Hyundai Sonata 2006-2007

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Comments

  • sonatamesonatame Member Posts: 72
    Take a very close look at the paint to make sure there are no small scratches from shipping. From reading the other participants in this forum I would look closely at the windows as well to make sure the Dealer has prepped the car correctly.
  • backybacky Member Posts: 18,949
    If this is a GLS or LX, ask the dealer to program the auto locks before you leave. Otherwise you will have to do it later, and it's possible they will want to charge you for doing it.

    Take the car for a test drive, preferably with the sales rep or service tech in the car. Note any issues, e.g. noises or wheel vibration. Have them taken care of before delivery, or ask for a different car. Check tire pressure before the test drive to be sure it is in spec--many new cars are delivered with overinflated tires.

    Be sure all the parts are in the car (I'm not kidding--there was no jack in a Hyundai I bought two years ago): toolkit, spare, floormats, two remotes, wheel key (if it has wheel locks).
  • zen2zen2 Member Posts: 226
    I have about the same mileage in balmy Erie, Pa. with V6.
    I am getting about 24 mpg, 90% highway. I hope it will get better with warmer weather.
  • zen2zen2 Member Posts: 226
    That sounds like a beautiful color! I wish they had
    one like that when I got my steel gray.
  • jojoejojoe Member Posts: 81
    It is a very nice colour.Very classy,better than the ever so plain Silver or plain grey that everyone and their neigbour has out there.We had the Steel Grey and Crystal Silver sitting beside each other and we preferred the Crystal Silver.Second choice was the Steel Grey,third was the Pearl White.All nice colours.
  • blnewtoblnewto Member Posts: 146
    Just curious, do you live in a warm climate zone?
    Yes, we're in New Mexico and our latest trip (1600 miles round trip) was to Vegas, so the temps were never below 40 degrees and up to about 65.
  • bhmr59bhmr59 Member Posts: 1,602
    You will probably see about 20% or better improvement in MPG once the temperature gets consistently around 60 degrees F.

    That's been my experience in southern New England. You may do better as Erie usually has colder winters than we do.
  • ausboyausboy Member Posts: 15
    The Sonata did not made it through to the second round in Wheels magazine 2005 COTY.

    Wheels is probably Australia's most revered motoring magazine.

    The judges found it shouldn't progress beyond that point because of :

    * steering kickback on mid-corner bumps

    * generally mediocre handling and ride

    * poor stopping on wet bitumen, indicating a compromised ABS brake calibration.

    *Front Seats are too flat and unsupportive.

    The winner was the new Mazda MX-5. It also won Japanese car of the year.
  • delta4delta4 Member Posts: 138
    Hyundai's profits increased and saw its market share grow in 2005. According to Reuters, Hyundai's boost in profits was helped by a large increase in sales of its newly re-designed Granduer/Azera in export markets where Hyundai has a market presence. http://today.reuters.co.uk/new...I.xml
    another article from JD Power reports on Hyundai's growing market share: http://www.jdpower.com/news/re...06012

    The 'Montgomery Advertiser' reports that Sonata's production contributed big to Hyundai's market share gain. http://www.montgomeryadvertise.../1001

    Also from C&D's Auto Insider news - ".....Hyundai and Toyota have had the best retail performance thus far in January. Retail sales for Hyundai were up 19 percent and Toyota Motor retail sales were up 9 percent compared to the first half of January 2005."

