2024 Hyundai Sonata N Line Review

While there have been some massive changes in the new car industry over the past decade, one of the biggest of them all is that sedans sadly don’t sell well anymore. Why is that? We blame the SUV’s rise and the false hold that it has on new car buyers. Is an SUV more practical? No, but for some reason, buyers believe that it will be and as a result, there aren’t too many sedans available on the market any longer. Why then, has Hyundai released a facelifted Sonata in Australia? We tested the new 2024 Hyundai Sonata N Line to find out.

As we mentioned, there are not many offerings from the sedan segment any longer and while there are still a few small sedans around, the medium and large segment has melted into one. Still on offer are the huge-selling Toyota Camry, the luxurious Peugeot 508 GT, sporty Skoda Octavia RS and the lovely Mazda6 – but the Volkswagen Passat sedan and Arteon, as well as the Kia Stinger, are sadly no longer produced.

How much does the 2024 Hyundai Sonata N Line cost to buy?

The 2024 Hyundai Sonata N Line starts at $55,500 plus on-road costs (or around $61,000 drive away, depending on location). For now, there is only a single model of Sonata offered in Australia, which is annoying but we do receive a fully-loaded N Line variant.

Sonata N Line standard equipment:

• 19-inch alloy wheels with a tyre repair kit
• Automatic dusk-sensing all-LED exterior lighting
• Automatic rain-sensing wipers
• Keyless entry and push button start
• Hands-free electric bootlid
• Heated leather steering wheel
• Nappa leather and suede upholstery
• 12-way electrically adjustable driver’s seats with memory functionality
• 4-way electrically adjustable front passenger seat
• Heated and cooled front seats
• Heated rear seats
• Rear window sunshade with power rear blind
• Rear door manual sunshades
• Dual-zone climate control with rear air vents
• 12.3-inch touchscreen with live services and over-the-air updates
• Wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto
• Satellite navigation with live traffic
• AM/FM/DAB+ digital radio
• 12.3-inch digital driver’s display
• ‘Bluelink’ connected car services, including remote start, geo-fencing, vehicle location, etc
• Head-up display
• Heated and auto-folding mirrors that drop in reverse
• Wireless phone charger
• 4x USB-C ports
• 12-speaker Bose sound system
• Panoramic sunroof with power sunshade

Sonata N Line safety equipment:

• Six airbags (dual front, side and curtain units)
• Auto emergency braking (AEB) with pedestrian, motorcycle, cyclist and intersection assistance
• Lane keep assist with lane departure warning
• Adaptive lane guidance for highway use
• Adaptive cruise control with stop and go functionality
• Blind-spot monitoring with rear-cross traffic alert (both with braking)
• Blind-spot camera
• Speed sign recognition with intelligent speed limit assist
• Rear occupant alert
• Safe exit assist
• Auto high beam
• Front and rear parking sensors
• 360-degree surround view camera
• Tyre pressure monitoring
• Low-speed reverse automatic braking
• Driver fatigue monitoring including leading vehicle departure alert

The 2024 Hyundai Sonata N Line is yet to be tested by ANCAP – or Euro NCAP either, given it’s not sold in western Europe – though with the safety equipment on offer, we would be surprised to not see it perform well.

Sonata N Line colour options:

• Serenity White
• Abyss Black: $595
• Nocturne Grey: $595
• Biophilic Blue Ink: $595
• Ultimate Red: $595 (fitted to our test car)
• Aero Silver Matte: $1,000

As for competitors, we consider the Mazda6 20th Anniversary (around $60,000 drive away) and Skoda Octavia RS ($56,990 drive away nationwide) to be the Sonata’s main competition and against these rivals, the Sonata is quite well equipped. Over both competitors, it features more functionality for the AEB system, a blind-spot camera feed, a rear window sunshade, a panoramic sunroof, larger screens and live services for features like live traffic for the navigation system and remote start. While the Mazda features wireless Apple CarPlay against only wired for the Sonata and Matrix adaptive high beam against the Sonata’s regular auto high beam, the Sonata further adds an electric bootlid, multiple driving modes and rear window sunshades.

