Hyundai Sonata 2006-2007

ray_h1

"This is pretty much the worst situation [congested urban crawl] for getting decent fuel economy."

The only thing worse would be parking the car and leaving the engine running all day. Maybe...

snakeweasel

The only thing worse would be parking the car and leaving the engine running all day. Maybe...

Some people do the next best thing, they use their remote starter to start up the engine and leave it running in their driveway for 15 minutes or so to either warm it up (in the winter) or to give the A/C a chance to cool it down (in the summer).

rgyip

I averaged about 18 mpg in the first 500 miles with the same driving load. Over about two months, it improved to around 22-23 mpg.

franmart

Hello is the filter for the 2006 gls V6 the one you are talking a bout and how much do they cost they are expensive at the dealer

m1miata

See if you can find one at your local Napa dealer. Unless it is different with this filter thing, they should have Napa Gold which is made by Wix (good oil filters).
-Loren

desertguy

Hyundai Puts More Vehicles With Standard Electronic Stability on the Road Than Audi, BMW, Infiniti, Lexus, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche or Volvo

ray_h1

And Hyundai puts more cars on the road with leather interiors than Bentley and Rolls Royce, too. Am I the only one to see a pattern, here?

hdsit

I still have a Sonata 3.3 with some problems:

http://townhall-talk.edmunds.com/direct/view/.ef30611/3772

I have talked to several specialist who said that one/more damaged/defect shock absorber(s)could cause this problems.

So now i'm thinking of getting my shock absorbers changed/replaced.
Suggested here:

http://townhall-talk.edmunds.com/direct/view/.ef30611/4244

Is anybody aware of any aftermarket available for this model. Monroe will perhaps have some in the early 2008.
I guess i would be better to get them changed to another brand instead of just replaced - to see if this can help on my problems.

desertguy

I think I know what you are driving at but the article goes on to say that it is the PERCENT or sales volume rather than the number of cars. In Hyundai's case it is 70% of their sales volume which apparently is not true for 70% of the volume of the other mfgrs. Bently & RR probably have 100% of their cars with leather.

johnap2

That would be me! Gotta love the remote start!!

backy

Thanks to Hertz in Austin, TX. When I found my car at the Austin airport, it was an Impala. But I knew they had Sonatas in Austin, so I asked if they had any 2006s. The customer service guy said, "No, but I have a 2007! I didn't even know we had any." So I drove away in a nearly new (300 miles) Steel Grey 2007 Sonata SE with moonroof. So far it's been a great experience (except for fuel economy, but I've only put 50 miles on the car with a lot of idling with max A/C on). I'll report on the full experience at the end of the week.

One thing to note: the SE seems just like the 2006 GLS V6, equipped with 17" alloys and moonroof. I can't tell any difference.

jlindh

backy,

You find yourself in a unique position to scope out any changes in the 2007. I'm looking forward to hearing your comments on fuel sloshing, rear end thump and steering wheel radio controls for starters.

acurattle

In the 2007 Limited I posted about a few days back, the steering wheel radio controls look identical to 2006 Sonatas. Maybe they rigged it so they work differently, but that's doubtful. How about it, backy, can you change radio stations and/or CD tracks from the wheel somehow?

bobad

jlindh, An 06 Sonata owner seems to have found the problem. There is a fat parking brake cable that runs horizontally along the floor pan, only clearing it by 2". The owner saw a mark where the cable was hitting, and tied up the cable with a nylon zip tie. Problem solved! I know it sounds too good to be true, but he removed the zip tie, and the thunking returned. Tied it up again, and it was gone again. It's hard to believe all the dealers have missed this simple problem, so I am still a little doubtful! Fingers crossed that a .02 zip tie can fix the noise!

miamixt

"How about it, backy, can you change radio stations and/or CD tracks from the wheel somehow?"

Yes, I rigged my Wheel with all sorts of extra buttons & knobs, you should see it. I can now control my entire Car from the Wheel, but it's hard to turn, and I can't use the horn because of all the duct tape. :P .

johnap2

Although I have not seen the 2007 Sonata as of yet we have all speculated on what changes the new model year would bring. We had some people thinking they were going to put in a navigation option, steering wheel control changes, and other modifications. My guess all along was maybe an XM option and different color choices. Too bad I didn't make a nice, big monetary bet because I would have hit it big!