    The article is titled "Auto Sales Down in January"which is ironic since both Hyundai and Toyota are the only two automakers to see their sales increase in January of 2006.
    www.caranddriver.com/article.asp?section_id=30&article_id=10595">link
  • haefrhaefr Member Posts: 600
    Sounds like "Wheels" sets the bar a bit higher than the American rags that typically slather over every car they "test". (If you Aussies have access to an American TV program, "Motorweek", you'll see and hear first hand what I mean. John Davidson doesn't even seem to be in the same galactic sector as the rest of us.) Thanks for sharing!
  • sonatamesonatame Member Posts: 72
    One last thing to check and have cleaned are the inside of the rims. If you get the LX the rust drippings from the breaks show up like a sore thumb. They are not that hard to clean, but having them do it saves on your hands. Once you get the car I would wax it. I use Turtle wax platinum and it makes the paint feel like glass. My dealer said he wished everyone would do it right away to help protect the paint.
  • johnjjjohnjj Member Posts: 81
    sonatame,
    Thanks for the suggestion of the wax. How easy/hard is Turtle wax platinum to apply?
    John
  • sonatamesonatame Member Posts: 72
    This is the easiest wax to put on and shine you will ever use. I use the liquid and as long as the paint is not hot from sunlight, it is really easy to buff off. I used to use Turtle Wax Extreme, but it took forever to get a polymer looking residue off (sometimes had to re-wash). My Sonata LX is black and the Turtle wax platinum buffed out nicely with little effort and no residue. I believe the platinum is the replacement for the extreme because you cannot find extreme anymore. Before you wax it run your hand across your paint and then do it afterwards, you will not believe the difference on a new car. Did this with my Toyota Sienna with same great results.
  • ausboyausboy Member Posts: 15
    haefr

    You're right about 'Wheels' setting the bar higher. They are far more analytical than the U.S. motoring press. ‘Wheels’ has a strict, consistant and thorough set of criteria for every vehicle tested. The American rags seem almost cursory in their approach. Try and get a hold of a copy if you can.

    http://wheels.carpoint.ninemsn.com.au/portal/alias__wheelsau/tabID__500475/Deskt- opDefault.aspx

    I’ve had my LX (Aussie Elite) since September and have to agree with some of 'Wheels'observations. The steering is a bit vague and the ride a tad floaty. I tested the Acura TSX (Honda Euro Accord) and found its steering and interior fit to be superior. Still, the $9K difference and interior space swung me to the Sonata.

    Cheers Ausboy
  • backybacky Member Posts: 18,949
    The Sonata is not trying to compete with the TSX--and certainly not with the MX-5. The Sonata is a family car, and competes with the likes of the Camry, Accord, Malibu, Fusion, Altima etc. I don't expect it to have ride and handling like a TSX or MX-5. I do expect it to have safe handling, a comfortable ride (maybe there are no potholes in Australia, but we have them where I live!), excellent safety and convenience features, reasonable power for hauling the family around, and the more room for people and cargo, the better. As for interior fit, a more fair comparison to the TSX would be the Azera--they are much closer in price.
  • stockmanjoestockmanjoe Member Posts: 353
    You can pay your loan off with HMFC right away there are no restrictiouns I just did it today, The dealer wants to get his commisssion and that is why he wants you to wait a couple months to pay it off. He is lying to you.
  • gj2020gj2020 Member Posts: 1
    We just brought home our new silver blue Sonata yesterday. The only one in the state the dealership kept telling me and apparently very much in demand. We just happened to luck out and get there a few hours after it arrived. Very nice color, although I'm waiting to see it in bright sunlight. Very cloudy, rainy day when we got it. The only other color in our price range was black and I wasn't thrilled with a black car in Minnesota. Too much crud on the roads...
  • lawrence45lawrence45 Member Posts: 44
    Have 1500 miles on my Sonata 4-cyl GLS. Yes, it would be nice if the mirrors folded, the seats were more comfortable and I could turn off that annoying clanging warning sound but, aside from that I love the car and don't hear any of the noises and rattles or have any of the minor problems others point out (does the fact that my car was assembled in Korea have anything to do with it?)

