2024 Hyundai Sonata Road Test and Review

2024 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid Limited ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Sales of the Hyundai Tucson are on fire. This compact crossover SUV has just what everyone seems to be looking for: tons of space, a high seating position, all-wheel drive, easygoing driving manners, decent gas mileage, and a reasonable price. It’s trouncing the company’s once-dominant Hyundai Sonata mid-size sedan – a trend that repeats across the automotive marketplace. 

Still, Sonata sales – while lower than the Tucson’s – have enjoyed a 26 percent jump this year. It’s thanks to a comprehensive update to this stylish, comfortable sedan. The 2024 Hyundai Sonata brings revised styling inside and out, upgraded in-cabin technology, and even the option for AWD. The Sonata also costs several thousand dollars less than the Tucson, gets better gas mileage, and accelerates more quickly. For this review, we just spent a week testing the updated 2024 Hyundai Sonata with its available gas-electric hybrid powertrain. Keep reading as we explain the pros and cons of the Sonata versus competing sedans and Hyundai’s top-selling SUV. 

Well-Equipped Well Below $30,000

The 2024 Hyundai Sonata starts at $27,500 in the well-equipped SEL trim level. That price buys you a 12.3-inch touchscreen, dual-zone automatic climate control, an eight-way power adjustable driver’s seat, heated front seats, adaptive cruise control, blind-spot monitoring, push-button starting, and 17-inch alloy wheels. (A base SE model joins the lineup for 2025 that saves you about $1,000, with 16-inch wheels, manual air conditioning and seat adjustability, no seat heaters, and no rear center armrest.) 

You can also buy a Sonata Hybrid SEL for $30,800. That price buys a couple more standard features that are optional on the gas-only SEL: the ability to use your phone as a key, a leather-wrapped steering wheel, and a wireless smartphone charger. But you’ll otherwise need to make back that steep $3,300 premium in fuel savings. The Sonata Hybrid is also available in a top Limited trim level (no longer offered with a gas-only engine). For $37,200, it adds leather upholstery, a panoramic sunroof, a 12-speaker Bose stereo instead of a base six-speaker unit, rain-sensing windshield wipers, a blind-spot camera, and more. That’s a lot of stuff for the cash, especially when you consider that the hybrid can save you money over the long run, too. 

The final Sonata trim level is the N Line, which is similarly equipped to the Sonata Hybrid Limited but has a high-performance engine and sport suspension instead of gas-electric fuel savings. It costs $34,950. 

2024 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid Limited ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Elegant Exterior

In our SUV-dominated world, sedan loyalists grumble that “all those new crossovers look the same.” We don’t really agree, but a low, sleek sedan is becoming more of a stylistic standout as their numbers dwindle. And the Sonata doesn’t disappoint. 

Hyundai simplified the front end with a sleek, ultra-slim lightbar above a low, subtle grille and blocky headlamps. We especially like how the lower lights and grille disappear into the bumper on our Black Diamond test vehicle. A new rear lightbar also spreads across the sedan’s trunk. And in profile, the Sonata’s roof flows seamlessly into the trunk, avoiding the “three-box” look you’d find on a blockier Toyota Camry. Overall, the Sonata goes for sleek, modern elegance more than in-your-face aggressive performance like a Nissan Altima. It’s not necessarily the look for someone who’s avoiding an SUV for performance reasons, but we think plenty of people will like this design. 

2024 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid Limited ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Choice of Three Powertrains

As we’ve mentioned, the Sonata comes with a choice of three powertrains – two gas-only engines and a gas-electric hybrid. We’ll cover the gas engines first. 

The base engine, sold only on the SEL trim level, is a 2.5-liter non-turbo four-cylinder that makes 191 horsepower and 181 lb-ft of torque. It shares this engine with the Tucson, but it’s a better fit for the Sonata. With better aerodynamics and a lighter body to lug around, this engine accelerates quicker and doesn’t have to work as hard – reducing noise levels. And it gets better mileage. EPA ratings aren’t the best of any mid-size sedan, but they’re reasonable at 25 mpg in the city, 36 mpg on the highway, and 29 mpg combined with front-wheel drive and about 1 mpg less with AWD (a $1,500 option). Last year’s peppy but fussier 1.6-liter turbo four is no longer available. 

The N Line turbocharges the SEL’s engine to a mighty 290 hp and 311 lb-ft of torque. Along with its Kia K5 cousin and the soon-to-be-discontinued Subaru Legacy, this leaves the Sonata N Line as among the final powerful mid-size sedans. Toyota and Nissan just dropped their V6 and turbo engine options, respectively, and Honda and Chevrolet did the same with their uplevel turbo engines a couple years back. The Sonata N Line gets 23 mpg city, 32 mpg highway, and 27 mpg combined. AWD isn’t offered with the turbo engine. 

2024 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid Limited ・ Photo by Brady Holt

The Hybrid Is Our Favorite

We’re big fans of hybrids in general. A good hybrid delivers incredible fuel savings without compromising performance or drivability. An electric motor helps the gasoline engine power the vehicle, letting it use less fuel, and the gas engine (plus friction from the brakes) recharges a small battery. In the Hyundai Sonata Hybrid, this operation is seamless and effective.  