I agree the steering wheel controls could be a little more comprehensive, but it certainly doesn't weigh heavily on my mind while I am driving. If I have to reach to the dash to change tracks on a CD it doesn't really matter. If Hyundai wanted to do it right they could just copy the steering wheel controls from a Nissan Altima. Those are probably the best I have seen from a "do it all" stand point.

billward

Bobad, can you say exactly WHERE in the car that cable is hitting? Preferably with a picture or something?

Thanks!

bobad

Bobad, can you say exactly WHERE in the car that cable is hitting? Preferably with a picture or something?

Can you ask this on the "Sonata Problems and Solutions" rorum? I will see you there!

backy

So far no fuel sloshing noise (have had the tank down as far as 1/2), no rear suspension noise, and the steering wheel controls are just like for '06.

walt235

Did they do anything to the center console so that it doesn't feel like some cheep plastic bin that you could rip off the floor with no effort at all?

acurattle

Judging by your ridicule, you seem to believe that the deficient steering wheel audio controls are not worth discussing, much ado about nothing. If that's what you think, why don't you just ignore the posts about them? Move on and just let those of us who gripe about such minor annoyances have our say. This is not just a minor annoyance, though. Anything that distracts a driver's attention from watching the road, such as reaching over to the radio and looking to select a station, is a potential safety hazard. And whether you care or not, it is disappointing to me and several others on this forum that, unlike some competing manufacturers, Hyundai did not include a station-changing button convenient to our left thumbs in the '06 or (apparently)'07 Sonata. If we carp about this here often enough, maybe Hyundai will get the message and correct this oversight, one of these years. If they don't, when it's time to buy a new car, some of us may just take our business elsewhere.

desertguy

acurattle: Where is your sense of humor? Steering wheel buttons are not all that important. I miss having the buttons that I am used to as well but miamixt's answer was funny. Lighten up man. The buttons on my Sirius radio are tiny so if they would control that I would be grateful. They provide a remote but you have to look at those buttons as well so I don't see any advantage.

bhmr59

Anything that distracts a driver's attention from watching the road, such as reaching over to the radio and looking to select a station, is a potential safety hazard.

If I want to change the radio station, I probably don't take my eyes off the road for any longer than I would to check my guages, including the speedometer, or to look in my rearview or side view mirrors.

If driving conditions at any given time are more dangerous that normal due to heavy traffic or weather, the last thing I think about is changing the radio.

The steering radio controls is a minor convenience, not a safety factor.

acurattle

Yes, for you and most safe drivers, the lack of steering wheel radio controls is not a big deal because you aren't going to let the radio affect how carefully you drive. That's commendable, but I happen to know of someone who was hit and killed by a driver that was reaching over and messing around with the radio instead of watching where she was going. She veered onto the shoulder where someone was legally riding their bicycle. Besides, aren't there studies that have proven that distractions from cell phones and other in-car electronics not involved in the actual operation of the vehicle are in fact directly responsible for causing accidents? Anything that can be done to reduce or eliminate such distractions must therefore promote safer driving, in my book. That's why I believe that steering wheel audio controls can affect safety.

bobad

That's commendable, but I happen to know of someone who was hit and killed by a driver that was reaching over and messing around with the radio instead of watching where she was going.

A safe driver will drive safely regardless of the radio controls. An unsafe driver will always wreck anyway. If it's not the radio knobs that cause him to wreck, it will be a cell phone, a cup of coffee, or a book. I can spot an unsafe driver right away, and think to myself "They're going to wreck some day soon", and I'm usually right.

acurattle

Yeah, it was funny, and I laughed at miamixt's post, too. Just felt it deserved a response. I'm mostly just venting that Hyundai missed the boat on this again with the '07 Sonata. To me, not having that button on the wheel is of some importance. Anyway, good luck with your Sirius and continued safe driving while you use it.

joe97

Posted by someone at another forum. I passed on for verifications.

bhmr59

Sorry to hear of your friend being killed by that driver.