    The only major gripe I have is the mileage. On the highway it is terrific. We just returned from a trip upstate and on the NY State thruway we got 32 mpg- I figure it out the old-fashioned way noting the miles traveled and gallons consumed from one fill-up to the next BUT in stop and go driving in the city our mileage has been a horrible 13-14 mpg. I will point it out to the dealer when I go for my first oil change. I am curious what mileage others are getting with the 4-cyl engine in city driving and what I should have checked on the car that might be causing this low mileage. The tire pressure is ok and the weather isn't very cold- warmest January in years in NYC.
  • rhduke00rhduke00 Member Posts: 129
    ..."does the fact that my car was assembled in Korea have anything to do with it?..."

    Actually the 2006 Sonata GLS, including the 4-cyl, is assembled in Alabama. The GL is assembled in Korea.
  • backybacky Member Posts: 18,949
    For the first few months of 2005, the 4-cylinder 2006 Sonatas sold in the U.S. came from Korea. That changed in October I think.
  • sonatamesonatame Member Posts: 72
    I saw the blue/silver at a car show with a lot of illumination around it and it is very nice looking color. You should really like the way it looks this spring.
  • sonatamesonatame Member Posts: 72
    For my taste give me the Accord EX wood trim and interior or the Sonata LX interior over the TSX metallic overkill. Until you drive all these cars for a year or two, I don't think you can really tell who has the better interior fit between these models
  • lawrence45lawrence45 Member Posts: 44
    The information on my car and on the sticker states that my 4-cyl GLS was assembled in Asan, Korea in August, 2005 and was shipped to the U.S. through New Jersey. The VIN begins with K.
  • rgyiprgyip Member Posts: 43
    To those who live in colder climates... Do you have any whistling problems with your 2006 Hyundai Sonata? When you start the car after it has been cold outside, and put it into drive, accelerating cause a whistling/chirping kind of sound. I think it might be a loose belt or something. It eventually goes away after after driving for about 30 minutes or when the engine is still warm. I also wonder if it's the tranny, because it only makes that noise in drive during acceleration. I am having the dealer look at it, but I have to leave it overnight. Anybody have this problem or have any thoughts? I have a LX.
  • sonatamesonatame Member Posts: 72
    If it was a belt it would make the noise in all gears as well as park. My car has not made any noise like that, but I am in MO. One reason you may hear it when in drive is because it is coming from the engine which is in front of you and it could be the air mixture that the car is using when the engine is cold versus once it warms up and will add more oxygen to the mix(limits air intake when cold causing odd whistling (big guess))
  • chuck1chuck1 Member Posts: 1,405
    1,500 miles is way too early to measure mpg. As the powertrain "sets in" you can expect much better. I would not even worry about it until you have at least 10,000 miles on the car. Then you will get what you expect. Ypu might want to check out the Kia Amati board. Those cars really get better mpg as time goes on!
  • silverfox1silverfox1 Member Posts: 91
    I have a 2006 Sonata LX with 3500 miles on it and have no unusual noise when accelerating in cold conditions. I live in Wisconsin and we have our share of cold weather.
  • jbmfjbmf Member Posts: 7
    It's not that I hate the color. I ordered a silver car. I was adamant about getting a silver car. The dealer knew this. The lighting was unavailable when I picked the car up at night to see the blue and it was under snow for the next few days as well. By the time I saw the color in the sun it was 4 days after and I advised the dealer right away. He tells me to keep the car and he will take care of it. Get this, the dealer, who has been stringing me along for over 1 week telling me he is dealing with Hyundai Canada now says that Hyundai Canada will take the car back but because they won't stop the warranty, the dealer doesn't want to take the car back as a "DEMO". He actually expects me to keep the car when he know I ordered silver, a color he knew they didn't even make. I think this is very dirty of them and I would like to know if anyone knows how I should proceed. I stopped driving the car and it has 650km on it. Should I get a lawyer? Does anyone have some good advice. I am willing to fight with them, but they are content to do nothing. It's the principle of the thing. Thanks
  • jojoejojoe Member Posts: 81
    As I stated before ,I have this car, here in Canda,its called Crystal Silver and that means silver,silver is not the same colour on every make of car .I did my research on my options and colour before ording.Then I took a good look before I signed the final papers saying I was satisfied .Now after saying that,I did confer with my salesman about the colour I wanted and he knew what it was,so we were on the same page. Your salesman should have had the same knowledge of this colour.It is their job and responsibility to know what they are selling.It is also your responsibility to make sure you don't sign on the dotted line before you check out your vehicle 100% before taking possesion.You could get a lawyer involved at great expense,but you better make sure who is at fault here.Remember your car is a silver 2006 Sonata,that is Crystal Silver.You don't have any other choice of silver.What I find hard to believe is that you had this car for how many days and didn't see the colour,and yes even through the snow,the colour is the same.My wife and I saw the colour immediately when it arrived and there were none on the lots before hand , we bought the first one in this area back in July 2005.We looked at our car from every angle,test drove it and went back over it before we took possesion.I think you should give it a chance,the colour is unique and doesn't look like every other grey or silver car,it has its own look.Try tinting the windows(thats what we did,professionally though) it looks awesome,many,many compliments have come our way.
  • metronuimetronui Member Posts: 2
    Was told by a couple of different Hyndai dealers that I couldn't pay off the loan for 90 days in order to get the benefit of the $1,000 HMFC rebate. I just bought a 2006 Sonata LX. Am I able to pay off the loan right away and not be assessed a pre-payment penalty?
  • jbmfjbmf Member Posts: 7
    I'm very upset that the dealer never explained to me the fact that there was no (unblue) silver sonatas. He passed the blue tint off as a weird lighting condition in the shop. The car truly is more baby blue than silver. He knew this and didn't say anything. Why should I be penalized because I took possession for 1 week. I have since taken the car off the road. I offered to pay for the mileage I put on. The dealer even acknowledges that the color is off from the palette on his desk but he claims since I took it I am stuck with it. What the hell kind of service is that! The dealer should do something.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 0
    We paid ours off in less than three weeks after initiating the loan, which was over three months ago, without losing the rebate. If you're concerned about it, call up HMFC and get the official word through them.

