Hyundai Sonata 2006-2007

walt235

I don't care about either. I'm going to check the 07's out this weekend, to see what kind of numbers they throw on the table.

desertguy

"Most people don't care about XM or steering wheel audio controls."

And that is probably because they have never been exposed to either one.

snakeweasel

I have been exposed to both, I had a promo thing where I got the radio and 3 months free for satalite radio, stopped listen to it once the novelty wore off. As for steering wheel controls, while nice I can live without.

mamamia2

...Same here on both issues.... We got my wife an Accord in August '05, and when the XM was no longer free, we simply let it go. Was not worth even the $12 a month for us... Unless you spend many hours a day in your car, I don't see much need for XM radio.

As to radio control, unlike so many other cars, the Sonata is SMARTER, having its radio on the TOP of the dashboard panel, so when you need to change a station, band, etc, you don't have to look DOWN (as in our Accord), but simply move your eyes to the right... I tried getting used to work with the steering wheel's button, but have found it EASIER to just use the radio's own buttons, even for changing the volume....

snakeweasel

you don't have to look DOWN (as in our Accord), but simply move your eyes to the right...

Look? I don't even look. I know all those controls by touch.

As for the XM, I pretty much stopped listening after about two weeks or so. It didn't have the talk radio I liked and my CD's had a better collection of the music I like.

mrdisco33

well i for one am waiting for the '07 and if there was proof to back it up, i would also wait for new steering controls (don't care about XM though).

having used a GM wheel with all the radio functions there's no way i could move to one which had less control (well i could but i would grumble a lot).

azera25

luvmbooty

I've read outstanding ratings about the Honda Civic. I would be interested in the EX trim w/o Nav. I estimated price range with the Invoice plus a 5% mark up.

I also estimated the 2006 Sonata Invoice plus 5% mark up and subtracted cash back for both the 4cyl GLS and V6 GLS. The numbers are very close.

I want more power, the bigger interior and trunk space, but the Civic has a better dependability record and saves alot more fuel. :confuse:

wolverinejoe80

my GF bought her lx civic sedan for $19.3k OTD. a little too much for what it is considering mazda 3 out performs civic in every catagory except the fuel economy.

anyway, civic is a nice car, but i would rather have sonata. faster, quieter, bigger, better looking(civic looks weird in front), and much much better warranty.

mamamia2

Comparing the Civic to the Sonata is like comparing an apple to Italian sausage.... Test-drive both cars and you know what I mean.

...BTW, I have BOTH..... Civic and Sonata, that is.

And, BTW2, Mazda 3 is a joke, compared to the Civic. You don't need to even test-drive the Mazda 3, just SIT in the driver's seat and you'll become Claustrophobic.

targettuning

Funny you should bring up the Civic. I bought a 2006 (EX sedan automatic) Civic on 31 Oct 2005 and I am sorry I did. I previously owned 2 Santa Fe's and would buy a new Sonata if I had it to do over. I love the styling of the Civic and the fuel economy is good but on the drive home with 13 miles on the car I noticed a faint rear suspension noise and now with only 3500 miles it has gotten much worse. I have been on the Civic Edmund site and it seems there are many complaints about faulty struts..which I feel is my problem. In addition the ride height rear from right to left is about 1 1/2 inch different with the left lower. The interior plastics on the door is cheap and easily scratched and the driver door trim pushes out when the window is lowered. There are other oil and power steering leak problems noted (not on my car though) so please don't go on about how great Honda is. Honda Bah!!! To be fair mine is an early built car and some of this may be resolved. Oh, the Civic sticker price (which I very nearly paid) is 19,900+ too much for too little as it turns out. Honda MAY be riding on their reputation at this point.

mamamia2

While we haven't noticed the problem you have (our Civic was built in January), though the one who drives the Civic is my dauhter, not me, I must confess that, if at all, comparing the Civic to the Sonata, certainly the Sonata you gives you A LOT MORE CAR OR YOUR MONEY.

Otherwise, these are two different cars, for two different markets. Two different worlds, you may even say.

jaxs1

It is so easy to decide based on how important the better gas mileage of the Civic is to you.
What is more important? The power and room or the fuel economy?

stlcarguy

From the Edmunds Vehicle Overview of the 2007:

"Along with the attractive design, fine build quality, smooth performance and quiet ride of last year's model, the 2007 version adds a few worthwhile improvements. The steering wheel-mounted audio controls now allow one to surf station presets or CD tracks and all engines now meet ULEV (ultra-low-emission vehicle) standards."

