Hyundai doesn't want to get by on low prices and a long warranty alone. It wants to be ranked among the world's top five vehicle manufacturers, and to do this it must field thoroughly competitive products. With the recently introduced 2006 Sonata it claims to have done just this. The buzz is that other manufacturers have been shocked by just how good this car is. But should they be?

To find out I took two for a test drive. I initially wanted to drive only the 235-horsepower V6, but it was not yet available. So I instead got behind the wheel of the volume seller, a 162-horsepower four cylinder hooked to a four-speed automatic. The four is also available with a five-speed manual. Unlike in past years the V6 will only be offered with an automatic, in its case a five-speed manually shiftable unit. A month later I drove the LX V6. This review is based on both test drives.

Styling

Last year's Sonata--with its oddly shaped headlights, scalloped hood, side skirts, and tapered flanks--is downright baroque in comparison to the 2006. Although the new car's extremely clean lines are certainly tasteful, and are certainly less likely to offend than those of the current Camry and Accord, their generic quality could harm sales. I am reminded of the 1993-97 Mazda 626, which was so tastefully styled that no one except me seemed to notice it.

Yet this is not the biggest issue with the car's styling. Although the new Sonata is two inches longer than the old one, it is also two inches taller. Combined with the ultra-clean lines, the new proportions yield a 2006 Sonata that actually looks much smaller than the 2005. I've seen the two side-by-side a few times, and each time I have been taken aback by this misleading perception.

Inside the vaguely classy but utterly forgettable tastefulness continues. The most prominent interior feature, a raised trim strip that organically undulates across the instrument panel, apes a common feature of many recent interior designs. (I think this aesthetic detail was first seen in the Mercedes S-Class.) In the Sonata it is faux metal in base and uplevel gray trims, faux wood in uplevel beige ones.

Materials are generally good, but clearly those of a car priced in the low 20s. While the instrument panel is made of a soft-touch material, many surfaces closer at hand--most notably the forward part of the door-mounted armrests and the center console--are made of hard plastic. While I'm on the subject of armrests, wider, more heavily padded ones would be welcome.

The V6 I drove was an LX with leather. This leather has a moderately heavy grain, such that it looks and feels more upscale than most leather in this price range. Unfortunately Hyundai, like many American and Japanese manufacturers, offers only two interior colors, beige and light gray. A black or off-black would lend a sportier, more upscale ambiance to the interior. There is some hope, though. Kia offers a black leather interior in the Sportage, so it might do the same in the next year's Sonata-based Optima.

Accommodations

The 2006 is roomy enough to barely squeak into the EPA's "large car" classification. Hyundai will be making much of this fact. Although not as cavernous as a Ford Five Hundred or Chrysler 300, the new Sonata is certainly roomier than the old one and easily a match for the Japanese competition in this area. Heads and legs will find plenty of space front and rear. With the front seat adjusted where I like it (a bit further back than the average adult male), when seated in back my knees were nowhere near the front seatbacks.

Seat comfort is good but not outstanding. The front buckets have the moderately hard, marginally padded feel I've noted before in Hyundai sedans. Lateral support is insufficient for aggressive drivers, but then this car clearly isn't meant for them, not even in V6 form. The back seat isn't quite high enough to provide ample thigh support, but the amount of legroom easily compensates for this--legs can be stretched forward until thighs make contact with the seat cushion.

The trunk is about average in size for this sort of car. The rear seat folds to enable long items to be carried.

On the Road

Since a manual will only be offered with the four, and I won't personally own a car without one, I was somewhat interested in discovering how well the four-cylinder performs. Just adequately, I'm afraid. If you want anything in the way of thrills, you want the six. I don't know why they bothered making a manual shift feature standard on the four's automatic.

The manual shift feature is much more useful with the V6. After years of trailing competitors in power output and refinement, Hyundai has finally learned how to engineer a world-class engine. The new six is very smooth, makes refined noises, and pulls strongly.

My only significant issue with the powertrain was the transmission's overeagerness to upshift and reluctance to downshift. When turning, you can't give the engine too much gas or you'll just spin a front tire. But once you've made the turn the transmission is already in second, and flooring the accelerator doesn't get first back. The solution: put the shifter in the manual shift slot to select first and hold the transmission there.

Like its acceleration, the four-cylinder Sonata's handling is of rental car quality. Although the chassis feels laudably stable, the car leans quite a bit in turns. Worse, the steering is very light and devoid of feel at low to moderate speeds, and doesn't firm up all that much at higher speeds.