    -Ty
  • tenpin288tenpin288 Member Posts: 804
    Pay it off right away. The reason you are getting the 90 day bull is that the selling dealer gets a kickback as long as the buyer keeps the Hyundai loan for at least 90 days. :mad: This has been discussed ad nauseum on this on and few other boards. Check your loan contract. There is no mention of any pre-payment penalty.
  • mrdisco33mrdisco33 Member Posts: 58
    that sonata is BEAUTIFUL! i love the chrome trim and i despareately want those side marker lights.

    please please please add that for the '07 year.

    as for the crystal silver - it is indeed baby blue. there's one at the subway parking lot and you can tell right away what colour it is. i suppose the rational is that a crystal has a bluish tint to it. its definately not silver though.
  • zen2zen2 Member Posts: 226
    Do a search on this topic. Many, myself included, have
    paid their loans off in a month or less, and got nothing
    but a Thank You from Hyundai Finance.
  • hdsithdsit Member Posts: 58
    I have a serious problem with my 3.3 sonata, bought 21 juli 2005, that i have used the last six month to try to solve in cooperation with the dealer and Hyundai Denmark - still with no luck.
    The problem is described in Hyundai Forums at:
    thread page 1 here
    thread page 2 here
    Would like to know: Is it a common problem that this car/model has some jumping/bumpings in the speed interval 50-75km/h (37-46mph) that is not tyre related. Have now tried 5 different sets of tyres / brands.
    Can my problem be european-market related?
    I'm about to getting desperate, and is seriously in doubt of what to do next...
  • patpat Member Posts: 10,421
    Please folks, if you want for us to see a picture that is wider than about 500 pixels you need to post a link instead of displaying it. Very wide pictures - like the one I just deleted - badly skew the page and make every line difficult to read.