Anybody confirm or dispute?

backy

"Late availability" on the additional steering wheel controls--whatever that means!

m1miata

My radio has a knob and buttons on the radio itself. Works fine - no worries. The more gadgets, the longer the list of future problems.

joeg1

A few posters had mentioned some minor annoyances on the 2006 including the sound of sloshing from the gas tank and the ride with the 17" rims. Were either of these addressed in the 2007?
Thanks,

stlcarguy

The industry has moved this way. You by no means have to move with it. That does not, however, mean that you must talk down to, or dismiss, those who want the convenience.

backy

I drove a 2007 Sonata SE (with V6) for a week and I noticed no sloshing sounds. I had the tank from F to well below 1/4 during that time. I should also mention that I had the A/C on almost all the time during the week, so there was always some background noise (fan) and the stereo was on sometimes too. But I was actually listening for the sloshing noise because I had heard about it.

The 17" rims are the same for 2007. Overall I thought the ride was very good. The only problem I noticed there was that on sharp bumps at high speed, such as big tar stips on the highway, there was a pronounced "thrum". Not a rattle, just a noise. I have noticed similar noises on other cars with firm suspensions, e.g. Jetta and Accord. For people who like crisper handling, it might be an acceptable tradeoff, but personally I find the 16" wheels a good compromise of ride and handling--not nearly as good looking though!

bobad

The industry has moved this way. You by no means have to move with it. That does not, however, mean that you must talk down to, or dismiss, those who want the convenience.

If every car you can buy has electronics that are subject to fail before 10 years, then you are forced to move with it.

I didn't feel that anyone was talking down to anyone. Perhaps you should read that post again.

Happy Independence Day and Canada Day to all!

bobad

Backy, I can imagine how loud the 17's are on bad expansion joints. We have a stretch of Interstate 10 in my area on which the joints are very bad. They slap very hard even on my 16's. I wouldn't trade my 16's for 17's, no matter how sporty they look. I spend .05% of my driving time taking corners, and 99.95% of my time on straight roads. I think it makes more sense to use the quietest, most comfortable tires for the driving one does. Having said that, my 16's aren't dogs by any means. AND, I bet they are a lot cheaper to replace!

eagle2a

I can not find but one trip meter on my 2006 Sonata GLS. I can only find one! The manual says there ar two, but "for the life of me", I can only find one.

Can anyone help me?

Thank You

miamixt

There's only one meter but it performs 3 Multi functions.

cirdan

There are two different trip computers. Base models get a "simple" version with two trip computers. GLS V6 models get a "drivers info center." It has one trip computer, two other useful functions (estimated range and avg. mpg) and two downright silly functions (hours driven and avg. speed). The trip computer, avg. mpg, avg. speed, and avg. hours driven can all be reset.

Personally, I'd rather have two trip computers. Except for est. range, the rest are quite useless in my opinion. As far as the range goes -- you could look at the the gas gauge instead.

jaxs1

This makes sense that they are going to make the change adding the new steering wheel controls at the same time as when XM becomes available rather than making each change at different times.

miamixt

For 06, the GLS, the GLS V6, and the LX have the Multi Function Trip Computer as standard equipment.

wolverinejoe80

mazda 3 is the most desirable small car right now. and i love mazda 3's interior.

eric39

Hi all

Three weeks and counting on my new LX and I love it. I haven't had any sloshing noises in the gas tank nor to date I haven't had any squeaks or abnormal noises.

My question is who makes the 6 CD in dash stereo system and who supplies the speakers/sub woofer? I am very pleased with the sound of the overall system.

I saw on the Hyundai website that '07's will have Infinity speakers. Sorry if this question has been asked before.

Thanks
Eric

ray_h1

When I bought my '03 Sonata, Clarion® was Hyundai's supplier for most head units. (Kenwood® was an upgrade choice for certain Hyundai models.) I don't know whether Hyundai has switched from Clarion® currently. As for Infinity® speakers, keep in mind the following: Harmon International is now the parent company for the following established brands:

Becker®
Harmond Kardon®
Infinity®
JBL®
Lexicon®
Mark Levinson®
(and others)

Harmon International, reformed from the original Harmon Kardon company, went on a shopping spree over the past decade for recognized brands that were either financially unstable or which were just up for a quick sale. HI is now a major player worldwide in OEM and aftermarket car audio.

jpryba

I've mentioned on here a while back that the CD player in my 06 Sonata has issues playing back mp3s longer than, say, 10 or so minutes after it's been playing CDs for a while. Now I'm noticing with our recent 85+ degree weather in Ohio that the unit is starting to skip even on shorter mp3s. It seems that the radio/CD player heats up really easily, and I bet this is what's causing the skipping. Regular audio CDs (both stamped and burned) will play flawlessly, btw.

