Tested: 2015 Hyundai Sonata 2.0 Executive - Hyundai has caught up and overtaken a few of its challengers too

Hyundai recently launched the latest and greatest Sonata recently and I managed to have a go in it. The 2015 Hyundai Sonata is all new both above the skin and underneath it. It was launched sometime last year and I was quite surprised that Hyundai has decided to bring it in even though it already has the very good Hyundai i40 on sale here.

In the global scale, the i40 is the more European tinged car and the Sonata is the more Korean and more North Americanised (as it is meant for that market) version of the full sized family sedan or also known as the D segment vehicle. We somehow manage to get both the i40 and the Sonata with the i40 being placed as the more premium of the two here in Malaysia. The main difference is that whilst both are 2.0liter 4 cylinder petrol engined cars, the i40 gets GDI (direct injection) for its engine and the Sonata does not. In other words, slightly less tech at a more affordable price. Covering the lower end of the D segment category.

Styling

Externally, the previous Sonata's Fluidic Sculpture and improves on it further. The car looks a whole lot more cohesive or as what Hyundai says, more harmonious than before. This Fluidic Sculpture 2.0 as what Hyundai calls this latest styling looks better that the previous Sonata in my opinion. The car has slightly more grown up looks with a larger, less chromey grille. The chrome is still present but it is more as highlights instead of being a little too garish like before. The overall shape is smooth too, with a low 0.27cd drag coefficient that should help make the car save a little more petrol and be slightly quieter than before.

It also helps that it looks very Audi-ish from some angles. Like an A6 from the rear three quarter angle and from the front, you get that similar slim headlights and prominent grille from that same brand. But is does have nice original touches, like the chrome strip running from the sides of the head lights down the top of the fenders and connecting to the base of the cabin windows. The rear gets some fussy styling treatments around the rear light clusters which shows you that this is a Hyundai Sonata with Fluidic Sculpting instead of the aforementioned continental car. I do like the front end too. It does not have that scrunched up slightly droopy nose like the previous car had. It basically looks grown up in terms of external styling.

Engine and mechanicals

Hyundai claims that the Sonata's all new chassis is stiffer and better too. The car is said to be quieter and has better NVH as well as improved handling. Hyundai claims that the Sonata's suspension (MacPherson Struts front and Multi Link rear) have been tuned at the famed Nurburgring and should be a car for those who still have a bit of fire in them instead of feeling the aches and creaks of middle age.

The 2.0liter 4 cylinder petrol engine has been tweaked slightly compared to the one before and whilst it still isn't a direct injection engine like the one in the i40, the engineers at Hyundai has paid attention to torque instead of large gains in horsepower. Torque is the key in getting a large sedan to move and this is why this Sonata has slightly lower horsepower at 154hp instead of over 160ps and torque that is 194nm at 4,000rpm instead of coming in later. The power is channeled to the front wheels via a 6 speed automatic gearbox which is the same one in the i40. This is a good thing as from experience this gearbox is smooth and shifts up and down pretty well on its own.

Specification & Interior

As you are aware, I drove the Sonata 2.0MPI Executive. It is the top of the line Sonata here in Malaysia and is priced at RM158,053.30 otr. There are two cheaper Elegance models that would cost you RM143,163.30 otr and RM149,845.30otr respectively but the one I tested has all the bells and whistles. For the extra you get 235/45/18 sized tyres and wheels (215/55/17 on Elegance), six airbags (base gets two), bi-xenon HIDs instead of normal projectors, power seats for both driver and passenger and a panorama sunroof and a safe drive recorder too (check out the photo below of it just under the rear view mirror).

