2013 Hyundai Sonata

misterbill

Just bought a GLS with the PEP on Saturday, will pick it up on Wednesday. There's no thread here for the 2013 so I figured I'd start one, although obviously the car is very similar to the 2012.

This is my family's 4th Hyundai. I started with a 2001 Elantra GT hatchback, then a 2010 Elantra Touring SE, then got my son a used 2009 Elantra. I was actually looking for another Elantra Touring (since I figured they'd be marked down due to being discontinued) but the pricing on that was not very good and I was able to get a Sonata for not a lot more than I would have paid for the ET SE model.

sladex

hey i am from newyork city interested in leasing 2013 hyundai sonata this will be my first car i need help with leasing i dont know how to start what are the most important things i must know before going to a dealer

Kirstie_H

A really good place to start, regardless of what vehicle you're looking at, is our General Questions about Leasing Vehicles discussion.

catalina56

Hi misterbill

What is the PEP on the Sonata? Any specifics on the cost of the 2013 Sonata and where did you buy it? Many thanks

catalina56

mpl82

What are thoughts on the manufacture lease deal whith is being advertised in October:

Hyundai Sonata GLS A/T (Model #27402F4*)
$0 down
12K mil/36 mo
$259/mo

ryster

Make sure you read the fine print. Hyundai charges a $400 disposition fee at the end of the lease when you return the car.

The $259 also does not include taxes, title, registration, etc. The payment would probably be closer to $280/month once everything is added in.

mpl82

Ok - thanks.

rguthrie

I purchased my 2013 Hyundai Sonata about 6 weeks ago, and have a Rosen radio system added in place of regular radio. I am getting static on my FM radio stations, and wondering if anybody else has this problem with the OEM radio. How was it repaired? Never had static on FM stations in my life. Thanks for your help.

backy

Just traded my 2007 Sonata GLS in for a 2013 GLS. Was not planning to get rid of the 2007 for 3 years or so, but I decided to surprise my wife (her car) because it seemed a great deal.

The old Sonata was in good shape mechanically (only 62k miles) and the interior was ok (just needed a real good cleaning). But the exterior had accumulated a lot of damage over the past year or so, all from idiots in parking lots. Latest was a huge scrape on the left rear from a hit-and-run, put a big dent in the body panel and scraped up the bumper also. The rear bumper was hit a year ago, got paid for that but never repaired it (would be about $500 just for that). Lots of dings and scratches on the front and sides also. Plus the right mirror needed replacement (run-in between my wife and a garbage bin in the garage--the bin won), three wheel covers were beat up (the curbs won that one), and the tires would need replacement in a year or so. And the car was out of warranty (bought it used). So I was looking at a chunk of change just to repair damage before I could sell the car, plus was on the hook for anything that would fail.

So when I saw a local dealer advertise a great lease deal on the 2013 GLS Package 2, I called my dealer of choice just a few miles away and asked if they could match that. They said, sure, come in. So I did the day before Thanksgiving. What I wanted in a perfect world was to turn over the keys to my old car and drive out with the new one for nothing out of pocket and no payments for 3 years. I knew that was aggressive, given the damage on my car, but thought I'd give it a shot.

Well, I didn't get what I hoped for but I did get what I thought was a good deal, and it was a pleasant experience--no pressure, sales rep and manager were easy to deal with and straight-up on everything. I wound up paying nothing up front (even 1st payment was taken care of) and 35 payments of $47.80. But the car had more equipment than I expected. It was a fully loaded GLS Package 2, with every accessory (I think) except the iPod cable (I can get that later). It has two sets of mats, carpeted and all-weather, mud guards, rear bumper protector, self-dimming mirror with Homelink, cargo net. And the Package 2 goodies such as alloys, power seat, heated seats, auto headlamps etc. And they had my first choice in color: ruby red. In addition, there was a weekend special that allowed me to get a "protection package" that takes care of any paintless dent removal, any damage to tires or wheels, glass repair, and lost keys and remotes with no deductibles and no limit, for free.

