2005 HYUNDAI Sonata

Reliable cross country, in city, and in snow

Comfort Rating: 4 Performance Rating: 5 Interior Rating: 4 Reliability Rating: 5 Safety Rating: 4 Technology Rating: 3 Value Rating: 5

I bought the car used in 2005 with 18000 miles on it in New Mexico. Today I have 213000 miles on the car. I drove the car cross country over the mountains of Colorado and California and the high deserts of New Mexico. In New Mexico I easily made 31 MPG in this car because I do not speed and accelerate easily. However in 2007 I moved to Wisconsin. I towed a Uhaul cross country from New Mexico to Wisconsin without a problem. In Wisconsin I can not get better than 26 mpg no matter how easily I drive. The octane in NM was 86, here I use 89. I attribute the loss in MPG to ethanol. I have spent LESS THAN 2000 dollars total in maintenance and this includes planned maintenance at 150000 mile with a tune up, belts, hoses, and timing chain. (No issue just replaced them all at 150000 miles.) This car has been a superb and reliable vehicle for me. There are quirks in the vehicle that are not important to me but you may find of interest. The faux wood trim is peeling away from the central air vents, the paint has completely came off all 4 door handles, my drivers side rear chrome ripped off in a severe wind storm later claimed to be F1 tornado. All these issues are not important to me because in the last 11 years EVERY TIME I started the car (EVERY TIME) it has started on the first try and has performed excellent. A few cosmetic issues for this quality of operation is worth it to me. The only concerns I have for this vehicle are: The A.C. seals failed at about 150000 miles. I moved from New Mexico to Wisconsin so guess what I never fixed it. It does not get hot here. If I lived in New Mexico still this would be a problem. The fuel gas cap solenoid failed and Hyundai wanted 95.00 JUST for the solenoid labor was extra. I finally fixed it after enough people chased me down to let me know my gas cover was open. (Nice people up here, tired of worrying them) The headlights burn out quickly in the car and the springs that hold the lights into the headlight fixtures could have used some simplicity instead of elaborate spring design. I have to remove the battery from the car to change the driver side headlight because my hands are too big for the small space. Other than this, the car has been excellent! If you can live with these superficial issues and want a car that has the quality where it counts, the 2005 V6 is a definite SURE THING for me. I once thought of looking for a 2010 V6 to replace this one, but the car still starts every time and why pay for a newer car when this one is still so darned reliable.