Hyundai Hits Home Run with Hot 2011 Sonata

I am absolutely in love with the 2011 Hyundai Sonata. I love its creases, its curves, its luscious eyes ... I mean head lamps ... its gently sloping roofline, and its agreeable tail lights.

Seriously, what’s not to love about this drop-dead gorgeous car?

The sixth generation of the Sonata, Hyundai’s hot-selling mid-size sedan, this iteration is a natural evolution from what was never a really "ugly" vehicle (well, 1996 was "unique") into a truly beautiful one.

The Sonata benefits from what the designers at Hyundai call “fluidic sculpture.” Taking inspiration from nature – wind, water and wave – its creators sought something that evoked nature, from its beak (inspired by eagles and birds of prey) to its aforementioned creases, which, one spokesman says, one can trace with one’s finger all around the vehicle. Wow.

A third window gives the car a more spacious feeling inside, and keeps the roofline sloping ever more slickly. The seats inside have been lowered slightly to give more headroom.

The American-made Sonata is assembled in the company’s Alabama production facility.

It also comes in an equally charming coupe or hybrid versions. The hybrid, with uses lithium polymer battery technology, features a larger air intake grille that is nonetheless done tastefully, and makes that version look more “butch” than its two brothers.

In this video for the Australian version, the i45, a spokesman brings out some of that feeling and passion. (Do not be shocked. The steering in this video is on the RIGHT hand side - for Aussies. Not so in American version, the Sonata! It humorously comes right after he says that inside, “everything is where you expect it to be.”)

This design philosophy has made its way right through the entire Hyundai line for 2011 (and indeed, seems to have begun in 2010) and soon, we’ll take up a startling concept car from Hyundai that illustrates this style even more perfectly.