2000 Hyundai Sonata 2.4 DOHC inline 4 cylinder from North America
Summary:
Feels like its worth more than it is, but you NEED that massive warranty they give you
Faults:
Trim panel on the trunk warped from the heat last summer.
Lots of annoying creaks and rattles in the dash mostly for the past 20,000 miles.
Transmission was making really jerky shifts. The dealer replaced the entire transmission at ~55000 miles.
Storage container between the front seats needed its lid replaced because it had become so loose, ~45000 miles.
Power window came off its track and wasn't closing all the way at ~45000 but dealer fixed that.
General Comments:
This is my moms car, but I drive it every day so I'm pretty familiar with it. Also its worth noting that it gets driven a LOT, 2 years old with over 60,000 miles.
Inside its holding up pretty well and is really comfortable with convenient placement of most the switches and such. Seats and steering wheel are still in good shape with no real signs of wear. The dash trim area by the radio rattles when you are at certain engine RPM and that's pretty annoying, but it goes away if you speed up a bit or push the dash a bit with your hand.
Lots of little things have gone wrong with the car, but id say that at least some of that is from the fact that my mom is a bit careless with it. Despite pretty regular maintenance (oil/fluids/service checks on schedule) the engine is getting pretty loud, very noticeable when you drive near a wall with the windows down. Transmission was shifting rough and when my mom took it in to be checked out the dealer decided to just swap the whole thing and replaced the axles. I'm not exactly sure what the problem was and that seemed a little bit overkill, but the car shifts smooth again.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know
Review Date: 26th November, 2002
18th Jun 2002, 21:54
My 1997 Sonata has real issues. It has been in the shop for 4 months. Its on its 3rd transmission in less than a year! There are times that I would turn on my interior light, and the "Seat belt" light and reminder tone would start going off. At first we thought we were crazy and forgetting that we had locked the doors. The keys have been locked in my car numerous times. Then, while standing by the car one day, we noticed the doors locked all by themselves for no apparent reason! I love the overall look of my car, but, there is really something wrong with the "brain" of this vehicle.