In The Key of H: Hyundai Sings a New Sonata

Korean’s automaker is known for many things, not the least of which is providing a great feature-to-dollar ratio. Attentive gearheads will also know they tend to make massive changes to their Sonata sedan with speed and alacrity unknown to any other automaker. Each iteration of the mid-size sedan looks – for better or worse – wildly different than the one before it.

They’re at it again, releasing images of an eighth-gen Sonata just two years after the current seventh-gen machine went on sale. This new rig takes more than a few cues from the wild 2020 Genesis G90, especially its set of all-the-way-across tail lights.

And, oh yeah, we dug up images of every Sonata sedan from the 1990s until now to prove our point.

Hyundai says this new Sonata embodies a design language called “Sensuous Sportiness,” which sounds like an amateur strip club theme, but is actually ushering in yet another entrant into the sedan-as-a-coupe segment.

“A short overhang, sloping roofline and low deck lid create a balanced feel, and Hyundai’s signature chrome accent now goes all the way into the hood, making it look even longer,” said Sang Yup Lee, senior vice president and head of the Hyundai Design Center. “It also has LED lighting built in. These cues bring the Sensuous Sportiness design to life.”

Very well, then. It cannot be debated that the new Sonata has a much sportier look than its predecessor, with a 1.2 inch lower height and a width extended by one inch. Its wheelbase is enlarged by 1.4 inches, while the whole length is up by almost two inches. A sharp body crease runs the length of its flank, terminating at a set of flared tail lights that incorporate a strip of red spanning the entire trunklid, not unlike the units that appeared on the new 2020 G90. Concave and convex surfaces abound.

It’s tough to tell using these press images, but Hyundai says the daytime running lights are embedded in the car using something called Hidden Lighting Lamps, a first for Hyundai. It creates a dramatic light signature, appearing to be of a chromic material when switched off and dramatically lit when flicked on. Here’s hoping they play well with American safety rules and make it to this side of the pond.

The interior also gets a rethink, deploying a winged shape that makes the works of it appear to float inside the car. Hyundai says designers compressed the height of the dashboard and HVAC vents as much as possible to aid the lightweight feeling, deploying light-colored materials to provide a fresh and freeing ambience for the driver. Any move towards a less bunkerlike interior is fine by this author. That touchscreen looks a lot bigger than the current unit as well.

Prices, release dates, and selling markets all go unmentioned in the press materials. If Hyundai’s past is any indication, however, the lead time between this machine being shown and production models seeing the light of day will be very short indeed.

Meanwhile, please enjoy these archived images which prove that Hyundai shovels a great deal of effort into changing the appearance of its midsize sedan.

[Images: Hyundai]