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 Hyundai has been catching up with Maruti Suzuki in recent times in terms of product portfolio , service backup and most importantly , sales. But in the quest to slipstream the market leader , Hyundai’s primary focus on small cars has often made their SUVs and sedans bear the brunt. One such sedan was the Sonata Embera which fared miserably in the Indian market. However , for 2009 , Hyundai has decided to shift focus from their established small car range and give their luxury sedans a much needed push. The first installment in this regard comes in the form of the Sonata Transform. The car builds on the Embera platform and hopes to eradicate all the aspects that were criticized in the predecessor.
Let’s start off with the interiors then. The Embera’s interiors were often criticised for being downmarket as compared to the competition. This concern has been looked into this time around and the efforts are clearly visible. The dashboard , the doors , the gear knob as well as the steering wheel gets wooden inserts which are a shade lighter than the one used in the earlier model. The new dashboard design follows curvaceous contours unlike the stacked box design on the Embera. The new in-dash audio system is well laid out and sounds even better. The blue backlight for the head unit , clock , and multi-information display panels add an up-to-date and soothing feeling while in the cabin. To give the interiors a polished look , generous use of chrome is made for plating the door knobs and outlining the central aircon vents and instrumentation dials. The instrumentation console still follows a three-pod design to display revs , speed , engine temperature and fuel level. The dials , however , are larger and soothing to the eye like the rest of the interiors. Overall it’s a good step forward in interior aesthetics over the Embera. The Transform feels like a proper D segment contender and not a mere C segment upgrade.
 The car’s exteriors get minor design tweaks too. The chrome is carried over to the exterior as well in the form of outlines and accents on the radiator grille , door handles and window seams. Other changes include new headlights and taillights , a deeper radiator grille , restyled bumpers and rub strips. Since Hyundai told us that the car has received more than just a cosmetic upgrade , we decided to test drive it.
After the first few crowded kilometers through the City of Chennai , i drove towards the open roads of Puducherry (formerly Pondicherry). This route was the test bed for the Sonata Transform’s engine and dynamics. The car carries forward the older model’s petrol and diesel powerplants albeit with a better state of tune. The second generation 2.4-litre Theta II petrol engine is up by 10PS with a total output of 175PS at crank. The power gain is achieved by way of a redesigned VTVT (Variable Timing Valve Train) , which also claims reduced emissions and better fuel efficiency. A variable intake system claims better torque and power spread at low and high rpms respectively.
The petrol engined car is what I started with. The car gave me a hard time initially as there was hardly any power below the 1500rpm range. Agreed that the VTVT has allowed Hyundai to tune the engine for a below 1 , 000 idle rpm , but for some reason it has translated in the engine requiring atleast 1 , 500 revs to start rolling without a stall. The blokes at Hyundai confirmed this to be a one-off case with the car I was driving , but our road test will let us know the fact. Once on the boil , the 175PS of power is a dream to play with. The engine will let you rev happily till 7 , 000rpm before the limiter kicks in. Even at those revs there is hardly any engine noise disturbing the cabin calmness. The diesel mill , on the other hand , has the typical oil burner clatter to it. But this engine too suffers from a poor low end torque delivery. The climb to 2 , 000rpm is sluggish , but once the turbocharger spools up , there is a great surge of torque on tap. Overtaking maneuvers at low rpms take a longer time as compared to the petrol variant. Overall , both the variants have a good brake feel to it but the stopping feels compromised in terms of grip.
Hyundai have promised that they will market this sedan in a manner comparable , if not similar , to their small cars. They are targeting a sales figure of at least 1000 Sonata Transforms this year. Agreed , that this segment is dominated by the Accord and the Laura , but Hyundai have always got their pricing bang on. At Rs 13.9-lakh , 14.9-lakh and 15.9-lakh for the petrol manual , diesel manual and diesel automatic respectively , we think that the Sonata Transform will be a great value for money product. Nonetheless , we would like to hold our verdict till we conduct a full fledged road test.
More photos:
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Let’s start off with the interiors then. The Embera’s interiors were often criticised for being downmarket as compared to the competition. This concern has been looked into this time around and the efforts are clearly visible. The dashboard , the doors , the gear knob as well as the steering wheel gets wooden inserts which are a shade lighter than the one used in the earlier model. The new dashboard design follows curvaceous contours unlike the stacked box design on the Embera. The new in-dash audio system is well laid out and sounds even better. The blue backlight for the head unit , clock , and multi-information display panels add an up-to-date and soothing feeling while in the cabin. To give the interiors a polished look , generous use of chrome is made for plating the door knobs and outlining the central aircon vents and instrumentation dials. The instrumentation console still follows a three-pod design to display revs , speed , engine temperature and fuel level. The dials , however , are larger and soothing to the eye like the rest of the interiors. Overall it’s a good step forward in interior aesthetics over the Embera. The Transform feels like a proper D segment contender and not a mere C segment upgrade.
After the first few crowded kilometers through the City of Chennai , i drove towards the open roads of Puducherry (formerly Pondicherry). This route was the test bed for the Sonata Transform’s engine and dynamics. The car carries forward the older model’s petrol and diesel powerplants albeit with a better state of tune. The second generation 2.4-litre Theta II petrol engine is up by 10PS with a total output of 175PS at crank. The power gain is achieved by way of a redesigned VTVT (Variable Timing Valve Train) , which also claims reduced emissions and better fuel efficiency. A variable intake system claims better torque and power spread at low and high rpms respectively.
The petrol engined car is what I started with. The car gave me a hard time initially as there was hardly any power below the 1500rpm range. Agreed that the VTVT has allowed Hyundai to tune the engine for a below 1 , 000 idle rpm , but for some reason it has translated in the engine requiring atleast 1 , 500 revs to start rolling without a stall. The blokes at Hyundai confirmed this to be a one-off case with the car I was driving , but our road test will let us know the fact. Once on the boil , the 175PS of power is a dream to play with. The engine will let you rev happily till 7 , 000rpm before the limiter kicks in. Even at those revs there is hardly any engine noise disturbing the cabin calmness. The diesel mill , on the other hand , has the typical oil burner clatter to it. But this engine too suffers from a poor low end torque delivery. The climb to 2 , 000rpm is sluggish , but once the turbocharger spools up , there is a great surge of torque on tap. Overtaking maneuvers at low rpms take a longer time as compared to the petrol variant. Overall , both the variants have a good brake feel to it but the stopping feels compromised in terms of grip.
Hyundai have promised that they will market this sedan in a manner comparable , if not similar , to their small cars. They are targeting a sales figure of at least 1000 Sonata Transforms this year. Agreed , that this segment is dominated by the Accord and the Laura , but Hyundai have always got their pricing bang on. At Rs 13.9-lakh , 14.9-lakh and 15.9-lakh for the petrol manual , diesel manual and diesel automatic respectively , we think that the Sonata Transform will be a great value for money product. Nonetheless , we would like to hold our verdict till we conduct a full fledged road test.
More photos:
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