So my wife got a new car with a lot more features and better fuel economy than the old car, and no worries about expenses other than routine maintenance (and I got 9 free oil changes), for about $1.50 a day.

I can't wait until the first time she locks her keys in the car (she does that a lot) and calls me, and I use the BlueLink car-unlock feature to open the car.

mpl82

How much did you get for your 2007 GLS?

backy

On the lease details it said $6000. Given that I estimated the repairs to the car would cost at least $2500, if I paid for the repairs, and that didn't include a full interior cleaning/detailing which it badly needs (with some stains on the carpet I've been unable to remove), I thought that was a good deal. Of course, they have a body shop so they can do the repairs at cost and make the deal work for them.

mpl82

and you're paying $47.50/month? That's an impossibly low lease payment for a 3 year lease of a base GLS. Assuming what you say that all you put down was your trade.

backy

Yeah, I thought it was a pretty good deal too. Except it wasn't a base GLS... it was a Package 2 with every other available accessory except the iPod cable... MSRP $23,155 I think. So about as loaded as a GLS can be.

There's lots of incentives now on Sonatas including the $500 loyalty rebate, which I qualified for--it went to the dealer of course.

Also it's $47.80... but what's 30 cents a month?

The dealer must think they can make it work on my trade as they have their own body shop so they can do the repair work during quiet times basically at almost no cost except some paint, a new mirror, and a few wheel covers--they'd have to pay their people anyways. They can make it look like new and sell it at a nice profit, given its low miles and excellent mechanical condition. But for me, it would have cost a pretty penny to have the car repaired. And I'd have to do that pretty soon as I can't drive a trashed-out looking car, plus some of the damage would rust this winter if I didn't fix it.

So I think it was a win/win.

blacmax

Just bought a 2013 SE 2.4 with Nav. I live around BR and have been researching a car for my wife. Looked at the 2013 Accord Sport & EX, and the 2012 Camry. She liked both of those more than the Sonata from the initial test drives she had with all of them. I didn't like the interior that the Accord offered on the EX and the Sport was a little too plain, but nice looking on the outside. Her love was the Camry and the comfort of the seats. We were looking at the SE Camry and their Convenience package which also was mostly paired with Nav. In the end, she didn't like the "stale" looking Camry and the fact that one is on every corner. She wanted to try something different and this was it. We had 2006 3.3 Sonata that was just recently totaled out in Sept.2012. After looking looking at cars she knew what color she wanted and we found it and now its hers.

ryster

Actually the $47.80/mo for a 36mo lease is right on with current market pricing for a Sonata GLS with the Preferred Package. Based on $6,000 down from the trade, $47.80/mo comes out to a price for the Sonata of $20,350 which is the current True Car target price for this car. Without the trade, the monthly payment would have been ~$235/mo which is also right on with current market pricing.

backy

Your numbers are off.

35 x $47.80 (first payment made by the dealer) = $1,673.

($1,673 + $6,000) / 36 = $213 per month.

Also don't forget this was not just the Preferred Package, but had several other options (self-dimming mirror with Homelink, two sets of mats, mud guards, rear bumper protector, cargo net).

But the best part about the deal for me was that my old Sonata wasn't worth anywhere close to $6,000 to me, because of the body damage. So I was happy to trade it in at that price.

ryster

I was calculating from the bottom up, to include residual value, money factor, estimated sales tax, the $6000 trade, etc. A higher residual value could easily account for the $720 difference.

I probably would have put enough additional money down to just drive away payment free for 36 months. When you get a monthly payment down that low it just seems easier to pay it upfront and not have to deal with it.

backy

I probably would have put enough additional money down to just drive away payment free for 36 months.