Once you step into the cabin you notice that some thought has been put into it. You get good, albeit basic materials used throughout the cabin. Even the plastics at the lower section of the cabin are decent to the touch. The steering wheel in this fully loaded Executive spec Sonata is nice to hold and so are all the switches, knobs and stalks. All have good weighting and isn't rough or notchy to operate. The ergonomics are good with all the main controls placed where you want them to. Hyundai has emphasized this by using terms like Human Machine Interface for good ergonomics and it does show. The front seats are comfortable and it is easy to get a good driving position in them. The rear space, both headroom and legroom are good if you want to carry three adults behind you even if you are a tallish bloke.

The infotainment unit screen in parallel to the meter cluster which means that it still stays in the driver's line of sight instead of having to look down towards the middle of the center console. Oh, the center air vents are in the right place unlike some other more futuristic looking Hyundai dashboard. It isn't style over function like in the current Hyundai Tucson which actually may leave you having super cold knuckles as that SUV tends to blow air right at your hand.

The shape of the center console differs from other Hyundai cars in the sense that it does not look overtly futuristic. It feels very grown up if not a little plain to view. The only worrying thing here is that it does look a little too rent-a-car like as there is no polished piano black trim or wood trim or fake carbon fibre trim. It looks a tad too neat and simple with just black and silver paint on the center console area. It differs from the slightly more extravagant exterior. Whilst this would be good after a long day at the office, a little luxury to see on the commute home form be a good thing also. 

We were told that the Sonata came equipped with a fancy infotainment unit. Yup, it has everything you ever wanted in an ANDROID based system. With full connectivity, you can use either the built in Papago GPS navi or the internet based WAZE software to get you from A to B. You can connect to Spotify and listen to what music you have there instead of just the radio or whatever songs you have on your phone (via Bluetooth). Of course, being an Android based system, just don't try to connect your Iphone and expect something to happen.

And the only gripe with the infotainment unit is the speakers that the system comes with. They are plain awful. Calvin Harris sounded woefully pathetic from the lack of bass. If you don't know who is Calvin Harris go google him up. I shared the ride with a 26 year old auto journo who also dabbled house music and he said the same thing. These days an over 40 year old guy like Yours Truly also listens to Calvin Harris and house music, and the Sonata's speakers don't do bass very well. Which is quite sad, no, make that very sad because the system is quite good for an O.E.M Android based unit.

Driving the Sonata 

So crap speakers aside, the rest of the car makes up for it. On the highway the car performed admirably. Refinement levels are high as the engine feels very well muted at legal speeds. At illegal speeds the car feels unruffled too. There is lower than usual wind noise emanating from the A pillars and even at 200kmh, you could have a normal conversation with the driver if you're sitting beside him. I suppose the low drag coefficient comes into play here. As well as good sound proofing as the engine note was never loud or irritating. 

The thing about this Sonata was that I was apprehensive at first about how the car was going to perform. The thing was that I still remembered how well the Hyundai i40 was and since the Sonata was placed as Hyundai's second best sedan here in Malaysia, you tend to view it through slightly skeptical glasses. But the car actually grows on you. As mentioned above, the car was actually a very comfortable mile cruncher with confidence imspiring handling and good ride on the highways. The seats were good and after more than an hour in the car both driver and passenger did not feel fatigued. It was as serene as the best of its Japanese, Korean and even Continental competitors, if not better. It was also quite pliant. There was no excessive tyre or suspension clobber over rough surfaces even though the ride wasn't as sporty as the i40 or say, the Honda Accord, it was bloody comfortable and still could take corners. Its cornering stance was pretty flat even with the comfort spec ride. 

We drove it to Port Dickson using the B-roads around there and back for a short handling stint at the Sepang F1 Circuit. The car's suspension, whilst softer in rates compared to the sportier i40 did not even once bottom out on the bumpy B-road. It kept its composure, cornering flatly with similar steering weighting and feel to the i40. Though as I mentioned earlier, not as firm as the i40.

There is however an issue though. When you take it by the scruff, and drive really, really hard, the Sonata will wash its nose out wide on sharper bends quite early prompting you to either use up all the available road in front of you or just lifting off the accelerator pedal a tad bit to reel in the nose of the car. The car was very predictable in nature but this actually tells you of its front wheel driven nature. It likes to work the front harder than the rear.

