Sonata hybrid hits all the right notes
Hyundai’s quiet, comfortable mid-size sedan is as frugal as you want it to be at just under $30,000 to start, Paul Choi writes.
Crude oil prices may be plunging, but gas prices here in the Great Gouged North are still high. At $1.11 for a litre of regular (in Toronto at time of writing) it’s not cheap to fill up. So, in this environment of collapsing oil prices and stubbornly high gas costs, what is a family man or woman to do? Why, buy a hybrid of course!
Alas, the answer isn’t that simple. Hybrids cost more than their gas-only counterparts, and it may take years to recoup the initial premium you pay, depending on how frugally you drive. But there’s no doubt you’ll be taking far fewer trips to the pumps and, once the price difference is paid off in gas savings, you’ll enjoy lower fuel costs for years.
Competition in the hybrid segment has also helped lower the entry cost dramatically. Fuelconsumption regulations have prompted automakers to offer a battery-packing version of most of their popular models. Hybrids, in that sense, have become far more common and less out of reach than they once were.
A layman would be hardpressed to tell the 2016 Hyundai Sonata hybrid apart from the ordinary Sonata. Save for the hybrid badge on the trunk or the Blue Drive logo on the side, the front-wheel-drive Sonata hybrid looks pretty similar to the newly redesigned standard Sonata. But small details make a big, big difference.
This hybrid features active air shutters up front, new aerodynamic bumpers and front fenders, new bi-xenon HID headlights, as well as free-flowing wheels. The changes result in a drag coefficient of 0.24, better than any other hybrid and on par — believe it or not — with the slippery Tesla Model S electric supercar. Hyundai’s secondgeneration hybrid Sonata has also made huge strides over the first-gen model in the powertrain and battery. The automaker has dropped the previous model’s 2.4-litre fourcylinder engine for a smaller, lighter, and more fuel-efficient 2.0L four-cylinder, direct-injected mill that makes 154 horsepower and 140 poundfeet of torque. Total net horsepower is rated at 193 hp, which is down from the previous gen’s 199 hp, but still on par with other mid-size sedan hybrids.
The five-passenger Sonata hybrid limited model tested achieved the claimed 6.0 litres per 100 km in the city and 5.5 L/100 km on the highway — about 10 per cent more efficient than the previous generation. Not quite Toyota Prius levels of parsimony, but stellar nonetheless for a 1,614-kilogram sedan.
The catch? I drove the majority of that distance in eco mode. The car helpfully breaks down your driving style in a dynamic readout, and I scored 59 per cent economical, 36 per cent normal, and five per cent aggressive. Yes, I can hear you snickering from here. But what is the point of driving a hybrid if you don’t drive it frugally? Yes, the throttle took a few seconds to respond and, yes, the steering felt a tad too light, but seeing that fuel average drop like a rock was worth it. And unlike some other hybrids, this car can switch into electric-only mode for brief moments even at highway speeds of up to 120 km/h (granted, if the battery is charged up sufficiently and you’re not doing any hard accelerating). Transitions from electric to engine mode are seamless and barely noticeable, and power output from the electric and gas motors is smooth and linear for the most part.
Boring driving dynamics aside, the Sonata hybrid (which starts at $29,649) makes a good case for value. Inside, Hyundai has made big strides to improve interior quality. The cabin feels almost upscale European, save for some hard plastic trim on the doors. I appreciated the nofuss physical buttons for the audio and HVAC systems on the new centre console. The pull-down sun shades on the rear windows were a nice touch, too. The downside is that to accommodate the battery, there is no spare tire in the trunk, only a tire mending kit.
In the fall, Hyundai will also offer a plug-in hybrid version of the Sonata, which will feature a more powerful electric motor and an estimated all-electric range of up to 39 km. Pricing has not yet been released for that model.
If you want to stretch your gas dollar and can stand a slower drive, hybrids do indeed have a place. As one of the more handsome offerings in its class, the Sonata hybrid definitely has a lot of things going for it. If you’re miffed at high gas prices and in need of a hybrid family mover for a reasonable price, this should be on your list of test drives.