#2015HyundaiSonata

In the corners of our brain where the abstract controls the synapses, trains run on time only if we allow a car to charm us, to woo and seduce and enchant.

I find the sound of a Jaguar F-Type V8 S appealing and the wind-in-my-hair romanticism of a Mazda MX-5 captivating and I’m fascinated by the roofline of Mercedes-Benz’s CLS Shooting Brake.

There are other corners of our brain, however, that look a lot like spreadsheets. And on those spreadsheets, there are no columns for charm or seduction or fascination.

Increasingly, midsize cars perform very poorly in the corners of my brain first mentioned, and exceedingly well in the latter.

Hyundai’s 2015 Sonata is one such car.

Yesterday, we gave a qualified thumbs-up to the Hyundai Sonata Limited 2.4, noting that the powertrain didn’t really come up to snuff in what was otherwise a competent and well-equipped sedan.

Today we’re trying the other two motivational packages on offer, in lower-priced Sport and Eco trim.

Hyundai unveiled the Korean market Sonata in Seoul, while the North American spec version gets its debut in New York next month.

A sharp-eyed TTAC reader based in Korea has sent us some spy shots of the 2015 Hyundai Sonata. The shots purport to show the car’s front end, interior and a snap of a Korean car magazine claiming AWD and a 6-speed DCT for the KDM model. Authentic? Who knows.