I tried, in fact my position going in was a simple exchange of keys, nothing up front, no payments (I knew that was a big stretch given the condition of my trade, but figured what the heck, might as well try for it). But the sales manager said that Hyundai Finance would not do leases w/o a monthly payment. I was kinda surprised by that, as I've heard of leases with a single payment up front. I plan on calling Hyundai Finance in the near future and see if they'll accept payment up front now, for a little discount.

P.S. Residual is kinda meaningless IMO. If it's too high relative to the value of the car at the end of the lease, I'll walk away, or negotiate a lower buy-out (which I've done on leases in the past). I leased a Sentra nearly 3 years ago and at the time thought the residual was kinda high, about $11k, but the payments were only $179/39 months with nothing up front except first payment, plus they threw in a free DVD player and nav system. I figured I'd walk away at the end of the lease. But with used car values rising in the past few years, that $11k doesn't look all that bad now so I may keep the car when the lease is up in July.

oilmutt

I received a $50.00 Hyundai reward card in the mail along with athank you card for purchasing 2013 sonata. I actually leased one for 36 months. activated and spent it walmart today. anyone else get a reward card?

oilmutt

I received a $50.00 Hyundai reward card in the mail along with athank you card for purchasing 2013 sonata. I actually leased one for 36 months. Activated and spent it walmart today. anyone else get a reward card?

mani_o

I personally really like the look of the Sonata and congrats to Hyundai for breaking the mold on what a family car should like like.

My only concern with this car is will it be reliable in 10 years because I like to hold on to cars gotten all I can out of them. It seems like where I find looks reliability comes into question (Sonata, Fusion, Optima) and where I find reliability (Camry, Accord, Altima) looks go out the window. I have a 2010 Elantra and the engine idles louder than I'm used to and the transmission does not seem the best. But I like the look of the car and it seems reliable.

Most Hyundai reviews start off with it's a great car for the price, or the car has a good warranty. But you're not thinking about the price or the warranty when your on the side of the road. Likewise if the car runs great but is a boring to drive, who even would want to keep it for 10 plus years? It seems like Hyundai is stepping up and giving us a quality product and a good price. I might buy a Sonata next year for more room, 3-4 years should give us a good idea of how this 2011 design will hold up.

Warranties help with big repairs like engine and tranny issues, but with the random clunk, rattle and steering issues that plague cheaper cars the dealership turns a blind eye and says they don't hear it or it's normal - then you just end up living with it.

Bottom line I want a fun to drive, nice looking, reliable vehicle and I think for around the $25,000 most people pay for mid-sized cars, there is no reason we shouldn't get it.

backy

The current Sonata design is over 3 years old now. Current Hyundais are higher quality than years past. Despite that, my 2001 Elantra GLS (purchased new in October 2000, one of the first cars of that new design to hit the USA) is still going strong (owned now by my sister), and my 2004 Elantra GT (purchased new 9 years ago) has done even better, with only routine maintenance, 1 brake job, new tires, and a few headlight bulb replacements over the nine years.

In my mind the only question mark on the long term reliability of the 2011+ Sonata is the new powertrain on that car: a 2.4L GDI engine, and a new (when the 2011 Sonata debuted) 6-speed AT. But with Hyundai's 10-year powertrain warranty, I really don't worry about costs associated with that, as I drive less than 10k miles a year.

fb400

I test drove a 2013 Sonata GLS with PEP today. I have to say I am pretty impressed with this car. Admittedly I have been a Honda bigot for decades. That may be about to change.

You could accuse me of serial car shopping.. been at this already for a few months and probably won't buy until late summer. Not to say I enjoy frustrating sales people but I do have some fun with it. told then today oh yeah that Nissan salesman tried every trick in the book to get a sale!!

so to date have test driven the Jetta, Altima, Mazda 3 and today the Sonata. I wouldn't give the Jetta a 2nd look and the Mazda 3 I tried really hard to like but can't. I may give the Ford Fusion a spin next but that car would have to be beyond spectacular to match the Sonata.

