2014 Hyundai Sonata Limited 2.0t on 2040-cars

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The last Hyundai V8 car is already here

Hyundai will end production of V8-powered cars this year, if a new report out of South Korea proves true. It would make the 5.0-liter unit found in the current Genesis G90 sedan the final Hyundai Tau V8. According to South Korean website Daum, the updated Genesis G90, expected later this year, will no longer have the 420-horse, 383 lb-ft V8 available as an option. The top-grade engine will, moving forward, be the 3.5-liter twin-turbo V6, good for 380 horsepower and edging out the V8 with 391 pound-feet of torque.  In addition, the V8 was discontinued for the updated Kia K9 recently. We knew that model as the Kia K900 in the U.S., and dropping the V8 was a moot point for us because the entire model was eliminated for 2021. We thought that the V8 might be on its way out when we saw the 2022 Genesis G90 testing under heavy camouflage. It's not surprising, considering the entire industry is moving toward smaller, forced-induction engines. According to Daum, the G90 will be redesigned with an eye toward weight reduction, chassis rigidity, and a lower center of gravity. An electric version, likely called the eG90, is expected as well. It'll almost certainly receive the quad headlight signature of two thin lines on either side of a large crest grille as well. Going even further, the site claims that the G90 will feature a rear-wheel steering system to improve cornering and high-speed stability. The V6-powered 2022 Genesis G90 is expected to debut later this year, and the electric version will follow at a later date. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Hyundai Sonata PHEV may be a game (and mind) changer

If you really, really want to consume volts instead of fuel on your way to work, school or shopping, you currently have just three options: pure EV, hydrogen fuel cell, or plug-in hybrid EV. Much as we love them, we all know the disadvantages of BEVs: high prices due to high battery cost (even though subsidized by their makers), limited range and long recharges. Yes, I know: six-figure (giant-battery) Teslas can deliver a couple hundred miles and Supercharge to ~80 percent in 10 minutes. But few of us can afford one of those, Tesla's high-voltage chargers are hardly as plentiful as gas stations, and even 10 minutes is a meaningful chunk out of a busy day. Also, good luck finding a Tesla dealership to fix whatever goes wrong (other than downloadable software updates) when it inevitably does. There still aren't any. Even more expensive, still rare as honest politicians, and much more challenging to refuel are FCEVs. You can lease one from Honda or Hyundai, and maybe soon Toyota, provided you live in Southern California and have ample disposable income. But you'd best limit your driving to within 100 miles or so of the small (but growing) number of hydrogen fueling stations in that state if you don't want to complete your trip on the back of a flatbed. That leaves PHEVs as the only reasonably affordable, practical choice. Yes, you can operate a conventional parallel hybrid in EV mode...for a mile or so at creep-along speeds. But if your mission is getting to work, school or the mall (and maybe back) most days without burning any fuel – while basking in the security of having a range-extender in reserve when you need it – your choices are extended-range EVs. That means the Chevrolet Volt, Cadillac ELR or a BMW i3 with the optional range-extender engine, and plug-in parallel hybrids. Regular readers know that, except for their high prices, I'm partial to EREVs. They are series hybrids whose small, fuel-efficient engines don't even start (except in certain rare, extreme conditions) until their batteries are spent. That means you can drive 30-40 (Volt, ELR) or 70-80 miles (i3) without consuming a drop of fuel. And until now, I've been fairly skeptical of plug-in versions of conventional parallel hybrids. Why?

Sonata, Elantra driving down Hyundai quality scores

Hyundai was the butt of many jokes in the auto industry when it first entered the US market, but since then, it has forged ahead and built cars that stand with the best in their respective segments. The 2011 Sonata and 2011 Elantra were seen as the apotheosis of the brand's forward progress when they were introduced, but falling J.D. Power and Associates Dependability Study results may actually cause them to hurt the company's hard-earned reputation.
J.D Power's study examines three-year-old vehicles for problems per 100 vehicles. Since the 2011 study for 2008 model year cars, Hyundai has fallen from 10th overall with 132 problems to 27th in the 2014 survey of 2011 model year vehicles with 169 problems. It was also Hyundai's second consecutive year of an increase in reported problems. According to Automotive News, many of these problems are due to faults with the Sonata and Elantra, but J.D. Power didn't identify specifically what issues caused Hyundai's dependability to tumble so far down the list. However, the study found that, on average, reliability fell throughout the industry for the first time since 1998.
Getting the Sonata and Elantra right are vital to Hyundai. In 2013, they were the company's best-selling cars. "We'll be closely going through the data to see where improvements need to be made. Hyundai's goal is nothing short of quality leadership, and the report shows we have work to do," Hyundai spokesperson Jim Trainor said in an email to Autoblog.