On 3/17/06, while on vacation in AZ, I was rear ended by a young driver on I-10 in Chandler, AZ. I saw probably more than a 1/2 mile ahead, that all three lanes were stopped or creeping in a traffic jam. I told my golf buddy that were were going to have to stop. We were either stopped or just about stopped 2 car lengths behind the car in front of us. Then, BAMM, she clobbered us from behind and pushed us into the car in front of us. The rear of our car was pushed forward to the rear window. I wish I knew how to post pix of our rental car. That Maxima did a great job of letting us escape with only minor injuries, although the accident ruined our golf vacation and I still have a visable bruise on my leg.

But the point is, the other driver was just inattentive, not something like looking at the radio for 1 or 2 seconds. (I had slowed down gradually from the 65 speed limit by taking my foot off the gas and braking gradually from time to time). Whether she was on the phone, polishing her nails, or who knows what, she was inattentive for much more than a couple of seconds.

60 MPH is 88 feet/second. If she couldn't see us within 3 seconds before the crash she obviously wasn't just taking her eyes off the road to change the radio.

joe97

should be there on the SE trim. Might be a late availablity...

nifty56

Based on figures for 2005 as reported by Detroit-based Automotive News magazine, the Hyundai Group, which includes Hyundai and Kia brands has surpassed Nissan to take over sixth place in worldwide sales.
GM remains number one in the rankings, albeit barely ahead of Toyota. They are followed by Ford, Volkswagen, and Daimler Chrysler.

carfanatic007

I read about the Hyundai V-6 going 0-60 in about 8.5 seconds, not 6.5, where did you read this at??????

walt235

Did they do anything to the center console so that it doesn't feel like some cheep plastic bin that you could rip off the floor with no effort at all?
BUMP... :confuse:

bobad

If you want a reply, ask a proper question. Your question is loaded with a false premise. Since very few people agree with your premise, very few will reply. Your question is like the old "Do you still beat your wife?" question.

I happen to like my center console. It's very solid, and looks just fine. Maybe yours is damaged.

walt235

I'm actually waiting until next week to buy so that I can see what, if any changes have been made to the 07's. Hence my posting in a thread about the new 07 Sonata. I read reviews from this site that commented that the center console felt like you were going to pull it off of the floor when you opened the storage compartment(s). When I went to the dealer three out of three Sonata's were exactly as I had read. I'm hoping that after Hyundai has most assuredly read reviews on the initial 06 release, that they may have stepped in to make some small changes to the 2007 model.
Your comment, Since very few people agree with your premise, very few will reply would only be true because there is only one person in this thread that has actually seen an 07, so they would be the only one qualified to answer the question. I have no interest in reading others trying to convince me that what I have seen for myself is acceptable. The console on my 04 GLS is better made than what I've seen so far in the 06's that I've test driven. I would've thought that Hyundai would have improved on their interior in the 06...not made it cheeper. If you've owned either an 04 or 05 Sonata, and feel that the 06 is vastly improved...somebody's in denial.

jaxs1

Maybe they will change the controls at the same time XM radio becomes available rather than making two separate changes on different dates.

acurattle

Good to hear that you and your friends escaped serious injury, bhmr59. If the person that hit you was doing 60 MPH, depending on what she was driving, she would also have needed at least 170 feet to panic-brake to a stop. Don't forget to add that factor into your calculation. Two seconds at 88 ft/sec (60 MPH) is 176 feet, and adding the braking distance doubles that. Just a few seconds of carelessness at that speed means all who are within a football field's length are in danger. Happens all the time. Inattention for just a second led to a recent accident I witnessed. A neighbor of mine, driving down our residential 25 MPH street, failed to notice someone had backed out of their driveway a few houses away in front of her until it was too late. I was working out front so I happened to see the crash. Nobody hurt, but if my neighbor had been watching where she was going, she could have stopped in time and then been on her way. As it was, her van's front end was smashed in with the radiator pushed back into the engine, so it had to be towed. Definitely ruined her day. So I reiterate, any distractions while driving are bad.

targettuning

Most automotive magazines including Car&Driver(Dec 2005 issue) who tested it to 60 at 6.6 seconds...1/4 mile at 15.3@ 93+ mph. Top speed was 137 mph. You must have been reading a test for the 4 cylinder

timakin

Just bought a steel gray '06 Sonata GLS 4 cyl @ $16,288 (MSRP $19995), and out the door with tax, license and doc it totaled $17,901.81. Purchased from Roseville Hyundai near Sacramento, CA. Very pleased with deal (includes lifetime oil changes!) and the car is great.

