Nice face, the Sonata; shame about the legs

The new Sonata is Hyundai's alternative in a highly-competitive medium-executive class ruled by the all-powerful BMW 3 Series, Audi A4 and Mercedes C-Class, with the Honda Accord, Citro?n C5, VW Passat and Mazda6 all fighting for scraps of market share. sale ugg boots

Available with only one engine and one transmission - a new 2.4-litre petrol pushing 131kW/228Nm, mated to a six-speed auto - Sonata buyers have the choice of the standard 2.4 GLS selling for R279 900 or the GLS Executive for 20 grand more, each standard with Hyundai's five-year or 150 000km warranty and five-year or 90 000km service plan
Hyundai is employing some first class designers these days.

Following the South African launch in October, Hyundai let us drive a Sonata for a few weeks and it's left me with mixed feelings. The car reminds me of a sexy woman with halitosis; great to look at but get closer and she's not all she's cracked up to be.

There's no doubt the Korean firm is employing some first class designers these days and the Sonata is something you could actually picture on a young boy's bedroom wall.

There's real pizzazz in those coupé-like lines and long-and-low stance, which Hyundai calls its "fluidic sculpture" design language. It's a great effort and I can imagine even Italian car designers tugging on their goatee beards, muttering "bella".discount ugg boots

Step inside and the fairytale continues with the Sonata's sleek design and classy finishes, combined with plenty of stretch-out space and lots of storage nooks
If the Sonata just sat there looking pretty it would be one terrific car.

There's also plenty of luxury kit including, among others, a panoramic sunroof, auto aircon, cruise control and even an electrically-adjustable driver's seat that glides away from the steering wheel when the ignition's off.

The controls are clearly laid out and it takes about five seconds to master the user-friendly aircon and audio system controls. Safety spec is also generous with six crash bags, stability control and antilock braking. Classic ugg boots outlet

All good so far, and if the Sonata just sat there looking pretty it would be one terrific car. The need for a breath mint arises when you start driving it.

The steering's numb, the car wallows like a bowl of pudding when you change lanes and - worst of all - the six-speed auto 'box hunts frantically through the gears searching for an elusive sweet spot.

Thank goodness the transmission's incessant hunting can be overcome by using steering-wheel paddle shifters to shift gears manually.

The power delivery is smooth and linear but never sporty, and the car manages an 11.5sec 0-100 sprint time and a 208km/h top speed on the Reef.

The Sonata cruises fine when it gets up to speed but there's never a satisfying surge of power from the normally-aspirated 2.4-litre engine, which also gets quite noisy at high revs.ugg outlet online

The fuel consumption of around 11 litres/100km is also a lot higher than the claimed 8.2.

The Sonata comes with active suspension - amplitude selective dampers in Hyundai-speak - which automatically adjust damper stiffness depending on road conditions. A great idea in theory but there's something amiss in the execution.

The car generally wafts along in comfort and takes fast sweeping bends with relaxed nonchalance but the chassis doesn't react well when really challenged, such as over speed humps which the suspension doesn't absorb as well as you'd like.

And if you tug the steering with any kind of haste in a lane change, there's a lot of yaw caused by the soggy-feeling suspension.

The Sonata is spacious, generously-specced, solidly built, very easy on the eye, well priced, and does everything expected by middle managers who don't demand too much of a car.

But as a driver's car it falls well short of the BMW/Audi/Mercedes/Honda league, and leaves one emotionally underwhelmed. ugg boots 2010