What are all of you paying for the Sonata GLS with PEP car after all said and done?

backy

FWIW if you are looking at the Sonata, Altima, and maybe the Fusion, you should try the 2014 Mazda6. From what I've read and seen, it's a great car--in the same size class as Sonata/Altima/Fusion. Mazda3 and Jetta are a class smaller. Might also want to try the Sonata's cousin, the Optima.

misterbill

I'm actually disappointed in my Sonata GLS (and this is my 4th Hyundai in the family so it bothers me to have to say this). It drives very nicely, but there are enough annoyances that I would not recommend it.

The remote door opener has such poor range that I have to be maybe 3 or 4 car lengths away from it before it works. Forget about using it for finding a misplaced car in the parking lot (of course if you pay for the advanced Bluelink service, you can use their app to honk the horn and flash the lights). If you're used to pushing the door open button twice in succession to get all of the doors open, prepare to relearn this because you have to wait a couple of seconds before pushing it a second time to get rest of the doors to open.

I don't know whose idea it was to have radio and heat/cool controls each be a button that just cycles thru all of the choices, but it's a really poor design that I do not expect on a $20k+ car. I shouldn't have to cycle thru AM, FM1, FM2, and 3 XM settings to get from one band to the other. Similarly for heating/cooling. The button that looks like a person seems to have up and down positions but it took me a while to figure out that it was just always up. What ever happened to separate buttons for each function? The XM channel controls from the dash are beyond stupid (and useless). While AM/FM move up and down using your stored channels, for XM they just move to the next channel numerically. That means if you want to move between stored channels, you need to push the button on the dash. Oh, and if you are the sort who turns the heat/cool knob all the way to cool, be aware that this turns on the air conditioning (there is no separate button). And it loses the outside/recirculate air setting when you turn off the car, so it will be set to outside when you turn it back on, which is loads of fun when it's cold out and you don't want outside air coming thru until it can be heated.

The trunk and fuel door buttons are right next to each other and very easy to confuse. If you're just reaching for them. And one time I accidentally opened the trunk while I was waiting at a traffic light and trying to turn off traction control in bad weather before going up a hill. That was fun. It was obviously my fault, but maybe the trunk button shouldn't work when the car is not in park.

And the mileage is terrible compared to what I was expecting. If I'm lucky I get 28 with mostly highway, and often it's closer to 26. If I drive all highway, I may get to 32 until I do some real world driving.

Many of my problems with the remote/inside controls may not be an issue with the Limited because I think they have different options. But they certainly apply to the GLS and really annoy me.

backy

Oh, and if you are the sort who turns the heat/cool knob all the way to cool, be aware that this turns on the air conditioning (there is no separate button).

There is a separate button for A/C. But turning the temperature knob all the way to "Cool" does activate the Max A/C setting--many other cars have the same feature.

On the trunk/fuel filler buttons... since you would be stopped when using them, it helps to look at them before pressing them. There's so many controls on the dashboards of today's cars, it's difficult to use any of them just by feel.

ryster

The trunk and fuel door release buttons are easily identified because the trunk release has a raised bump on it. The fuel door release does not.

The remote range on my GLS is quite impressive...approximately 100ft. Unlocking all doors with the double button hit is not an issue at all.

The temperature knob, when turned all the way to the left, activates Max A/C. You quickly learn to stop one notch before Max A/C to run at the coolest fresh air setting...and if you accidentally activate Max A/C you just turn the knob back up one notch and then press the A/C button to shut the A/C off. Not a big deal.

The climate control system is not intended to be run in recirc mode for prolonged periods which is why the system defaults to fresh air. When you want to use recirc, just push the button.

The fuel economy numbers you are getting are right on target with what the car is supposed to get. The car is rated at 24city, 35highway, 28combined. If you are getting between 26-28mpg in combined driving there are no issues.

