Another pleasant aspect of the Sonata is its driving behavior. The engineers have paid careful attention to the details that make a car easier to live with in daily driving. We found, for example, the steering to be quite good in both feel and response. Particularly in very tight maneuvers, such as those in crowded parking lots, the Sonata's steering remains light and responsive to the touch.
Lots of detail changes have been added, resulting in an improved level of ride and handling over those of previous Hyundais. A longer wheelbase and a wider track help the vehicle's stance on the road and enhance its stability.
The ride is smooth and even, with a minimum of harshness or pitching around.
This comfortable ride is matched by responsive handling in the kinds of maneuvering where most drivers need and want it. The steering gives positive feedback at highway speeds, yet requires only easy effort at lower speeds. It's a very competent around-town, day-in, day-out sedan. And frankly, we have to admit, we didn't expect a Hyundai to feel quite this good.
Though the 4-cylinder engine is certainly capable, we strongly recommend the optional V6. It's a Mitsubishi design, and it gives respectable performance with significantly more smoothness than the 4-cylinder.
The V6 isn't a real go-getter, but it is well suited to the needs of most drivers. Acceleration is smooth and responsive, and there's adequate reserve power for making it up to freeway speeds or for passing.
The fuzzy logic of the V6's automatic transmission acts as a substitute for a skilled driver, who would shift the transmission to different gears to suit conditions. It features a dual-mode selector switch, with economy and power settings to suit different drivers of the same household.
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