1999 Hyundai Sonata GLS 2.5L V6 from North America

Summary:

A great car for the money

Faults:

The check engine light came on occasionally at around 60,000 miles and the problem turned out to be the cam sensor.

General Comments:

This car has been a pleasure to own. There are absolutely no squeaks or rattles present. The Michelin tires are the original set and are still wearing very well.

My fuel economy is about 23 MPG in town and 30 MPG on the highway with the 5-speed manual.

This car was a real surprise to me when I test drove it and it hasn't disappointed me in almost 4 years.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 14th September, 2003

1999 Hyundai Sonata GLS V6 from North America

Summary:

An absolute money pit!

Faults:

The transmission began behaving strangely almost immediately after I purchased the car. I took it to the dealer, and they recommended that I have a transmission service done on the vehicle. At 140,000 kilometers, the transmission began to "slip". After spending nearly a week in a transmission shop, I took it to the local Hyundai dealer. They diagnosed the problem as a wiring harness. The cost to repair was $850.00; better than the $2,300.00 to replace the transmission, which was the first recommendation of the Hyundai dealership. Now at 154,000, I have been advised that my catalytic converter is "dead". A mechanic had told me that the converter was not functioning at 116,000 kilometers, but Hyundai disputed this, and did not replace the converter. It would have been warranted had they done so at the time. Now the dealer refuses to cover the cost of the catalytic converter ($1,600) because the car is too far out of warranty (Canada).

I bought the Hyundai because it was the most reasonably priced vehicle in its class, and had an incredible ride. However, I am very disappointed in the failure of these expensive components, and am equally concerned about the poor resale of this vehicle. Most disappointing is the way the local dealership has refused to even consider this warranty issue. I have taken my case to Hyundai Canada (1-800-461-8242) for appeal of the decision.

General Comments:

I would not purchase another Hyundai. This company needs to build higher quality vehicles if they want to truly compete with other imported and domestic vehicles.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 26th September, 2002

27th Nov 2002, 15:34

Why are you complaining? That's a lot of kms.

22nd Feb 2003, 14:39

A catalytic converter is $1600?? Come on, new they are less than $300 installed.

9th Mar 2004, 17:09

I just got shocked with the same problem. A catalytic converter for 1600.00 dollars is ridiculous. I just went on line and the same part used is 50.00. Hyundai has a screw loose or something. In more ways than one.

4th Oct 2006, 09:06

A cat converter costs nowhere near $1600. I think your have your story confused. At max they might be $300. The wiring harnass issue seems to be common though.

16th Nov 2009, 20:28

My catalytic converter on my 99 Sonata V6 completely clogged on me. I lost all power from the engine, no joke. I was topping out my speed at 65 mph. It took it to a specialty shop and they slapped a universal cat for a total of $125.

A couple months down the road the new one was making a rattling sound. Took back to the same guys who told me it was completely burnt out. Everything inside melted to the bottom. I was happy about it. I figured it would just keep happening, so I had them throw a straight pipe in there. No more cat problem, for now.

Just so everyone's aware, because I was shocked to find out myself, originally, the car has THREE converters in it. So if you have a problem with one, ask them which, because it could be a completely different story from mine. The other two are covered, so it could get more expensive.