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Depth perception.
Whose waiting to pull the trigger on a car purchase until the Turbo comes out to compare?
To bad she doesn't edit this forum more often and cut out the childish behavior of some of the posters on this thread
Unless it's a local offer the 0% financing is only for the 2010 model. National rates on the 2011 Sonata is 2.9% up to 60 months and 3.9% for 72 months.
Back to the topic... anyone driving their 2011 Sonata this holiday weekend? We're headed out to the lake in a few hours. Fear not! I have 'net access.
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Drive the cars, and negotiate until you make a nuisiance of yourself. Get to know the cars!
I like the Sonata best right now. The car looks great, and the mileage and warranty are unsurpassed. But that may change when the new Camry, Accord, Fusion, and Regal models come out.
I had taken it back to the dealer a few weeks later and they had to order the part.
Finally got to bring it in to the dealer this morning, and the service manager stated that apparently it's a known issue because the replacement light has a little bit of different styling. I'll take some pictures of it shortly and post.
Unfortunately forgot to ask about when I could arrange to have the horn replaced.
I can't comment on the horn issue because ummmm that's above my pay grade to answer, sorry but this isn't a truly anonymous account
Topped off the tank. Drove 213.2 miles. Approx 25 miles of that was stop & go. The rest was freeway. Most of the time on the freeway, the speed was 75 mph. There were a few brief periods when traffic slowed to 65, but also some brief periods when it went above 80. The A/C was on 100% of the time.
The dash computer indicated 35.6 mpg for the trip. I wanted real numbers, and also wanted to compare what those real numbers might be vs the computer. I topped off the tank after the trip. Took 5.99 gal. Which comes out to 35.59 mpg.
I am very pleased a car of this size, at those speeds with the A/C blowing gets those numbers. I am also pleased the dash computer was dead on.
Tuckerdog1
Backy, what is your take on these reported fuel economy numbers?
What would be the point of lying or exaggerating? Just telling you what I got.
Tuckerdog1
Didn't you say you took the 2011 Sonata for at test drive? If so, what mpg did you achieve on that drive (if you checked fuel economy)?
35 might be a stretch but there were a couple of posters claiming in the 40's. That is hybrid territory...
Backy, when I took a 2011 Sonata for two test drives, I didn't really focus on fuel economy because I was more focused on acceleration, engine noise, road noise, braking and handling.
It was impossible for me to give a fair assessment of fuel economy under those conditions because I was driving in a manner that differed from what a routine, day-to-day, conscious of fuel economy type of driving routine.
Ride Is a Bit Underdone, Too
Of course, then you hit a bump and the suspension gets out of sorts. Maybe it's just the lumpy back road, but later you're on the freeway, and there's still too much movement over garden-variety seams and ruts. The damping just isn't quite right on our GLS tester. Ride quality feels less solid and sophisticated than on rivals like the Mazda 6 and Honda Accord.
Here is the link to the Edmund's Inside Line review: http://www.insideline.com/hyundai/sonata/2011/2011-hyundai-sonata-full-test.html-
Ride quality and solidity is really important to me, so I really appreciate any comments you may have on this.
Thank you very much.
Using online quotes I got Accord LX-P just $300 above comparable Sonata. So picked Accord. (My car is getting 35 mpg on highway)
You might go back to earlier in this discussion where all the links to professional reviews were posted. Some of those mentioned fuel economy. And some were from a contest Hyundai sponsored, where it challenged the testers to see what kind of FE they could get--which is counter to the way most car mags typically test a car, which is full-out without much regard for fuel economy.
That's really the only way you'll know for sure which car's ride you prefer. Reviewers are all over the map on that. Some will say it's fine, others will complain. Everyone's taste is different. You are the one buying the car.
I test drove a GLS and Limited Sonata (both 2011s).
I found the ride quality pretty nice, actually, over the roads I drove it on.
I did test drive the Mazda 6, too, iTouring, and found that car ride nice also, and a little bit more Germanic in feel, though I'm not sure if that's a good or bad thing.
So, Backy, no, I did not drive them over the same exact roads, which is a good point.
I also have not driven the new model of the Accord, EJ, so I can't comment on that.
I wish there was a way to drive a car for a week or so to ensure that we really like the ride over the types of roads and under the conditions we experience everyday, because I will never forget the one time I purchases a GM product about 12 years ago that seemed to drive fine on an extended test drive, but whose ride I grew to detest within a short time thereafter.
