Car Discussion Thread: New Hyundai Sonata

CheGuvera · June 25, 2005, 12:39am

Re: Car Discussion Thread: New Hyundai Sonata

The only thing that makes Hyundai and other Korean cars palatable are their price and 100K miles warranty.......

Agent_Smith · June 25, 2005, 1:40am

Re: Car Discussion Thread: New Hyundai Sonata

If you want to be a typical desi and want to drive a cheap reliable boring car with zero fun factor then go for the usual suspects like Accord, Camry and yes Sonata. They all look same to me. I can’t tell a difference from one car to other. All they do is copy each other’s style.

Mullah ki daurr masjid tak, desi ki choice Honda, Toyota tak.

DeSiMuNdA · June 25, 2005, 8:22pm

Re: Car Discussion Thread: New Hyundai Sonata

so i finally got my new car…not brand new mind u…

2003 Nissan Altima 2.5 S

after test driving so many cars over the last couple of weeks, this one just blew my mind…awesome car…great pickup…sporty…and still more spacious than both the accord and the camry…

check out the pics of my new love

elahi · June 26, 2005, 6:22pm

Re: Car Discussion Thread: New Hyundai Sonata

mAd_ScIeNtIsT:

Almost. Basically, suppose the car cost 30,000, what will happen is you lease the car for, say, 4 years and then it is returned to the dealership’s possession.

The vakue at the end of 4 years is fixed beforehand (with a limit on the amount of kms you can do). For example, the $30,000 car may be agreed to be worth $12,000 after 4 years on the assumption you do 15,000 kms per year, ie 60,000 in total.

What this means is that over 4 years, you pay just $18,000 rather than the $30,000 you would need if buying it outright.

In essence, you monthly payments are less. After 4 years, you return the car. If it’s worth more than the $12,000, say because you only drove 40,000kms, you can then use the difference in value as a positive credit toward another new car at the same dealership.

So in essence, with a lease:

Your monthly payments are lower because you only pay part of the value of the car

You don’t own the car at the end.

You may get a positive credit towards another new car.

It’s good for the consumer because it gives lower monthly payments
It’s good for the dealership because there’s a good chance you’ll use that positive credit to give them repeat business.

The downside is that the guaranteed end value of the car is often a little lower than the value would be if you owned the car outright and tried to sell it at that age.

Very interesting, Ive never really looked at things like that. Though you must consider then you have an additional limitation in the number of km’s you can drive with the vehicle. You would’nt get free use.
I would probably drive the car from Edmonton to Vancouver from time to time, that would just kill the mileage.

Desimunda, it looks from the pics like you live in Burlington

DeSiMuNdA · June 26, 2005, 8:10pm

Re: Car Discussion Thread: New Hyundai Sonata

^^ the opp direction elahi :D i'm in pickering :)

Faisal · June 27, 2005, 8:09pm

Re: Car Discussion Thread: New Hyundai Sonata

Car styling is a lot about personal taste, so one man’s love may be another person’s indifference. So take all opinions on styling with a pinch of salt and make up your own minds.

Now I am talking about US dollars (just to clarify to Canadian readers).

Coming to Sonata, I think its great value. At around $18k, you get pretty decent styling, and fair bit of goodies, and not to mention a long warranty. I believe Hyundai has improved by leaps and bounds in quality, during the last 3-5 years.

Another one that literally blew me away with its value proposition and styling is Kia Sorento. For an SUV to be priced at around $16k (with discounts etc), decent milage and a kick-ass styling, its a great deal. Its probably fairly under-rated due to Kia badge, otherwise its one sure Ford-killer. Anyone considering a compact sport-ute and not looking at Sorento is foolish.

Neither of these cars (or makes) compete with, what we usually call as luxury brands. You can’t compete a Volvo or a BMW or an Infinity with Kia or Hyundai. That doesn’t make sense. Apples and oranges. What Korean companies offer are low prices, decent styling, some basic bells and whistles and a car that is covered for 10 years to give you piece of mind.

If you are looking for anything specific in terms of badge-name recognition, power, or ultra-sophisticated trims/options, you need to look elsewhere. I am partial to BMW because I drive one, and I think there is no other car that I have driven, which provides better driving feel. I have driven turbo charged VW for 2 years, and granted it was a great car (light body and powerful engine), it was too compact. My requirements and expectations are probably different from, say, mad scientist. I drive a bigger/heavier and far more luxurious car with 4.4 litres of V8 and 282 hp, but I doubt if most people need that kind of power to feel satisfied. Most of my friends would rather buy an M5 than a 7-series, and that is the kind of personal choice a car buyer makes.

Regarding lease, I’d just add a couple of more ideas. If the guaranteed residual of your lease is lower than the market price at the end of the lease, you can always sell it directly in the market and pay off the lease and make a profit. Leasing company will probably be happy not to be bothered about re-selling the car. This is also true if you have driven a lot more miles than what you were allowed to. Secondly, lease usually makes sense for new cars, as you can get more car for the buck, but its not for everyone. If you expect a lot of wear and tear, excessive milage, want to modify the car a lot, you’d be better off financing than leasing. Get a car within your range and enjoy your time with the car.