Why I Love the Hyundai Sonata

I am a member of a family of Hyundai drivers. My father-in-law drives an Elantra GT, my mother-in-law drives a 2006 Santa Fe, my brother-in-law drives an Accent, my husband drives a 2000 Tiburon, and I drive the Sonata. The model that I have is the 2003, and I absolutely love it. My Hyundai Sonata is a 4-cylinder, 4-door midsize sedan and there are loads of standard features. The only option that I have is a sunroof. The car also came with a 10-year, 100,000 mile warranty on the power train, 5-year, 60,000 mile warranty bumper to bumper and 5-year, unlimited roadside assistance, but I have never had to use it. (Knock on wood!)

The Sonata is not my first new car. However, my first new car was a 1999 Elantra, which I traded for this Sonata. (There was absolutely nothing wrong with the first car, the dealership was just having a great deal!) Some of the standard features of the 2003 Sonata include: CD player, power windows, power locks, cruise control, anti-lock brakes, front and side airbags, intermittent wipers, air conditioning, shift-matic transmission, LATCH system for car seats, child safety locks on the rear doors, rear defrost....you get the picture. All this for around $18 thousand (in February 2003) dollars.

Now, I know what some of you are thinking: Hyundai is just imitation Honda, right? I thought the same thing when they first started selling them. But I have to tell you, I drove a Honda Accord when I was a rental agent, and HANDS DOWN I would choose a Sonata. There were more features and the Sonata was much more comfortable. Not only that but the interior of the Honda Accord (2002 model) seemed very generic. I really found myself wondering what the big, screaming deal was about with Honda. Anyway, the seats of the Sonata are very comfortable, there was a lot of interior space and head room, and the layout of the radio/climate control consol is very well done. There is also a lot of leg room for people in the back seat. This is something that older children will appreciate-as will you if you ever give up the front seat to an older relative.

The main hurdle that Hyundai had to over come was the issue of reliability. Honda and Toyota are the current kings of the mountain in that category. However, you know all of those family members in the first paragraph? I honestly cannot remember the last time any of their cars were in the shop. My husband has had to replace his rear middle brake light and a wheel bearing...that's it. I did have to take my Elantra in for new spark plug wires at about 60K miles, but that was covered by the warranty, as was my husband's wheel bearing. Six vehicles owned over the span of almost 8 years and only 3 trips to the shop (regular inspections and oil changes not included, of course). It's hard to find fault with that. I also traded in the Elantra with the original brakes, rotors turned once at about 62K miles. The cars have overcome their shaky start, and are truly a quality product.

The only thing that I would change about the Sonata that I have is that I would have gotten the 6-cylinder model for more power. But even this is reaching for something to complain about. The 4-cylinder is plenty powerful and is very good on gas. If you have read my packing article, you know that my car makes several trips to Virginia every year packed to the gills with baby gear and it still only takes me a tank to get there. It's about a 500 mile trip and my tank holds about 18 gallons, so it works out to about 27 miles/gallon. When the trunk is not stuffed full of cribs and dog crates it gets over 30 mpg. These days, good gas mileage alone is a good reason to get a Hyundai.

I guess the best testimonial that I can give this car is that I would buy another one in a heartbeat, if not a Sonata, then definitely another Hyundai. Ideally, Hyundai will come out with a larger SUV than the Santa Fe, as I have the feeling that as soon as anymore children come along, not even my packing prowess will make the trunk big enough! If you are in the market, I definitely recommend checking one out. Go to your local Hyundai dealer and at least take a test drive. You will be pleasantly surprised.