The V6 steers and handles better, but still doesn't qualify as a sport sedan. The steering is firmer, and provides better feedback. It ranks at least even with a Camry or Accord on this measure. Lean in turns is reduced, but could bear to be reduced further still. Damping could also be better; the Sonata LX floated a bit in quick transitions and over bumps. The Michelin Pilot HX MXM tires grip as well as they need to given the moderate tuning of this suspension. They issued nary a complaint during my test drive. Overall, handling approaches that of the Camry SE and the Accord.

I think the building blocks are here for a great-handling car, Hyundai just needs to make an effort to tune the chassis right. Kias tend to be tuned for sportier handling, so those seeking an affordable sport sedan should probably wait for the next Kia Optima.

Ride quality feels on par with a Toyota Camry SE, and so softer than a Mazda6, Accord, or Altima. Noise levels are very low. This seems to have been a much higher priority than sporty handling. The tires thump more in the LX V6, and the ride is not quite as smooth. Somewhere between the thumpier Accord and quieter Camry.

Safety Features

The new Sonata hasn't been crash tested yet. But with stability control and six airbags standard, it certainly has a class-leading set of standard safety features.

Hyundai Sonata Price Comparisons and Pricing

One thing my price comparisons site, TrueDelta, makes clear is that the GLS is a better value than the GL. The former costs $600 more but includes roughly $1,000 more stuff.

Comparing the price of the GLS (others are 2005s with rebates):

Toyota Camry: $1500 more even after a $700 rebate. Only $650 more invoice to invoice. Too close for Hyundai's comfort, I see incentives in the Sonata's future.

Malibu: $500 more expensive, even after a $2,500 rebate. MSRP is $1055 lower, but it includes $1,600 less equipment than the Hyundai. Compared to the Sonata GL the Malibu is about dead even.

Kia Optima: $2,600 less. A $2,000 adjustment in the Hyundai's favor for its additional content is canceled out by the Kia's $2,000 rebate.

The price is lower than the mainstream brands', but not by as much as it had been. I see rebates in the car's future, but smaller ones than has been the norm.

Prices change frequently, and differences will vary based on feature level. To quickly generate these and other comparisons with the specific features you want, visit my Web site, www.truedelta.com. (It's the only site that provides true "apples-to-apples" price comparisons.)

TrueDelta's page for the Sonata:

http://www.truedelta.com/models/Sonata.php

Last Words

There isn't a whole lot here to get anyone excited in four-cylinder form. But then Toyota sells a bunch of four-cylinder Camrys, and Chevrolet has been doing pretty well with the Malibu. Anyone interested in one of these cars will find a lot to like, and very little to dislike, with the new Sonata.

In my mind, the V6 is easily worth its higher price. Anyone considering the V6 Accord or Camry should also check out the V6 Sonata. It compares well with them and costs significantly less. The average sedan buyer will likely be quite impressed. Only the somewhat downscale interior ambiance (which the leather partly mitigates) might disappoint. Those seeking a sport sedan, on the other hand, might find more to like with the next Kia Optima, as Kias tend to have firmer suspensions.

As is, the V6 doesn't quite earn a five-star rating from me. Re-tune the suspension and upgrade the interior, though, and the Sonata would be there.

To learn more about my reliability research and sign up to participate in it, or to perform thorough up-to-date new car price comparisons, visit www.truedelta.com. A link to this website and alphabetized links to my other vehicle reviews can be found on my profile page.

A Note on Hyundai Sonata Reliability

I cannot practically cover reliability within the context of this review. However, many people are interested in such information, so I've started collecting my own data. Results, once they are available, will be posted to my site, www.truedelta.com, with updates every three months.

Unlike other sources, TrueDelta will clearly identify what difference it will make if you buy a Sonata rather than another vehicle by providing "times in the shop" and "days in the shop" stats (among others). You will be able to specify the number of years, annual miles, and types of repairs to include in Hyundai Sonata reliability comparisons.

Before I can report results, I need data on all cars--not just the Sonata--from people like you. To encourage participation, those who help provide the data will receive free access to the site's reliability information. Non-participants will have to pay an access fee.

For the details, and to sign up, visit www.truedelta.com.

A link to this website and alphabetized links to my other vehicle reviews can be found on my profile page.

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Some of my reviews of related vehicles:
Chevrolet Malibu review
Honda Accord review
Mazda6 review
Mitsubishi Galant review
Nissan Altima review
Toyota Camry review