Against the Octavia RS – fitted with the optional Premium Package for a $63,590 drive away pricetag – the Sonata also adds a 360-degree camera, while the Octavia adds Matrix adaptive high beam, various boot hooks and nets, four more airbags (10 in total, including a front centre unit), adaptive dampers, an umbrella in the door, more front seat adjustment and tri-zone climate control. While we think that the Sonata should have features like Matrix headlights, remote start from the key, more airbags (especially a front centre unit) and tri-zone climate control, it’s quite well equipped against its competition.

What’s under the bonnet of the 2024 Hyundai Sonata N Line?

Under the bonnet of the 2024 Hyundai Sonata N Line is a 2.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine that’s also used in the Genesis G80 and GV70 in Australia. It produces a strong 213kW of power (at 5,800rpm) and 422Nm of torque (between 1,650rpm and 4,000rpm), giving it more punch than both the 170kW/420Nm Mazda6 and 180kW/370Nm Octavia RS. The sole transmission option is an eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission, which sends power exclusively through the front wheels.

The engine itself is fantastic – it’s punchy, got great mid-range go and even at the top of the rev range, it’s still quite strong. Hyundai doesn’t claim a 0-100km/h sprint time for the updated Sonata but the pre-updated model with the same drivetrain offered up a 6.2-second claim, which is quick for a big, front-drive sedan that doesn’t feature a limited-slip differential. Like the Octavia RS, the Sonata features launch control and even a feature called ‘N Power Shift’, which keeps the throttle pinned even when upshifting. There are also four different driving modes that alter the car’s character depending on where you’re driving, including a customisable individual profile.

The transmission on the Sonata is also one that is shared with the Hyundai i30 N, an eight-speed dual-clutch unit that that is relatively new to the Hyundai range and we think it could do with some more refining. Take off from a standstill and you’ll notice that the revs rise before the car takes off, which can cause a slight delay in going and can get a little frustrating. Once on the move though, the shifts are crisp and it changes gears when you’d expect it to. Using the paddle shifters behind the steering wheel makes the driving experience more fun and they are also pretty responsive, especially when in sport mode.

The claimed average fuel consumption figure for the 2024 Hyundai Sonata N Line is 8.1L/100km, with CO2 emissions rated at 189g/km – the Mazda6 2.5T is rated at 7.6L/100km and 178g/km and the Octavia RS 6.8L/100km and 155g/km. Our time spent in the Sonata included mostly urban driving and we achieved a figure of 10.4L/100km, which was reasonable given its size. The Sonata N Line can run on 91RON regular unleaded fuel and it has a 60-litre fuel tank.

What is the 2024 Hyundai Sonata N Line like to drive?

Getting behind the wheel of the 2024 Hyundai Sonata N Line is a mostly positive experience – and indeed, far superior to most SUVs on the road. The Sonata’s chassis is excellent. It’s grippy, it’s reasonably communicative and unlike many other family cars, it’s fun. There is a little downside though, when planting your right foot on the loud pedal you’ll notice a decent amount of torque steer, which is the only negative about the dynamic package we have. Popping it into sport mode adds a touch more weight to the steering and makes it even more enjoyable to punt down a windy road.

Daily driving duties for the 2024 Hyundai Sonata N Line are done with ease, as you’d expect for a family sedan. The ride is a little on the firmer side and can be a little choppy for a mid-sized sedan, especially compared to the Mazda6 and the adaptive dampers in the Octavia RS with the Premium Pack. Elsewhere, it’s quiet at speed and the visibility is pretty good as well. Plus, we quite like the Sonata’s active safety equipment – though the ‘intelligent’ speed limit assist that also features on cars like the new Kona and upgraded Palisade can be infuriating.

What is the interior of the 2024 Hyundai Sonata N Line like?

