elantra GT with the 2.0l has a shield, but it stops short of the filter and drain plug.

Not so on the '15 Sonata with the 2.4l. 14 bolts and pull the rear panel to even SEE the engine.

 

10 mins in removing the bolts and shield ain't gonna kill ya. Just takes a little longer to change oil. You only do it 2, 3 or 4 times a years -depending on your use. Its not so bad. I kinda like the protection actually.

 

At least it wasn't designed like the first Chevy Cruze's. There was a recall shortly after that vehicle hit the highway. Something about spilled oil lying in the pan too near the exhaust manifold. Result? Vehicle fire. Gov'ment Motors recall fix? Drill a hole in the pan so any spilled oil would drain out into your driveway. Yes, that's foward-thinking, isn't it? Nicely done, Detroit engineers! A prelude to ownership misery.

 

I can say that after several tanks of fuel and a lot of country driving, I do see about a 3mpg reduction with the Pirelli P4 Four Season Plus tires at 36psi. If I really put a lot of effort into driving efficiently, I can get about 37MPG. I used to be able to break 40 with a bit of effort. If I don't make any effort about 33-34 is about it. It does disappoint a bit but the steering is much, much improved. Enough to make me want to keep the car. It has been 5+ years to get to this point.

 

Once you have done it a couple of times, you know where all the fasteners are, and which is where. Becomes easier with repetition.

 

Some Mercedes and BMW's have full under body covers. The only way to access drain plug and/or filter is to remove the entire cover some will have up to 10-15 bolts holding the big thing on.

Yup daughter has a GLK 250 theres about that many little bolts to loosen off the panel same as my VW Jetta so you loosen screws not sure why? its a issue with some people? so it takes an extra 5 minutes wippy.

 

are daughter has a 2014 elantra sedan changing the oil is a breeze theres no panels that need to come off the design is no different than my other 07 civic same layout underneath very maintanance freindly kind of vehicle i cant comment on the other elantra models but heres has been a excellent vehicle to own that i found for here.