It's hard to compare the ride of two cars unless you drive them back to back, over similar roads. Since you haven't driven the Accord yet, that might be a good time to do it--drive the Accord first, then go back and drive the Mazda6i and the Sonata again. The differences should be more clear then. FWIW, I expect the Limited will have a bit firmer-feeling ride than the GLS, since the Limited has lower-profile tires. So you should drive the trim level you plan to buy--same for the Mazda6 and Accord.
Right!!!!!!!!!!!.. If this was remotely true Hyundai would be shouting from the roof tops and banging on the drums you don't need a hybrid buy our 2011 Sonata and stay at at the 65 mph speed limit and you will receive 40 - 42 mpg and a small % of ownership in the Brooklyn Bridge in return.. :shades: .
Similar deal with my wife's Tuscon. The original tires wore out in only 30K miles. They were noisy as .. well they were really noisy on the highway. Reasearched tirerack.com, and purchased a good choice from there, now it's nice and quiet.
You must realize they can't do that. They have to stick to the EPA ratings in their advertising. But they can do things like, invite a bunch of editors of car mags to drive the Sonata, and encourage them to drive for high fuel economy. These editors write about it, so it's not advertising and it's all legal, but the idea gets out that the Sonata CAN do over 40 mpg in the right conditions.
I believe someone could get 40-42 mpg at 65 mph under ideal conditions, including moderate weather and little headwind. As I mentioned earlier, I got 37 mpg @ 65 mph in a 2008 Milan rental that is EPA rated 28 mpg highway. So I did 32% better than the EPA highway rating. 40-42 mpg is only 15-20% better than the Sonata's EPA rating.
Will everyone get fuel economy like that? Nope. Some people (like my DW) have the proverbial "lead foot" and haven't learned how to drive for optimal fuel economy... not hypermiling, just basic, simple techniques.
The issue of the GLS having a softer ride, which I tend to prefer over Michigan's terrible roads, makes perfect sense given that it does not have the low profile 17" wheels that the Limited comes with.
I do now remember thinking that the Limited felt stiffer (but not at all uncomfortable) than the GLS I test drove.
That being said, an earlier poster said that his 40+ mpg was at 65MPH. There is a big difference in the energy required to push a car through the air at 65MPH and 70MPH. If you want to see the difference, take any car and run it down the road at 65 and watch the instant fuel enconomy. Then run the same road at 70, then at 75. You really want to see a huge change? Run it at 55. Just try not to get run over by the traffic coming up on you! :surprise:
Back in the old days it was not uncommon to hear someone brag about their car running 100MPH and still having "half the throttle left!" While that may be true, we all know that the second half of that throttle wasn't going to get you anywhere near 200MPH!
One day just for grins we decided to find the "sweet spot" of a 2005 Elantra GT auto. Ran the same stretch of road at different speeds to see what gave the best fuel economy. As one would expect, the slower the better (down to a point. Go slow enough and you really don't gain much). What we found really funny was that with no wind, no A/C, windows up, dead level, straight smooth road, 50MPH yielded a whopping 54MPG! Repeatedly, got within 2MPG. Now, the slightes wind or rise in the road and that immediately dropped, but it was fun trying! The more typical for that car at 50MPH was 48-50MPG. But think about that for a minute.... Where can you drive that speed on a flat open road with no traffic? Exactly. So even though the car COULD do it, it wasn't going to happen in real life. At 75MPH on the open road that car would usually hit 32-34MPG, a very respectable number.
It is fun to play with the fuel monitor at different speeds and see what you can do.
now this is very interesting. hope they bring it here!! we need more wagon!!
more pic
http://images.thecarconnection.com/lrg/2012-hyundai-sonata-wagon-spy-shots_10031- 3382_l.jpg
We also have a Tucson, and I'm looking at tires. The michelin hydroedge tires on it now are very noisy -- almost like cupping, but they wear pretty well. Wondering what kind of tires you chose from TireRack. Thanks. Bob D.
50mpg on an 7th gen I4 accord
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hGeCL2RSuHs
That is 16 mpg above EPA
The new sonata surely is blended with power and near hybrid FE
The Sonata might be capable of near-hybrid FE on the highway, but probably not in the city. I haven't seen anyone yet post 40+ mpg in city driving in the Sonata. I don't think we will, either... until the hybrid Sonata debuts, or maybe some hypermiler pulls out all the tricks on a test run.