Street Spirit

^ I'd agree with you regarding the cheap materials and feel the '07 Camry has acquired, but would probably lean a lot more towards the feel and materials of the '07 Altima when compared to the Sonata.

dom

I was going to get you that 1D III for a wedding gift. You can forget it now.

Street Spirit

Whatever.













































Okay, okay :surrender ....The materials on the Sonata >>>>>> Altima







Too late?

dom

But seriously, I'll be taking a good look at a Veracruz when its time to buy. Really liked everything about it. Except the price. Starts at 40K CAD and goes up to 46K loaded. Thats Pilot money.

Street Spirit

Yeah, see (back to the original topic of this thread), that's what really hurts Hyundai! There are always lots of cars to choose from in each class, but so many are ruled out on brand image and perceived quality (whether true or not). For example, no one would ever be looking at a BMW and say: "But that's Mercedes money"....You'd probably consider them both, as they are both well-recognized, quality brands. But when it comes to Hyundai, suddenly people freeze a bit and aren't sure if it's a good move/worth it to spend that much when there are comparable models by other brands with (perhaps) better reputations.

Deity711

I test drove a new Sonata recently, and I have to say I was pretty impressed with the interior quality and overall fit and finish, like everyone else. The backlit LCD display on the radio reflected off the windshield, but no big deal I suppose. I was actually impressed with the performance of the manumatic and the fact that it had a proper ashtray and lighter standard.

But what didn't get me coming back to the dealership was that it was boring. Not that it wasn't fun to drive, or that it didn't look nice, just that there were no defining characteristics that said "This is a Hyundai." There were no individual "quirks" to it. It was just a...car. Even Camrys and Corollas have something about them that says "This is a Toyota." So for me it wasn't that Hyundai had a bad image, it was that it didn't have one at all.

I think Hyundai needs to figure out what they're trying to say with their cars. They need to define what their cars represent, and then integrate that into the designs and even more, the marketing. Then I think they'll be on their way.

dom

Nice catch and

It would be hard to pass up the likely better reliability of a Honda along with the far better resale value for the same money.

Pure Adrenaline

iTrader: (2)

Any information to back up this claim? I haven't heard anything about it. This engine is getting great reviews. Also the powertrain is protected by a 10/100,000 warranty.

Just curious if this is a widespread problem, or if your friend's uncle's wife's Lambda engine happened to need a valve adjustment job.



Addendum --

After I wrote the post above, before I clicked on Submit Reply, I contacted someone I know. He says the Lambda engine uses hydraulic valve adjusters, and thus do not need valve adjustment.

dom

Thanks for clearing that up.

cp3117

You hit it dead on here and this is going to be the biggest obstacle for them to overcome.....

cp3117

This isnt always the best way to judge a car. Within the last year the japanese government has come down hard on Toyota and Honda for not reporting recalls when they should have and this can give a false impression to the consumer. This is obviously working given the higher than usual number of recalls for toyota and honda recently.

Toyota has been doing this apparently since at least the mid-ninties and are being investigated criminally.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/13972069/

Street Spirit

Not here.

In Canada, all the warranty info I can find is:

3 yr / Unlimited kms --- 24 hr. Roadside Assistance
12 mo / Unlimited kms --- Replacement parts and accessories
5 yr / 100,000 km --- Comprehensive Limited
5 yr / Unlimited kms --- Anti-Perforation Warranty
5 yr / 100,000 km --- Basic Emissions Coverage
8 yr / 130,000 km --- Major Emission Coverage
5 yr / 100,000 km --- Powertrain Protection

Keep in mind not only is the timeline shorter, but we are also talking kilometres instead of miles.

Pure Adrenaline

iTrader: (2)

That's what you get for using the metric system.










Just kidding... I'm a proponent of the metric system.

StuntMonkey

Hyundai is a great car to buy if you plan on keeping it until it dies (which by the way everyone is talking should be quite a ways down the road). I like the styling and quality if them, and probably would get one, exept for the fact the they dont have any aftermarket support and I'm one of those guys who jus can't leave a car stock.

Street Spirit

Well yeah...You won't get much back for them on resale, so might as well keep it as long as you can.

gtg710w

My parents gave me their XG300, and I hated its extreme understeer and lack of power, the quality overall wasn't that bad. Few months ago, I drove in my friend's Azera, and I was very impressed. But, I won't buy another Hyundai for another decade, or until their quality pars with somewhere between Toyota and Lexus

CCColtsicehockey

I think the new sonata looks sweet if modded right. this kit makes it look sweet along with the black roof.




I would definitely drive one. If it looked like that of course.