    Appreciate it!
  • johnap2johnap2 Member Posts: 105
    After being spoiled with a remote start on my last vehicle I decided to take the plunge with my '06 Sonata 4-cylinder. With half the winter gone and almost 6k miles I decided to just get it done before any more time goes by.

    In order to preserve the warranty I had the dealer install it (they actually contract the work to a local install shop, but it is warranted through Hyundai). Of course, like any dealer work it was much more expensive than a regular shop. I was told the Sonata was not working well with the stand-alone remote start because of the factory security system thus I needed the alarm/remote start package (factory security now disabled). I guess they were originally putting them on stand-alone until several people came back complaining it was not working right. I really could not care less about a stupid car alarm as nobody pays attention to them anyway, but I had no choice.

    The 4-cylinder Sonata takes a long time to warm up and often "chugs" and jerks when driven cold, especially in a very cold midwestern winter when parked outside all night. So, this was a logical solution for me. All in all a great added feature to an already great car!
  • ctc1ctc1 Member Posts: 66
    After reading your story you have my sympathy. I also had a similar problem with my Ford escape. If by bumping you mean the tires fell like they have a flat spot then I may have A solution for you. In my case after many dealer visits and much frustration A factory mechanic sent to fix my problem found it was one of the front bearing hubs. After replacing vibration was gone. Both hubs looked and felt good to dealer mechanics and myself but were bad. It's been over a year and still vibration free. this was not A common problem for Escape so it took A factory mechanic to find. He told me many components can cause problem right up to A faulty transmission. Good luck I hope your solution is as simple, because the tires seem to be looking in the wrong place at this point
  • mc229mc229 Member Posts: 15
    hdsit,
    You're not alone in your problem, although I've not gone to quite the lengths to fix mine that you have. I have some inconsistencies with the drive at around 40-45 mph, and they as well can't be attributed directly to the tires. At first the shop didn't seem to notice the problem, but after I was very persistent they checked the alignment and camber, balanced the tires, then balanced the tires using a driving simulator (a different step that they took to make sure that the wheels/tires weren't out of round).
    I have an air compressor of my own and regularly check the tire pressure, and keep it around 32 psi (as advised by the dealer service tech). The only odd thing besides the wobble around 40-45 mph is that once I had a valve casting break on me in one of the tire valves - the side of the valve, next to the pin, was cast thinly and broke. After they fixed that, the tire performed better and the overall ride has improved significantly.
    I drive 250 miles a day and have 13500 miles on my Sonata (purchased 11/05) so I have plenty of time to contemplate the ride. I understand your frustration with your problem, and it sounds as though yours is probably worse than mine. Since mine is not TOO bad and is limited to such a narrow range of speed (and one at which I don't frequently travel), I have learned to ignore it for the most part. I'm hoping that when I hit 30000 miles and change tires (I don't intend to buy Michelins again) the ride in general will improve.
    Assuming that you've read this far (I apologize for how long this message is), my Sonata is a GLS 3.3 V6 with 17-inch wheels. Is that what yours is, also, or do you have the 16-inch wheels? It might be a problem with the wheel size/design.
    Let me know if/when you get your problem resolved, please, as I will likely seek the same solution to mine.

    Thanks (hope I helped?)
  • sonatamesonatame Member Posts: 72
    You could get a lawyer and probably win, but the cost of the attorney will not be worth the outcome. I personnally would contact Hyundai Canada Customer Service and report your situation and the Dealer. Hopefully they would do something for you directly. If not, I would let the media know your plight and seek revenge on the Dealership who was unscrupulous. Keep in mind that Caveat Emptor (probably spelled wrong) "Buyer Beware" is what most people will see and may think you were nieve for not checking the car out more thoroughly on delivery. I agree with you that your salesman was a jerk, but unfortunately there are a lot of them in this world.
  • hdsithdsit Member Posts: 58
    the situation for now is that the technician at Hyundai says that all 3.3 models have this problem more or less, and that there i nothing to do about it. I will have to live with it. Even if i get a replace, that will also have it. I can simply not understand that this can be correct: That hyundai has delivered a model (3,3), which has went through quality control and has been accepted. My car has such a bad ride (feels like one or more tyre are totaly out oof balance in mentioned speedrange), that if have been told that this is just the way it behave, from the beginning (and not that it just was a tyre that need to be balanced), i would never have bought the car.

