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2007 Hyundai
Sonata...Rethink!
By Luk4all.com.my Editor
Posted
23rd January 2007
Hyundai
have recently just launched its latest edition of 2007
Sonata. The latest Sonata’s specs as claim in the
marketing campaign were pretty impressive. There were a
few areas that were pointed out in the advertisement
which were very impressive compared to Honda, Toyota or
even a 7 Series BMW. Some of the catchy marketing points
as below….
The new Sonata CVVT-i will make you RETHINK your
Expectations.
RETHINK Refinement - A car so refined in every way that
the only thing you will notice is not the sound but the
absence of it;
RETHINK Comfort - A car whose Passenger Volume is larger
than even that of the 2007 BMW750i and 2007 Mercedes
Benz E350*;
RETHINK Performance - Performance and Handling that can
only be believed after you have driven in one;
RETHINK Safety - 2007 Hyundai Sonata scored Perfect
5-Stars in the US NHTSA's New Car Assessment Crash
Test**;
RETHINK Quality - By achieving overall 3rd place in the
2006 J.D. Powers Initial Quality Survey the Hyundai
brand is behind that of only Porsche and Lexus, ahead of
other brands;
In short, be prepared to RETHINK...Everything.
In summary three of the most important points….
Fuel Consumption
Interior size and trunk compartment
|
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EPA Size Class |
Passenger Volume |
Luggage Volume |
|
2007 Hyundai Sonata |
Large Cars |
3.0 m3 |
0.5m3 |
|
2007 BMW 750i |
Large Cars |
2.9 m3 |
0.5 m3 |
|
2007 Toyota Camry |
Midsize Cars |
2.9 m3 |
0.4 m3 |
|
2007 Honda Accord |
Midsize Cars |
2.9 m3 |
0.4 m3 |
|
2007 Mercedes-Benz E350 |
Midsize Cars |
2.7 m3 |
0.4 m3 |
And safety
I am not sure about you, but I have always have this
perception that Korean car has very bad fuel consumption
and not so reliable but with the above it definitely
seems to be the opposite. We guess Hyundai Malaysia
realize this and are making an effort to correct this
perception. With its listed price, Hyundai Sonata is the
car to buy if you are looking for a best valued sedan.
Anyway we are not taking all Hyundai’s word but did some
research online in regard to Hyundai Sonata. Some of the
comment and review found are;
‘You’d be hard pressed to find a sedan in this segment
that offers more standard features’
‘The Sonata’s exterior is subdued and on the edge of
elegant and should age well over the years.’
‘The Sonata is a little longer and a little taller than
the previous model, which should please previous Sonata
owners as well as buyers looking for an alternative to
cookie-cutter sedans’
‘Instead of benchmarking to Accord and Camry, Hyundai
looked to loftier vehicles like Audi for craftsmanship
and Lexus for noise, vibration and harshness standards.
This is one of the quietest sedans’
‘With over 120 cubic feet of interior volume, the Sonata
actually is classified as a large car in the eyes of the
EPA. Which means it offers more room for less money than
the top sellers in the class.’
‘Pushed the Sonata through some tight turns and found
predictable under steer (running wide), easy to correct
by lifting off the gas and steering back into the turn.
Get in over your head and the standard stability program
will be there to save your butt’
‘The Sonata is the result of a 3 year joint effort
between design and engineering teams from Korea,
Detroit, and California’
We have also found a link in the Hyundai sonata website
that apparently linked to a governmental body that list
down the fuel consumption of almost every single
vehicle. Hyundai Sonata did pretty well comparing to
vehicles in it class. In fact it is listed in large car
categories, with BMW 7 series, Jaguar V8, Audi A8L,
while Camry and Accord are only listed in the mid size
car area.
So far in terms of features, quality and performance,
Hyundai Sonata is the bang for the buck. However we feel
the there are still a lot of improvement needed in terms
design. Personally we would still go for Accord or Camry
if we are going for the looks.
To the engineers in Hyundai…. Cheers and well done!!
Comments:
Proton, time to re-think.
1/23/2007 8:25:25 AM | kit
yeah... still need a lot of improvement on the looks. If i have the cash to spare, i will rather spent the extra 20K to get a camry. But still kudos to the engineers in Hyundai for putting up such a good fight
1/23/2007 11:33:35 AM | still_camry
this car provide luxuries interior with worthy price it's price almost same with honda civic. oh i wonder how proton survive.....
1/26/2007 8:24:32 PM | alan
good buy. Offer the same specs or even probably more than accord or camry. I guess it's a bit difficult to change the general perception and mentality that jap cars are better.
The boot is extremely spacious, drive is good not bu,py, petrol consumption is fair, definitely not a guzzler. lots of room to store things. more presentable than before.
Good buy.
6/26/2007 8:03:12 PM | skalan
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