A question: are others getting similar deals in this price range? What add-ons are being thrown in to your deals? I found that the margins on this car are very thin, despite news from Hyundai Corp that they are giving dealers bigger commissions starting earlier this month.

ray_h1

"Did they do anything to the center console so that it doesn't feel like some cheep plastic bin that you could rip off the floor with no effort at all?"

Perhaps you have higher expectations regarding materials, fit, and finish than the majority of buyers. There's certainly nothing wrong with high expectations, but keep in mind Hyundai builds to a price point and not everyone expects the seeming structural integrity of a Graffunder bank vault for their car's center console. These consoles are, after all, merely light-duty containment space, for the convenient storage of "stuff", that would otherwise go to waste.

walt235

Perhaps you have higher expectations regarding materials, fit, and finish than the majority of buyers. There's certainly nothing wrong with high expectations, but keep in mind Hyundai builds to a price point and not everyone expects the seeming structural integrity of a Graffunder bank vault for their car's center console. These consoles are, after all, merely light-duty containment space, for the convenient storage of "stuff", that would otherwise go to waste.
I actually only expected the console to be as well designed/constructed as the previous two years models. In my opinion it's not even close. It actually doesn't speak well of the workmanship for the first year that the vehicle was built here in the U.S.

backy

The center console seems solid to me--as solid as a hollow plastic structure like this can be. No rattles, armrest cover closes solidly, nothing moves or slides around under touch. So I'm not sure what the issue is. It would be nice if the armrest would slide forward as on the LX/Limited models however. I've found the armrest is pretty worthless when I have my right hand on the wheel.

backy

I took my rental 2007 Sonata SE on a round trip from San Marcos to Houston yesterday. Total was 335 miles, 61 mph average speed, 28.5 mpg per the computer. Three passengers in the car. There was a lot of construction and some congestion around Houston that kept the average speed down, and the trip included some driving around downtown Houston. Also the A/C was on all the time of course. I kept pretty close to speed limits all the way, no more than 3-4 mph over when needed to keep up with traffic flow. Max speed during most of the inbound trip was about 74. I used a light foot on the pedal, otherwise no special techniques were used.

The engine had 500 miles on it at the start of the trip, so it is not broken in. Prior to the Houston trip, I put 200 miles on the car in a combination of short highway trips, urban roads, and rural roads. Fuel economy for that segment was 23.0 mpg per the computer.

bguy

I also don't see anything wrong with the arm-rest. I have an 06 LX and have so far put 2700 km on it. Complaints to date (really being picky)
- sensitive gas pedal
- irritating seat belt reminder

joe97

6.5 tested by C+D I believe. Edmunds tested low 7s if I am not mistaken. Generally, across the board, high 6s and low 7s.

But, family sedans aren't about 0-60, are they?

carzzz

It was 8.2 sec

wolverinejoe80

i'm sorry, but that's not a good deal. my GF almost bought a Lx v6 without sunroof for 18750 OTD.

and she could've bought gls v6 for under 17k OTD.

mamamia2

What happened to the consumer ratings for this car? Where did it disappear? For a while now there has been none, and we are "invited" to "Be the first to rate this vehicle". Well, I wrote one couple days ago... Where is it, where are all those older ones that were here before???

pat

I noticed that too - it's linked to the 2007 Sonata. Also, if you wrote one a couple of days ago, it won't be posted until the end of next week.

jaxs1

I know Hyundais from South Korea and the conflict is from North Korea, but I bet there are alot of people buying cars who don't know the difference.
I wonder if there is some major incident with North Korea if Americans will avoid buying "Korean" cars driving down resale value of the Sonata.

bobad

It's a fair question, but I think most all Sonata owners are aware their car was manufactured in Montgomery, ALA. I think it would take an all-out war to affect the supply lines from Hyundai in South Korea to the Montgomery plant.