But we learnt that the tail can come into play during the handling exercises at the grounds of the Sepang Circuit where the bunch of us were asked to do a slalom course and full throttle turns with and without the traction control systems. The car is inherently a very predictable platform as even when you turn everything off, the Sonata is still able to be placed where you want it to be and it will do a little more tail wagging with all the traction controls off. This actually does help the handling slightly by allowing the tail to 'assist' the front by swinging around slightly more quickly. I believe with the traction control system operating, it tends to be a little on the safe side and errs on the understeer side of things more. The 'Off' position should be labled as the 'Not Much Fun' position.

Aside from that, the technical man on site told me that the Kumho tyres fitted are more comfort instead of performance oriented. And these were 235/18s. They may be wide and all that but the tyres were meant for comfort, low noise, economy over all out performance. He said this basically explains why the Sonata won't hold the line if you're cornering harder than usual. I suppose this makes sense as company managers aren't bank robbers, rally drivers or professional B-road bashers. The Sonata is quiet and comfortable when you want it to be. It can also be hustled, but do remember to upgrade to performance tyres if you want to make the most out of its very predictable chassis.

As for engine and transmission performance, the 154hp /194nm petrol engine is capable and willing with not much change in engine note until its redline. I would love if it had the over 210Nm torque of the i40 GDI engine instead of what it currently has. The retuned MPI engine also felt a little monotonous and business-like. This basically means that it does not sing any sonatas (pardon the pun) like say, a Honda i-VTEC does on a good day. Of course, being all business-like is alright if you want an engine that does its job quietly and in the back ground instead of being a soprano or a tenor. Call it a good complement to a total package. 0-100kmh times should be in the 10second region with a tested top speed of around 210kmh. Adequate for what the car is supposed to be, a largish family sedan. Petrol consumption was in the region of 9.8ltrs/100km. Which was pretty good considering we weren't gentle. Then again, when are people given cars to test properly stuff like ride and handling gentle to cars?

In fact, I would basically say that the Sonata driving experience is a sum of parts that have been combined to make a complete package for the price point. Its chassis dishes out comfort, refinement as well as safe, predictable but slightly entertaining handling. It's drive train has a sweet 6 speed gearbox that works well with the performance of the engine. I told myself that I wished that the Sonata had at least 20 or 30 more horses and a slightly stiffer suspension (actually it does not need this but just for that extra sporty feel). But then if you add that amount of power and stiffness you would get an i40 in terms of dynamics. I suppose this isn't what Hyundai is aiming for as if you wanted that, you should just skip this and go for an i40 where the base i40 only costs slightly more than this top of the line Sonata variant.

Conclusion

If you compare the Sonata with its natural rivals from Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Mazda and even Kia, I am of the opinion that the car is an excellent purchase. It wipes the floor from under the Toyota (utter blandness and average technology in 2.0liter spec), destroys the Kia silly (bad dynamics), rides better than the Mazda (but the Mazda is sportier), has a better gearbox than the Nissan (a CVT...yawn) and actually comes up quite close in the overall ranking chart beside the Accord. And it comes in CBU form too.

I approached this car with some skepticism, but it has performed better than expected. It would seem that the Koreans have actually caught up with the Japanese. And maybe more. Needs better speakers though. Really better speakers.

Pros: Good looks, good ergonomics, predictable handling, interior space, good infotainment system, interior build quality

Cons: Could use Hyundai's direct injection engine, engine note a tad soulless, dashboard a little plain looking compared to the nice exterior, horrid speakers (a distinct lack of bass),

Conclusion: A sorted out full sized sedan within its playing field. Ticks all the right boxes (aside from the speakers) for its price. I recommend readers to try it out before going for the usual purchases. Better than some of the usual cars in this category .