The interior of the 2024 Hyundai Sonata N Line is a fantastic space to spend time. It’s quite modern with large screens and a massive amount of standard equipment. Thanks to the new dashboard layout, the interior feels a bit fresher than in the model it replaces with a new layout and an increase in quality throughout the cabin. While it’s not as plush as the luxurious Mazda6, there are more soft touch materials used inside the Sonata’s cabin than the (still great quality) Octavia RS.

Quality is an aspect that the Sonata offers a lot of. The seats are covered in a lovely feeling suede and Nappa leather combination, and the dash and tops of the doors are soft touch too. Storage space in the Sonata N Line is pretty good as well, with a large centre box underneath the armrest and glovebox and a big centre storage tray ahead of the gearbox.

We particularly love how the wireless phone charger has a raised level to account for the big cameras on modern smartphones so that they charge easier – all modern cars should have that. Only the small door bins let the cabin down a touch as you can’t fit a large bottle in them.

Centre of the Sonata’s cabin is a large 12.3-inch touchscreen with the company’s new infotainment software that’s also used in the new Kona. It’s easy to use, quick to respond and the screen quality is great as well – we particularly like the clear 360-degree parking camera. It features wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, as well as navigation, digital radio and wireless phone charging – but not wireless smartphone mirroring, something we wish it did have. The digital driver’s display – while not very configurable – is clear and has great graphics, plus the gauges change depending what drive mode you’re in as well. The 12-speaker Bose sound system is pretty good as well, with thumping bass.

The rear seat features a lot of equipment too, including a centre armrest with cup holders, the same small door bins as the front cabin, air vents, map pockets, two USB-C ports, heated outboard seats and even blinds for both the side (manual) and rear (electric) windows. The space on offer is reasonable too, larger than competitors, though headroom isn’t great for taller passengers. There are two ISOFIX points and three top-tether points as well for child seats.

The boot of the Sonata is spacious at 480-litres – larger than the Mazda6’s 474L space but smaller than the Octavia’s 600L space – the rear seats do fold in a 60:40 split for more practicality. It would be nice if the boot had more clever storage solutions like the Octavia – some nets or tie down hooks would be great. The bootlid is power operated and has a kick to open feature, like the Octavia, while it also has a space-saver spare wheel like its competitors.

What warranty covers the 2024 Hyundai Sonata N Line?

The 2024 Hyundai Sonata N Line is covered with a five-year/unlimited kilometre warranty and 12 months of roadside assistance, which is extended at every scheduled service through Hyundai for a further 12 months for an unlimited time. The Mazda is also covered by a five year/unlimited kilometre warranty but with five years of roadside assistance, while the Octavia RS is covered by a longer seven-year/unlimited km warranty with 12 months of roadside assistance that’s extended a further 12 months with every service performed at a Skoda dealership.

Servicing the Sonata occurs once-yearly or every 10,000km, which is less than competitors and the cost to service the 2024 Hyundai Sonata over the span of five years or 50,000km is $1,975 or $395 annually. In comparison, the Mazda6 needs to be serviced every 12 months or 15,000km and over five years/75,000km it will cost owners $2,505 or $501 annually – the Octavia RS has the same service intervals as the Mazda and while Skoda no longer publishes service pricing, a pre-paid five-year/75,000km service plan costs $2,600 ($520 per service).

Should I buy a 2024 Hyundai Sonata N Line?

Overall, the 2024 Hyundai Sonata N Line is really likeable car that goes against the grain. Its styling and futuristic look paired with that it’s a mid-sized sedan and not an SUV is evidence enough of this. Should it be on your shopping list? Well it’s well equipped, spacious and has more than enough performance for most people. Therefore, we think those looking for a sedan should definitely consider a Sonata.

There are some drawbacks, however: it isn’t the best on fuel, it isn’t as cheap as some rivals and some mid-sized SUVs, the dual-clutch transmission still needs work and the ride is a little choppy. But regardless of those small issues, the Sonata N Line is a great offering and we think it deserves to sell far stronger than it currently does in Australia. Regardless of how well it sells, we’re very happy that Hyundai Australia still sells it here and we hope it does so for many years to come as it’s great.