Went to my favorite dealership yesterday and test drove an 09 V6 Limited. Comparing it to my current 06 V6 Limited, I am in love with the new interior design, the new exterior chrome trim extras and the loss of the awful Michelin tires. GERAT!! I was hoping for quieter road noise and no suspension noise. WRONG, the Kthunk rear suspension noise is still there and possibly at bit more than my now very quiet 06 after the suspension fix from Hyundai. I thought all the redesign hoopla would mean more sound deading be added and and suspension retune would mean smarter handling. It seems not so! The snappy V6 power is still there, but I had hoped the HP bump might translate to a bit more snap, but alas it didn't seem so. HP rating in the brochures say 249hp. I thought they pushed it to 269hp, but I did not check the window sticker.
My hopes of buying a new 09 Sonata have been crushed for now, even though the deal I could had done was very close to what I wanted.
:57: Disappointed in ND :57:

235 to 249 horse is a big enough jump to feel, but it's not massive.

The new interior is starting to grow on me, but I couldn't see trading my car in on another Sonata.
Between current resale/depreciation and projected figures you would end up loosing 100% of one car's value in a total of 5 years of ownership, lol.

Sorry you were disapointed. I came away impressed with my 09 Limited I4 test drive a few weeks back.

Vs my 06 I4:

-Engine seems quieter
-Wind/road noise about the same
-09 interior a major improvement
-Better sound system
-Tighter around corners
-Engine pep about the same
-NO suspension noise (i made a point to go over pot holes and uneven pavement)
-Less body roll
-New grill has more road presence
-More upscale in appearance inside and out

Overall i was far more impressed with it than I thought I would be.

This post has been edited by paravion: Jun 19 2008, 11:55 AM

Very surprising.... I was under the impression that by now, with the '09 they FIXED the few things that needed fixin....

We drove both an 08 and 09 back to back...literally. I went with the 08 for price, obvisouly, but they drove identically to me. I too thought the 09 had more road noise, but that could have been the tires.

Certainly not worth $4-5K more than the 08. Not worth $500 more IMO.

I actually didn't even look at the 09 Sonata's before making my purchase. Personally, I really wanted the 08 since it was before any major redesigns. I figured any quirks would be hammered out of the current generation. Plus about the only thing I've read that's intriguing for me is the navigation, and that's only because it's got a DVD-ROM in it (if I read everything correctly...) Aside from that, I don't even care for the navigation seeing as I have a portable unit with 4 navigation programs on it (Mio Maps 3.3, iGO 8, Tom Tom, OziExplorer) and I'm sure it's much easier to upgrade than the Hyundai one.

Hey Wills:

Not to pry, but what kind of deal were you talking? Was it really good? I'm thinking $8000 difference?

Also, we're headed just north of you in a couple of weeks, to Manitoba. How are the bugs so far?


Thanks,

Tommer


I was in the shop today, to get ma's Elantra's oil changed. There was a salesman out front, and if he asked about trading in the Sonata, I was going to ask him if he'd give me $5000 for my '06!

This post has been edited by Tommer: Jun 19 2008, 08:48 PM

Does Homeland Security know you are on the move? :grin:

Edit: I guess they do now. :thumbsup: Gotta keep the ole US of A safe. :gunsmilie:





Does Homeland Security know you don't change your own oil? :w00t:

Almost forgot....... :rant2: :bwekk:

This post has been edited by craigbrooks: Jun 19 2008, 10:27 PM

Hi Craig!

I change my own oil, but ma doesn't want to bother us. Plus, her Elantra filter is in a crappy location, and she got it done for $44, taxes included. Oil and a filter must cost $20, or more, plus I have to get rid of the old stuff.

We're going across the country to see the inlaws. Horray. Do you think Homeland could incarcerate me for a week or two??? It would be worth it. Even a rubber glove up the wahoo would be an improvement to a visit with the outlawz.

I'll see what I can do for you. About Homeland security that is. :00000732:

The glove thing is up to you. :thumbsup:

Oh yea.... :rant2:

So if I go test drive the 08 I'm going to hear the "katunk" suspension? Wasn't even looking for that in my test drive of the 09s. But maybe I should now and compare the two so I know what that is. Thanks OP.

[quote=Tommer,Jun 19 2008, 07:47 PM]
Hey Wills:

Not to pry, but what kind of deal were you talking? Was it really good? I'm thinking $8000 difference?

Also, we're headed just north of you in a couple of weeks, to Manitoba. How are the bugs so far?
Thanks,


Just rough, short time talkin' with the salesman, but we ran numbers of $26,500 sticker, minus $2500 rebates, ($2000 Hyundai, plus $500 from dealer) minus around $16000 trade in value. Another dealer I also work with quotes $23,666 invoice, minus $2000 rebates, minus $13500 trade in value. either way it works out to around $11000 to boot US$$$. Then add about $1500 tax, title, license, doc. fees etc. Not quite good enough.
:w00t: BUGS - Skeaters are here and movin" north. Fill up your wiper bug juice dispenser!! :banana:

If you don't mind....what type of suspension fix did they do to your 06 Sonata?

Sorry, had mine 2 months now and not finding a SINGLE problem that's mentioned on here... ever... and I test drove an 08 and 09, no comparison, 09 is much better...

I must have the ONLY well-built Sonata Limited in history... unless the wheels are about to fly off... :beer:

This post has been edited by Rdgdawg: Jul 24 2008, 06:57 PM

Maybe it's the color choice, but mine has been the same. :unsure:

I hope it stays that way!

We who complained until the cow came home, got new rear shocks. Yippee, they probably cost Hyundai $15 a piece, but mine were a bear to remove! Two hours worth of cutting torch to remove the old ones!

Sorry to hear. What you say is all true. Note: The sport suspension is much quieter than the LTD from my test drives. I got that instead.

This car had what I needed. My only other choice would be a 3.5SE Altima sedan. That's if I didn't need the cargo and interior volume that this crazy thing has. Plus I didn't wanna spend a few extra thousand bucks.

If you're in the market for something like the Sonata, get the Altima 2.5SE (0-60mph 7.5)or 3.5SE (0-60mph 6.8) with CVT and don't look back! Do not try Accord and Camry - take it from me...wastes of time.

This post has been edited by factrzero: Sep 18 2008, 01:21 PM

I would suggest to avoid the CVT like the plauge.
The new ones are better, but they are still fairly troublesome, and while it is amusing to drive them, I found the near constant full throttle roar under even moderate acceleration got annoying.