Papa_Sean

^pretty cool, and girls wont know the difference lol

minkl81

iTrader: (2)

minkl81

iTrader: (2)

how about them?

CCColtsicehockey

they would probably think it was a lexus lol

Will Y.

Current 2/26/07 Autoweek has a year-long review wrap-up of the Sonata- good quality but "dull," "uninspired," and worst of all for enthusiasts: "like the old Camry." Article indicated the Sonata was best for people who don't care about cars.

Pure Adrenaline

iTrader: (2)

It's the nature of typical midsize family sedans. It's the same accusation everybody has been making of the Toyota Camry, Honda Accord, Ford Taurus, etc. for generations of models. It's just how they are -- vanilla. That's how they can appeal to a wide array of clients.

Make the styling a little too aggressive, and comments start flying. Make the ride just a bit too stiff, and you get people complaining... the 3G TL is the perfect example. But that's okay, because the 3G TL is a niche product.

The Sonata, along with many other everyday family/grocery haulers, are not niche products. Your mom has to like the ride quality, but then it has to pass your grandma's test, while not offending the senses of teenage drivers. The TL has the luxury of having a specific target demographic. If others outside the target group buy it, then it's bonus. Unfortunately, that's just not how it works with your everyday midsize family and grocery hauler sedans. It has to target everybody -- by being bland. Otherwise it offends somebody and that's a lost customer.

This is why and how the Camry and the Accord (the former moreso than the latter) are accused of having vanilla styling and driving characteristics, yet sells hundreds of thousands of units every year.

Will Y.

From a driving dynamics viewpoint, the Honda Accords have always been "driver's cars" with better steering feel, more responsiveness and better suspensions than most in the family car class. Several car magazines also found that the Accords dynamically were better than its competitors, so responsiveness and good driving dynamics are not excluded from family sedans such as the Sonata.
The Sonata's marketing campaign also seems to focus slightly more up-market than the regular 4-cylinder grocery getter. In the case of the Sonata, a "vanilla" driving experience probably means it missed its target market, which would include those of us with TLs, TSXs and performance-oriented variants of the "family sedans"-- Taurus SHOs, Camry SEs, Voldwagen Passats, Malibu SS... On the other hand, Autoweek mentioned the Sonata would be one of those reliable boring cars we can recommend to others, like the Camry (jeez, my old Camry V-6's driving dynamics annoyed me!).

Pure Adrenaline

iTrader: (2)

I already said that in the previous post. I agree with you. But the problem is that they are still not THAT much more fun to drive. Tasty vanilla is still vanilla.

Also... a top-of-the-line V6 Accord, the one that the auto media find so engaging and fun to drive, costs several thousand dollars more than a loaded Sonata. Motor Trend did a comparison not too long ago... I remember it. They liked the Accord, but didn't fail to mention that the fun comes at a hefty price tag.

Bottom line is, it depends on what your priorities are and what your budget is. The Sonata doesn't claim to be a fast sport sedan. Rather, it can deliver 95% of, say, the Accord, at 85% of its price tag. If you can live with soft suspension and save thousands of dollars, then the choice is obvious. If you have the bucks and want the sporty ride, go for the Accord. There's really no wrong choice. Get whatever you want and can afford.

StuntMonkey

Well put my man.

Will Y.

Car & Driver also does comparisons of the 4-cylinder family cars every year or 18 months; the Accord topped the last couple of comparisons. The last comparison did not have a Sonata, but it did include the Aura V-6 and the 4-cylinder Camry and Altima. The question becomes, at a similar price point, 4-cylinder Accord or 6-cylinder Sonata.
I was hoping that the Sonata was tuned more to enthusiasts' desires given the design, 230+ hp V-6 and marketing. Then again, Buicks come with hi-po V-6s too...

JS + XES

iTrader: (1)

I'm Korean too~~~~~~~~ lol

I just don't like both exterior and interior designs of Hyundai cars,,,,,,,,,,

Saintor

I must be a badge whore, but I will *NEVER* buy a Hyundai, whatever good it can be. I know that they improved dramatically. I drove an Elantra 07, it was decent although it smelled badly (interior). Mazda, Toyota, VW, Honda have additional value in their branding alone even if it was not always the case.

sol_da_man

give hyundai and kia 10 years, and i'm confident you will see great things from them. i keep preaching that within our lifetime we will see the demise of the ford motor company and i believe the demise will come at the continued advancement of hyundai. sure, they have quality and perception issues to overcome, but so did ANY foreign company trying to get a foot-hold on the US market.

i hear you on that. i would NEVER drive anything fomoco EVEN if they paid me!

doopstr

I recently drove a Sonata as a rental. When the rental dude told me that's what he had I was like . But damn once I sat in it and drove it a few miles I was impressed with the build quality.