In EPA testing, it gets 44 mpg in the city, 51 mpg on the highway, and 47 mpg combined. That makes it the rare hybrid to do better on the open highway than in stop-and-go traffic, though the EPA’s highway test cycle does include acceleration and deceleration as well. We matched the EPA’s estimate during our own weeklong test. The Sonata Hybrid isn’t as quick as a Toyota Camry or Honda Accord Hybrid, but the engine is quieter than the Toyota’s when it gets to work. Some owners will also appreciate the Hyundai’s conventional six-speed automatic transmission versus a competitor’s continuously variable automatic. 

2024 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid Limited ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Gentle Ride and Easy Handling

Both the base non-turbo Sonata and the Sonata Hybrid are comfort-focused, easy-to-drive sedans. They have cushy, quiet rides and natural-feeling steering and handling in routine driving. If you push them harder, the suspension can start to bobble around and the steering can go numb. But for many folks, they’re effortless to drive and more upscale than the sportier Honda Accord or even the iconic Toyota Camry. 

The Sonata N Line has a stiffer suspension and heavier steering. It has higher handling limits but it’s less comfortable and quiet, and it still doesn’t take on an Accord for polished, precise handling. We think the Sonata works best when it sticks to its comfort-focused roots, but folks who seek out the N Line’s powerful engine will likely appreciate even an imperfect sport suspension. After all, it doesn’t quite matter if the Sonata N Line handles with less precision than powerful mid-size sedans that no longer exist like the Honda Accord 2.0T, Toyota Camry TRD, and Mazda6 Turbo. It has outlived them all. 

2024 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid Limited ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Upscale Interior

The 2024 Sonata has a redesigned cabin that now seamlessly connects its digital gauge cluster to an overhauled touchscreen infotainment system. The dash has simple shapes but upscale materials and up-to-date technology. 

We wish Hyundai’s latest-generation infotainment system made it easier to show what song is playing on the radio. But otherwise, the 12.3-inch touchscreen is easy to use and supports wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone integration. Touch-sensitive climate controls create a sleek look but are more distracting than last year’s physical buttons. Still, overall, the Sonata’s cabin is an agreeable place to be. 

2024 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid Limited ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Low But Comfortable Cabin

It’s a comfortable place, too, especially in the front seats. If you’re used to crossovers and SUVs, it takes a minute to recalibrate to the Sonata’s sedan-low seats while clambering in and out. But you sit a touch higher than in some sedans, and a height-adjustable passenger seat (standard on every 2024 Sonata) is a welcome advantage over the even lower Honda Accord. 

The Sonata’s backseat has less legroom than the Accord, Camry, or Nissan Altima. But the seat is comfortable overall as long as tall people don’t have to sit behind each other. With 16 cubic feet of trunk space, the Sonata does edge out the class average when it comes to cargo. Just don’t expect the cargo space or flexibility of an SUV. 

2024 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid Limited ・ Photo by Brady Holt

Sonata vs. the Competition

The Sonata faces a dwindling slate of mid-size family sedans – the best-selling Toyota Camry and Honda Accord, its own Kia K5 corporate cousin, and the Nissan Altima, Chevrolet Malibu, and Subaru Legacy. 

The Camry is now sold only as a gas-electric hybrid, and it costs about the same as the gas-only Sonata – much less than the Sonata Hybrid. (That’s offset a bit by the Hyundai’s extra standard features.) The Sonata is the smoother, more polished, more luxurious car, while the Camry has higher handling limits, quicker acceleration, and a bit more rear legroom. The Honda Accord is a polished, premium-feeling sedan that costs more than the Sonata and has a taut sporty feel rather than the Hyundai’s relaxed luxury. The K5 uses the Sonata’s same bones for a more Accord-like flavor (sportier rather than cushier), but it has no hybrid option. The Altima is comfortable, economical, and easy to drive, but its simple interior has few luxury pretensions and there’s no hybrid. The Malibu is an aging car in its final months on the market – it drives well, but its cheap interior finishes and spotty crash-test performance hold it back. The Legacy, also about to end production, is the only Sonata/K5 rival with a big engine option (a 260-hp turbo) but it delivers few driving thrills or stylistic flair. It can be a bargain if you value AWD, which is standard on the Legacy at no additional cost. 

We’d also shop the Sonata against the Hyundai Elantra. You might be pleasantly surprised by Hyundai’s stylish, comfortable compact sedan – it could meet your needs for less money than the midsize Sonata. 

2025 Toyota Camry XSE ・ Photo by Brady Holt

A Serene Sedan

The updated 2024 Hyundai Sonata has many talents. True, SUV lovers won’t love its sedan-sized trunk and sedan-height seating position. Driving enthusiasts won’t love its easygoing handling. And folks who associate Hyundai with cut-price bargains may wish for a bigger discount. 

But the Sonata delivers stylish serenity and premium-grade build quality and amenities – all at attainable prices. Fuel misers will love the available hybrid, and horsepower junkies can go fast in the turbocharged N Line. If you’re still open to a sedan, don’t overlook this one. 

2024 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid Limited ・ Photo by Brady Holt