I had similar issues with 2 other 06 Sonatas I've driven, but it wasn't with shorter mp3s. Then again, these Sonatas had less miles on them (1-2K versus mine having 11K), and it wasn't quite as warm out (meaning I had to drive these around for an hour before my longer mp3s started skipping).

Has anyone else noticed this issue with their 06 Sonata?

Again, it will mainly occur when the CD player is hot and the mp3s I'm trying to play are around 10 minutes or longer. (Occasionally shorter mp3s will start skipping too.)

One other note -- I've tried burning my mp3 CDs at lower speeds, and I've tried using different brands of blank CDs, but that doesn't affect things much.

miamixt

Yes however not as bad. If you read the Manual, you will see two Cautions about using CD R's, and CD RW's, that are burned at home in the MP3/WMA format. It says not to use them!

Of course we all know that store bought CD's are burned in the Wave format, you can't buy premade MP3 or WMA Discs. So in other words, while the player can play up to 255 Tracks, they warn against using homemade discs. And it has nothing to do with paper labels, or any other factor aside from many homemade discs will play great on the computer that created them, and fail on other players, especially auto players. I spent $550 on that Hyundai system & could have done without experiencing this, and reading the CAUTION warning!

jaxs1

That sounds false. What is the exact wording of this warning?
Since the stereo plays MP3 CDs, what other form of MP3 CD do they recommend you play other than "homemade?"

They should output in an AUX input, so you can just use a portable player instead of burning MP3s to CDs.
If you buy downloaded music from iTunes, Yahoo Music, Walmart, Rhapsody, MSN Music/URGE, etc., you can't copy those into MP3 format to play on a CD, so having an input jack for the compatible player would make more sense, plus you could have dozens of CDs worth of music in an easier to deal with format that can be more easily modified than having to keep making new CDs.

miamixt

The Manual is down in my Car. Look for the little Yellow & Black "Caution" arrow in the Stereo section. It is also written out without the "Caution" sign. What do you want from me, I think it's ridiculous. However you missed one important point. Burning a compressed Data disc is entirely different than burning a regular Music CD which uses the Wave format. Some homemade Discs do not play well on other systems. And Car audio systems are even more touchy. For the most part my 6 Disc Mp3/WMA changer works great!.

luvmbooty

My price range is around 20,000. I'd prefer under 20,000, though. It just so happens that with the Sonata's current incentive of 2,500, the GLS V6, according to Edmunds TMV, is 17,694. What other family size sedan with a V6 engine can you get for that price? Nissan, Mazda, Toyota, and definitely not Honda! 2006 Chevy Malibu, Ford Fusion, Pontiac G6 base V6's come close. All are under 20,000 with current incentives but they are American cars and quality wise I'd go with Sonata just because of the warranty.

bobad

Good choice. It's refreshing hear that some people are too smart to caught up in the spending wars. I don't think there's another car as good as the Sonata within $3K, so it wins by a long shot.

As it stands now, the Sonata is probably more American than most other "foreign" cars. Most of the design and assembly was done right here. American workers are as good as any if we are allowed to be.

ray_h1

"As it stands now, the Sonata is probably more American than most other 'foreign' cars."

Uh, what about the American workers assembling 97%+ American content Accords, Altimas, and Camrys in Ohio, Tennessee, and Kentucky? (Or did those three states secede while I wasn't looking?... )

krika

I have played all kinds of formats on my 6-disc changer. MP3 and Audio disc formats, commercial discs and homemade discs. The only problem I had was the player skipped some entire MP3 tracks and I suspect those tracks are of an incompatible format (I have to check the format of those tracks). Never had problem with homemade audio discs (WAV format). Never had the player skip in the middle of a track.

miamixt

CAUTION: Page 129

Avoid using CD-Recordable or CD-Rewriteable to ensure proper operation. When using the compact disc player, professionally recorded CDs are recommended.

Page 119

The unit cannot play a CD-R (Recordable CD) and CD-RW(Rewriteable CD) that is not finalized (closed). Please refer to the manual of the CD-R/RW recorder or CD-R/RW software for more information on the finalization process.

Depending on the recording status, some CD-Rs/RWs may not be playable on this unit.

Playback of multisession discs with up to 255 directories/files/sessions is supported.

Playback of Mp3, AAC, and WMA file formats are supported.

