This is the new Hyundai Sonata, and there is one thing that is amazing about it. And that is that this is the new Hyundai Sonata.
 

Now, I admit I am a sucker for a shapely body, but this is borderline erotic. And the fact that it comes from a car company whose boxy little sedans all looked as as though they were designed by men who only possessed a ruler, well that’s nothing short of amazing.
 

There is a resemblance you might have noticed to the stylish Volkswagen CC sedan which is itself a fairly blatant ripoff of the gorgeous Mercedes Benz E-Class sedan. But frankly, who cares? If you are going to steal, you steal from a bank, not a grocery store.
 

The new Sonata has an interior suitable to wear a Lexus or Infiniti label, and under the hood you will find a surprise. There is only one engine choice…a 2.4-liter four cylinder lump that cranks out just shy of 200-horsepower. On the road, you only feel a slight rumble from the engine and suspension at higher speeds, while the rest of the time, it is a snubbed down, nice handling package. And with the four banger, will return 22 miles per gallon city, 35 highway.
 

The Hyundai Sonata has champagne looks, but even my beer budget can afford it. And by beer, I don’t mean something moderately acceptable like Budweiser but really dreadful stuff like Natural Light...kind of budget.

 In short, our loaded Sonata SE with a sunroof and navigation system came to $26,000.
 

Hyundai is moving uptown with the new Sonata, and leaving behind the cheap, econobox image. So who fills that gap in the future? Wait, do I hear Chinese music in the distance?