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Comments
Yes, the plattform changed completely in 1999, which was "advertised" as '00 sonata.
Sorry if I called them incorrectly. I was in confusion. You are correct. My mistake.
I would recommend used '99 Sonata (if you call it so) if it's in good condition and if it's cheap enough, but I won't consider buying '98 Sonata.
It's not a matter of design, but of parts.
Korean auto parts manufacturers have achieved great improvement in quality since 1999.
That's why you can find very little (if any) serious problems (engine stalling, transmission failure, electrical mulfunction, etc..) reported from '99 model on (Sonata, Elantra, Santa Fe, XG300, You name it).
And that's why plastics & materials used in the Hyundai vehicles do not look so cheap as they did 4 or more years ago.
But after all, that's only an opinion,lots of Sonata owners may not agree to.
Sorry again for poor English.
Happy driving!
Spiritz
-A shareholder of HMC-
P.S. I lost my message twice when I click "Post My Message" button after composing this message."internal server error"has occured, I do not understand why. Is it common in this site?
I use broadband (1Mega bps DSL modem), and I'm not familiar with this kind of problem. I love this site, though.
If it does, it will come with 5 year socket-to-socket warranty and 10 year connection warranty..
+^.^=
Good Morning,
and Have a nice Day...
The third gen. Sonata was 99-00-01-02
Mid course restylings occured in 97 and 02. I assume the 99 Sonata was released in fall 98.
http://www.hyundainews.com/presskit/sonarels.htm
http://www.theautochannel.com/news/2001/11/08/032196.html?NEWS
An independent auto club gave a blind "taste test" of the Sonata and Camry. Don't know which model year; but you can tell who came out decisively on top from the headline.
The Camry is bigger than I thought, and kind of slabby on the sides and rear. The top of the trunk lid is very high when closed, and the trunk and cabin are quite spacious. However the cabin is butt ugly in the base model, the dash is totally uninspired, and the materials really look no better than a base Sonata, which would be $4000 less. The moonroof is huge! It made my Sonata's look dinky.
Reading the Edmund's review of Camry, it described a car that I didn't see. It's disappointing. Then again, reading the review of the Sonata left me feeling the reviewer missed the boat there, too, but going in the opposite direction. it's a much better car than it is credited with being. However, it seems like the people in the Camry/Sonata "bake off" weren't prejudiced or predisposed to see things that weren't there because they couldn't tell what make of vehicle they were in. Most of them simply recognized the better car and said so.
Late in the summer the Sonata was running perfectly, and had low mileage, so we felt it may be an ideal time to compare deals for an XG300L with every option, including the trunk-mounted CD Changer. After all, if a Hyundai Dealer couldn't give us a fantastic deal we didn't really need to worry as we liked the Sonata very much! (We've owned 4 Sonatas)
Last August 31st we traded that car, with 12K miles on it, for an XG300L, in Merlot, with all the "bells and whistles". We nogtiated the lowest price possible, and then told the dealer we wanted to trade. I think a few things were in our favor:
The car was in excellent shape, had always been serviced by that dealer, and it was the last day of the month. If you consider the MSRP, it was as if the dealer had allowed us over $13,300! We were able to buy the XG300L for a steal!
My wife can't say enough nice things about the XG300L! She is thrilled!
Lanman2
My daughter and I decided to drop off one of the cars and go for breakfast while we waited. We returned to the dealer's show room a little early when she notice how nice the Tiberon looked. I remember she saw an automatic, and how surprised I was when she said, "Dad, This is sweet, but it's screaming for a 5 speed!"
Well, a long story made short ... We had no idea we would be buying a car that day! The dealer offered her $3000 for her loaded 1997 Sonata GLS with 62,000 miles. Another dealer offered to sell his Tiberon with MORE options for LESS money, PLUS he allowed her $5000 for the trade-in! DEAL!
My daughter was shaking with excitement as we agreed to the deal. She loves the sporty look and drive of the 5 speed Tiberon, and we're happy she is in a new car with all it's safety improvements.
I think our experiences show that the cars are starting to retain more of their resale value.
Happy Motoring,
Lanman2
In New Hampshire we are fortunate to have many Hyundai dealers with-in a 50 mile radius.
I usually compare notes read on the internet, and then compare the deals at the various dealers.
So far the score is:
Autofair Hyundai in Manchester, NH (be sure to see Scott Demyanovitch),has sold us:
1997 Sonata SE
1997 Sonata GLS
2000 Sonata Fleet Model
2001 Tiberon
Nashua Hyundai in Nashua, NH (be sure to see John Hocking) has sold us:
2000 Sonata GLS
2001 XG300L
I've found the dealers in Salem, NH and Wilmington, MA can't hold a candle to the others. The Leominster, MA dealer deserves an "honorable mention" because I found them to be very professional, they could match prices, but never were lower.
Nashua Hyundai has THE BEST SERVICE! No arguments! No BS! Just tell them what is wrong and it gets taken care of!
Lanman2
If I get the car it will be sometime next year.The wife will mostly drive it,she doesn't have along distance to work.I like to get 8 to 10 years out of a new car.As far as re sell, on these later year Hyundia I guess alot will ride on if these cars several years from now are considered reliable. I just hope the warranty is as good as it sounds.I have looked at Passats they are a sweet looking car,just to much $$$$ for what I am willing to pay for a car!
There were several discussion threads on this topic over on T-H-C.org but someone just hacked the site and all of the files are currently being rebuilt.
To answer both of your ?'s...
1.) the CD/Cassette system is excellent for a factory set-up. Sonatas have always been known for good acoustics and the '02's continue the tradition. I am not an audio fanatic when it comes to my car stereo but even with the factory limitations on components this system has great sound.
2.) Sonata seating has always seemed rather 'chair-like' (meaning high) but I find the '99-on platform to be a good compromise. It doesn't feel anywhere near as high as my '95 Sonata, which coincidentally has always given me a headroom problem when seated in the sweet spot. And it has no sunroof unlike the '00 which even with sunroof has a good bit of clearance, at least for me. As to climbing into an SUV, I'd say anything different will feel like falling into your seat. It's just a matter of degree.
However, just to make sure nothing is wrong, I left the car with a Hyundai technician several days ago, so he could take a look at the transmission.
The technician called me to say that although the transmission showed some signs of damage, they weren't sufficient enough to warrant the factory warranty work. He goes on to say that I should come back later when the transmission is "more" damaged or something.
I was disappointed in that I got such a bland answer. Now, the transmission warranty in Korea is ONLY 3 years, which means the car is covered till Year 2002. Am I suppose to hope for a transmission failure before this or what? What would you do if you were in my situation?
And What service center have you visited?
Are you in metropolitan Seoul area?
I think that I may help you to get your warranty service.
Please let me know.....
bluewinds
I'm interested in the Sonata but the wife likes the Optima. Wonder if there were many Sonatas at "The Swamp" last Saturday.
The dealer had my black one, and a silver one side by side. i literally stood there for 10 minutes trying to decide which one I wanted. They were two of the three choices of colors on my mind.
I flipped a coin, and said if it rode well on a test drive, then the black one would be it. It ran beautifully.
For those of you looking at 2002 Sonatas, which is an improved, restyled version of the 1999-2001 Sonata, I think you'll get even more value with the myriad improvements that have been made. I've had many other new and nearly new cars over the years, and none has been as trouble free as the Sonata or as uniquely attractive.
Also, I know black is tough to keep clean, but it's the sexiest color by far. At my age, I'm used to working hard to look good anyway, so I'm not complaining about my black car at all.
http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/nhtsa/announce/press/pressdisplay.cfm?year=2001&filename=pr59-01.html