Long term ownership experience with 2009 Sonata LTD 4 cyl.
The car has performed as expected and I just traded in a 2014 that we had over this car as I prefer it. The cabin room is large for a vehicle in its class. The ride is solid and the front brakes went 62 thousand miles, with mostly city driving. The alignment has remained bullet proof all these years, and the interior has held up well. The current miles are 63000 and in retrospect, I should have taken the sales guys advice: the difference between the 6 and the 4 on mileage is minimal. He was spot on about that, still...I held out for a 4 cylinder. Good motor and it has enough power at the '09 rating of 182HP, It only averages about 19-22 with in town driving, about what my friends with the 6 get. We garage it when its not in use, and the paint looks as good as the day I bought it. Better infact than the 14 sedan that I traded in from another manufacturer. Tires went 60 thousand as well, but I changed out the factory Hankooks for Michielins early on and just replaced the original Michelins with a new set. Negatives: I still don't care for the a/c fan switch config but I got used to it. I miss the back up camera with the 14 sedan but my friend Jon Cami owner of Proguard Auto in Scottsdale AZ (shameless plug here) will put one in for me with Bluetooth for a few hundred dollars and Ill be back on top. Second rub with me is the front suspension. I just had the front bushings re done and I expected it to get the rebound rumble from the struts to dissapate or go away. Didnt happen.That has been an annoyance I'm hyper sensitive to vehicular noise...squeaks rattles clunks, buzzes whistles ...you name it. If you are looknig for a solid midsize safe car for your kids find one with these kind of miles and buy it. Thye are cheap to keep and offer an above standard crash worthiness, along with side curtan air bags...an in frequent offernig at this price point back in 09. All in all its a great car and its a timing chain motor not a timing belt motor. Big difference and Hyundai has been there for many years now.
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