Only CDDA files will be played on mixed mode Cds.

bobad

I know exactly why they wrote that caution in the manual. It's really a disclaimer. Tjere are so many people that use cheap disks, old worn out burners, and flaky software to burn their MP3's that there's no way all of them can be guaranteed to work. Mine works fine. Not even the first skip, but then I'm careful about burning disks.

miamixt

However Car Audio players have been touchy from back in the day when they put Record players in cars, and they did.

And even last years Hyundai with a Cassette said not to use C-120's because they jam, and they do.

And while I have had very few skips with my Sonata Mp3 player, Cds skip all the time. Why I've worked in Radio, both on the Air, and behind the scenes, and I once played a special extended version of Bob Seager's "We've got Tonight", while I was in the Bathroom. Enough fingerprints and boogers on a CD will do just about anything to the Disc

backy

uhhh... too much information!! :sick:

cajuncycler

I just got my new 2006 Sonata on the 14th of June. A GLS V6 with gray interior and spoiler on the back. I absolutely love this car. However I must preface that it is the first NEW car for me in 23 years. On the console issue, It doesn't appear cheap to me. My only complaint is that I wish it had the ability to slide the armrest forward as on the LX model. Where it sits gives barely a place to hang your elbow. Does anyone know if the dealer can change out the armrest for the sliding one?

cajuncycler

Mine came with the spoiler brake light on it. I paid $16,995 for mine. Silver blue with light gray cloth interior. V6 GLS. The dealer may be able to get you one. I dickered on the price for a while but I stood firm on what I wanted and got it. This is a hellava lot of car for that price on anybody's planet.

vhreb123

Does anybody know how much miles you have to have driven to be considered "broken in" for a 06 Sonata? I heard that real life MPG isn't doing too good in a mix of city and highway with mostly city. Is the break in period longer or the same with a 4 cylinder vs. 6 cylinder?
I've read somewhere you get in the LOW 20's MPG before break in and upper 20's after in mix driving. That doesn't sound to good if you ask me.

luvmbooty

According to Consumer Reports, " A major problem with EPA ratings is that they were established in the 1970s. Driving conditions, motoring habits, and vehicles have changed a lot since then."

CR did their own study on mpgs and it turned out the Sonata GLS V6 produced 14 city, 30 highway. The Nissan Altima 3.5 SE produced the exact same numbers. The Honda Accord EX V6 did 15 city, 34 highway. Sonata GLS 4 cyl did 15 city, 33 highway.

CR tested 303 cars and trucks. None tested exact numbers, mostly incorrect with the city driving. Got all info out of CRs "New Car Buying Guide." Very good reading!

joedirt

There is no question that the paint quality on the new Sonata leaves much to be desired.

I'm trying to be less than harsh, but the truth of the matter is that Hyundai really needs to work on paint adhesion, uniformity and general quality.

m1miata

How many miles were on the car before testing? Every engine may produce a different MPG figure. There MPG can be equally wrong. My government MPG is shown as 29, and under average conditions for freeway, I get 26 or 27 MPG, with a rare occurance into the near 29. But that is the PT with a stick. I must say, love them or not, GM cars seem to be able to get the sticker MPG on the freeway, or better. Actually, most cars I have owned got near to, or up to 10% higher gas mileage on the freeway, without being babied, and with the air conditioning on. The PT is noticed varies quite a bit from day to day. Wind conditions effect it a bit more, and a heavier foot really can make a difference. While it is not the best gas mileage, it is far from being as bad as some are getting with automatic transmissions. Those people are hurting, and getting like a V8 gas mileage.

What I found over time was that the i4 engine did much better than the V6 in the city. It is freeway driving which got closer numbers. How they got such bad numbers on the Sonata i4 in town, I don't know. Are the cars geared down really low? How many cars were tested, and with what miles on them? So many variables.
-Loren

billmd

I've had an 06 Sonata GLS V6 for almost a year and have never gotten below 23mpg in any kind of driving. I routinely get 25 to 26 mpg in rural driving. I don't think I could make my Sonata only get 14mpg unless I just sat and idled half the day.

vhreb123

I don't get it. How is it possible to get 14-16 MPG? Did CR gas guzzle on purpose to see if they could get the lowest MPG?

backy

Do you realize you replied to a post from 16 months ago--before Sonatas were even for sale in the U.S.?

The 2007 Sonata SE I rented a couple of weeks ago (Steel Gray) had an excellent paint finish. I looked it over carefully, just to see what the Alabama plant was capable of.

Maybe recent buyers of the Sonata could comment on the paint quality.