    (running on 16" wheels, but was delivered with 17" - shifted to 16" to get more comfy ride)

    Have had left front hub, bearing and driving shaft replaced, but it didnt help at all.

    Any suggestions please...
  • targettuningtargettuning Member Posts: 1,371
    I would have to say that the idea of all V-6 Sonata's having a vibration at a certain speed range is crap. I am currently driving a GLS 3.3 V-6 rental and have not experienced any vibration, bump, thump or otherwise bad behavior in this, probably abused, car. While I can't offer any suggestions to think Hyundai engineered this flaw into their all new, designed to take on Honda and Toyota, sedan is ludicrous. Further, if it was a widespread problem this board would be positively vibrating with complaints..trash talk against Hyundai and..well you get the picture.
  • zen2zen2 Member Posts: 226
    I tend to agree. I drove 3 different V6's. One had
    a fairly bad vibration, in the 40 to 50 mph range,
    but not under load. I had gone through that type of problem once, and never wanted it again. So I drove
    two others, no problems. I chose the steel gray,
    although I really like the beige gold, but didn't
    want the vibration problem. 4000 miles now,
    and still no vibration problems. I might note also,
    the car was delivered with 45 psi in all tires. When
    I reduced it to 30, the ride was definitely more comfortable.
  • sonatamesonatame Member Posts: 72
    I have the LX and have not experienced any vibration at any speed. I am currently renting a GSL (with sunroof) in Maryland and had the car up to 85 and have not experienced any vibration. This is my second brand new Sonata from Avis, first had 13 miles on it this one had 7 miles on it. It sounds like the Hyundai Dealer over seas is trying to pull a fast one on you by saying it is a common unfixable thing. You are under warranty and in the US we have the lemmon law to protect us. I once had a Sable that vibrated like a lawnmower at 65 mph and it was the struts. Your problem sounds like it might be associated with transmission torque converter. Do you get the same jumping and vibration when you use the shiftronic?
  • wedgemonwedgemon Member Posts: 1
    OK Jax.

    I'm thrilled with this testimonial. I ought to take umbrage on the ""large" family of four"" comment. But, we are large and this car has worked flawlessly! Still have no problems with the car or the dealer. You and your dealership were a big part of our getting this Sonata. And, as you noted the car sold itself.

    I'll bill you for the residuals.... (hah)

    - Dave
  • jbmfjbmf Member Posts: 7
    Seeing the dealer tonight. We will see. What a bummer. All I wanted was a nice new Sonata. Thxs
  • sonatamesonatame Member Posts: 72
    You got a nice Sonata, just the wrong one. Good luck!
  • mrdisco33mrdisco33 Member Posts: 58
    the more research i conduct with the sonata against competitors (impala, camry, altima, accord, g6, mazda 6) i am convinced this is a superior value when the total picture is concerned (equipment list, longest warrenty, decent styling).

    my question is what's the catch? with the all the stuff you get at a slightly lower price point then the competition has Hyundai cut corners elsewhere?
  • blnewtoblnewto Member Posts: 146
    I haven't noticed any "cut-corners", in fact they include many nice touches that equally priced cars don't include such as the nice little storage compartments, the eyeglass holder in the headliner compartment, auto-headlights, shiftronic transmission, side airbags and the list goes on. They definately got this one right!

    BTW, no vibes from our v6 either, at any speed (although I've not gone over 95, lol).
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