You must change radio stations a lot while driving. I haven't ever noticed any issues related to changing stations or bands. I listen to XM 99.99% of the time and have 12 presets between XM1 and XM2...I don't even use XM3. When I want an XM station that isn't preset, I just turn to it using the tuning knob. On the rare times I want FM, I just push the FM button and tune to the station I want with the tuning knob. Works just like every other car I have had over the decades.

michellej87

Anyone get whistling sound from AC vent?
I started noticing this now that I am using AC more often (bought 2013 sonata in winter)

http://www.hyundai-forums.com/222-yf-2011-sonata-i45/161600-2013-whistle-air-duc- t-system.html

michellej87

Anyone get whistling sound from AC vent?
I started noticing this now that I am using AC more often (bought 2013 sonata in winter)

Should I just take it to dealer?
I am afraid I will not be able to show the tech unless I drive it at 70+ MPH and even then I may not get whistling sound.

http://www.hyundai-forums.com/222-yf-2011-sonata-i45/161600-2013-whistle-air-duc- - t-system.html

kyrpto

No whistling here!

pjbear05

Being BIG (6'4", 270 lbs.) and born and raised in Detroit, I could never find a decent sized import. Until this January when my 2002 Taurus started going on me. Looked at US built, found some promising chances, especially a nice Chrysler 300. But to a man, the sales people did NOT want to deal, couldn't get them to a reasonable price.

Did more looking, and a salesman at a Honda Dealer looked up at me at said "Try Hyundai or Subaru." So, the Saturday before the Super Bowl I did.

Sat in a few models, so-so, then sat in a 2013 Sonata Limited. WOW, was I stunned by the room (45.5" front leg room)! Short test drive, and I was hooked. Salesman worked his butt off to get us a deal, and I drove it home.

Haven't looked back, absolutely love the car. If you have room issues, definitely give the Sonata a try, you'll be stunned, as I was!

ryster

I am 6'5" tall and agree that the Sonata has plenty of room. I wish the bottom seat cushion was slightly longer, but other than that there is a lot of front legroom.

I am also hearing that the 2013+ Nissan Altimas (45.0" front leg room) and the 2014 Chevy Impala (45.8" front leg room) have plenty of room for tall people.

kyrpto

Glad you went with a progressive company instead of falling into the Camcord abyss.

backy

Have had our leased 2013 Sonata GLS with Preferred Package for a year now. Put 7500 miles on it, mostly by my wife ("her" car) in that time. Just did the 7500 mile/1 year maintenance which cost ~$50, including wash and vacuum. Since the 3750 mile service (oil/filter) was free (oil changes for the 3 years of the lease were included), very low costs over the first year.

Have had absolutely no problems that were due to the car. It did get hit by a hail storm this summer, got about 100 very small dings all over it, taken care of by PDR. Also has been hit in the front bumper a couple of times in parking lots so a few scratches on it. And my wife recently sprayed some Coke onto the center console, with a little getting into the rotary temperature control so it is a bit sticky, but still works. I've asked her to please open the pop bottles outside the car in the future!

Maybe we were lucky, but this car exhibits none of the problems some folks have complained about with this generation of Sonata. The car tracks fine, although the steering feel is not as firm as I'd prefer (thanks to the EPS). No interior issues; I sprayed the tan cloth seats with Scotchgard shortly after we got the car, as that light cloth shows stains--they come off much easier with the Scotchgard. Heated seats are great, no slacking off in intensity over time. Fuel economy varies depending on whether my wife (with her heavy foot) is driving or I'm driving. I have no problem exceeding the EPA numbers except in extreme cold weather, or if I'm in stop-n-go rush hour traffic (which thankfully I don't need to do very much). She drives mostly "in town", short trips, lots of idling, and struggles to hit the EPA city number, usually averages 21-22 mpg.

Very pleased with the car so far; too soon to tell if I'll keep it when the lease is up in 2 years or not, but that might be difficult to do with all the new designs available since this Sonata was released in early 2010. Plus there will be a new Sonata by then, and based on spy pics it'll be a stunner.