S14 n Tsx

TLyoung'un

gatrhumpy

iTrader: (1)

THAT'S a Sonata?!

Damn, raise it a little and I would take that in a heartbeat (I HATE extremely lowered cars)!

Mongolian

Hyundai has come a long way.

I remember reading a korean newspaper article where a lady started her hyundai excel and the car just shot forward and striking a pedestrian. Yes, that's without her hitting the accelerator.

After reading this article, I vowed never to buy a Hyundai (I'm korean btw).

Oh and Hyundai can mean modern or present depending on the context being used.

Reddly9007

I have a 2006 Sonata and my wife has a 2006 Tucson, we are both happy and have not had any problems. I will admit the inside is a little plain, but overall I am just as happy as I was with my old Accord, and to be honest I don't recall my old CL blowing away my Sonata by any means. Just my two cents.

Cary

Personally I believe that it's the engineering that makes the most difference. The engineering includes the manufacturing process regardless of where it's performed; Japan or USA! My TLS was assembled in Ohio, but it is the best built vehicle I have ever owned, except maybe our RDX. Do you think the JAPS have any love for our cars?? I agree that the quality assurance of Acura/Honda plants is second to none regardless of what country they are in. Hopefully GM/Ford will realise that ISO doesn't net them a quality product! The Japs don't give a shit about ISO and look at the superiority of their products. ISO is a moneymaking scam on our industry! Wake up domestic automakers or look the end in the face, engineering is the key!

Pure Adrenaline

iTrader: (2)

First of all, "Jap" is a derogatory term. I'm not even Japanese and your repeated usage of the word is getting annoying already.

Secondly, ISO does mean something. You don't have the slightest clue what goes into achieving ISO certification if you're spitting out statements like that. For the record, the domestics aren't the only ones striving to be ISO-certified. Mercedes and Jaguar plants in Europe are ISO TS 16949-certified and are praised for it.

No surprise there, since the TS 16949 specifically focuses on the automotive industry and consists of the highest operating standards in the world. For the record, since this is a thread about Hyundai and all, Hyundai's U.S. plant in Montgomery, Alabama was just recently TS 16949-certified, which was a first in North America and one of the first in the world. Other automakers are following this cue.

If it really didn't mean shit like you claim... then why did the governor of Alabama personally attend this ceremony? It is a big deal. Hyundai brought home (and by that I mean Alabama, and furthermore the U.S.) this first-ever-in-NA achievement, ahead of all of its competitors, and one of the first in the world.

Even Bentley is working on ISO TS 16949-certified. Now tell me again that it doesn't mean shit.

The reason Honda is not certified, and probably because they realize it is such a monumental task, is simply due to its massive size of the (aging) network of factories on Ohio. It can take several years to bring a plant up to current ISO standards, even much longer if the plants have been operating for a long time based on the old standards. But that's just my guess.

Belive me, no factory in the world would deny the recognition of being ISO-certified. It can only help.

Cary

You are correct the word jap is deragatory and I shouldn't have used it. You say I used it repeatedly? I believe I only mis-used this word one time. I spent 6 months in Japan and I have only affection for the Japanese people.

You said:
Secondly, ISO does mean something. You don't have the slightest clue what goes into achieving ISO certification if you're spitting out statements like that. For the record, the domestics aren't the only ones striving to be ISO-certified. Mercedes and Jaguar plants in Europe are ISO TS 16949-certified and are praised for it.
Well I see we have someone here who is sold on ISO. I agree in the concept of ISO if it is used properly. I personally have much more experience than you give me credit for although I am not an expert by any means. I have personally been in no less than 100 factories, almost all of which cater to the auto industry, and almost all of which have ISO certification. I see this from a different perspective than you, I actually repair the machinery. I see the products, and have been involved in the calibration of their processes and equipment. When I mentioned ISO is crap I guess I didn't mean it from the auto manufacturer plant perspective but from their many suplliers of parts that they use to make the auto. I have personally been involved in process of becoming ISO certified, and it is mainly a paperwork nightmare. ISO audits are paid for, YOU CAN CHOOSE YOUR AUDITOR. What does that tell you??? It means you find the auditor that passes anyone and you fly them in! I have seen it done!! OVER AND OVER! Where does that leave your precious ISO certification smartass? Looks good on paper, and sure we all want it, but it has turned into something other than what it was meant for. Pretty sad.

xtremenr6

they have turned my head a few times.... I'm not sure which sedan it was, but i saw one up close and the interrior looks pretty sick!! still wouldn't buy one, but they are getting nicer