2009 Hyundai Sonata Road Test Ratings

Excellent interior materials, finish, and switch feel, but the engine and steering need improvement

Five-speed automatic has smooth shifts, little shift shock, and also has a good automanual mode. Brake pedal is soft throughout the long stroke, but with reasonable on-road performance. Steering has good on-center feel and effort build up at high speed, but the feeling is vague and light at lower speeds. In handling, it has a bit too much body roll and slow yaw response. The transient stability is OK, but the steering causes a yaw delay that gives a slightly disconnected feeling.

Very good ride, but some forward pitch (nose dive) during heavy braking. Insufficient damping, but the ride is not floaty at all. Just a bit of wind noise from the windshield and A-pillar area. Very comfortable power-adjustable front seats with manual lumbar, but with little lateral support. Very comfortable rear seats but with a slightly short bottom cushion. Easy ingress and egress.

Projector halogen headlamps cast a decent pattern and have good, slim styling. Excellent visibility with a low cowl line and thin pillars. Very easy to read meters with clear legible fonts and blue illumination. Smallish two-tiered center console box, but there are two excellent center stack console boxes with good fitting and nice feeling flip-up lids. Trunk has a low liftover height with a good-size opening. 60/40 split seats easily fold nearly flat. Two slightly small cupholders in front and two in the rear center armrest.

Exterior design is clean and simple, but not very stylish. Interior is beautifully simple and elegant, with pleasant shapes, colors, and textures. Excellent switch-feel that would be suitable on a near-luxury vehicle. There are a few squeaks and creaks coming from the seat and center console area on our early production car. Excellent fit and finish with a few minor exceptions including exposed trunk speaker and wiring.