 What is up you guys, welcome back to another one. If you're new to the channel, I'm Goldpony. I do new car truck SUV reviews on YouTube. And today we are in the brand new 2023 Hyundai Sonata, specifically the end line trim level. So that's pretty exciting. Courtesy of Jack to you on Volvo Hyundai in York PA for more information on their inventory. Please feel free to check out the link in the description box below. And so we are in this one today because there's actually some nice upgrades for the 2023 Sonata. And of course I'll be going over all of the trim levels, not just specifically the end line that we are in today. So also like this one because I do own a newer generation Sonata, I own a 2020. So I'll be able to give you guys some insights on how that's held up. Also you get America's Best Warranty being five years, 60,000 mile bumper to bumper, 10 years, 100,000 miles on the powertrain. So there's some peace of mind there. And you get three years or 36,000 miles of complimentary maintenance then as well, which is gonna save you some money. So ultimately in this video, we will be testing out and going over everything about this one from acceleration to braking, steering field, ride quality, sound system, exhaust, all that fun stuff. So having said all of that, what do you guys say? Let's just go ahead and jump right into it. And as always, let's start with pricing. And so as you can imagine, there are several trim levels for the 2023 Sonata. First one being the SE starting at $24,950, SEL for $27,475, SEL plus, which is the one I own for $31,975 end line, the one we're in today for $34,325. And lastly the limited for $34,975. But as you can imagine with all of those trim levels, there are a few different power plants for the Sonata. First one belonging to the SE and SEL trim levels and more the likely the most reliable one, a 2.5 liter direct injected inline four cylinder, putting out 191 horsepower at 6,100 RPM, 181 pound feet of torque coming in at 4,000 RPM, power sent to the front wheels through an eight speed automatic, zero to 60 time for that one, approximately 7.8 seconds, which is probably respectable there. With MPG numbers coming in at 28 in the city, 38 on the highway taking regular on that fuel. But so then that second engine configuration is going to belong to the SEL plus that I own and the limited 1.6 liter turbocharged four cylinder, 180 horsepower at 5,500 RPM, 195 pound feet of torque coming in at 1,500 RPM, power sent to the front wheels through an eight speed automatic with paddle shifters, zero to 60 time for that one, 7.2 seconds is slightly quicker there, top speed believe it or not, 141 miles per hour, that's actually pretty darn impressive. MPG numbers coming in at 27 in the city, 37 on the highway, I will say I typically average around 40 miles per gallon, even on regular everyday driving, mostly highway driving on my commute to work though. But again, taking regular unleaded fuel and I can tell you after 40,000 miles on that thing, it's held up perfectly fine. So reliability wise, so far so good. And then lastly, the engine configuration that we are in today belonging to the N-Line, the most powerful engine being a 2.5 liter turbocharged four cylinder, 290 horsepower at 5,800 RPM, 311 pound feet of torque coming in at around 1,600 RPM, power sent to the front wheels through an eight speed dual clutch with paddle shifters and we will be testing that out in a little bit here of course, but zero to 60 time, approximately 5.2 seconds. MPG's 23 in the city, 33 on the highway. That's pretty darn impressive for how much power this thing has taking regular unleaded fuel yet again, that's even more exciting. But anyways, now having got all of that out of the way is we are sitting at this right light here. I first did want to touch on the driving modes before we tested anything out here. There's actually a little switch located just behind the shift buttons. And yes, there are shift buttons, meaning D for drive, R for reverse and for neutral P for park. So a little bit different than most other manufacturers out there, but nonetheless, back to the drive modes, custom sport, normal, smart and sport plus, specifically for the N-Line trim that we have today, all of those adjusting things like the shift points, the throttle response and the steering sensitivity actually as well pretty substantially. So I can definitely attest to that. But now having got all of that out of the way, what do you guys say? Let's go ahead and put the paddle shifters and the acceleration here to the test. Keep in mind, we got a heck of a lot of power being sent to the front wheels and it is raining pretty darn good out. So I've been feeling the acceleration it could have been the greatest, but still, let's see how much traction we get. I'll put it that way and let's see how quickly these paddle shifters are going to react for us here. All right, this should be interesting. Let's see. Second gear, we'll shift down to first. Here we go. Spinning. Still spinning. Ha ha ha ha ha, still spinning. We're spinning in third, I'm done. This acceleration is not gonna work out unfortunately, but I will say I was shifting with the paddle shifters and I remember this vehicle before when I've test driven it and even today, paddle shifters are still lightning quick thanks to that dual clutch transmission. But wow, wow was I spinning. I was like spinning in first, spinning in second, spinning in third. So much power being sent to the front wheels. I will say Hyundai, if you're watching this, maybe give the end line an all wheel drive option or make it standard with all wheel drive, something like that. There's just so much power being sent to the front wheels and in a dry climate, I know it is wonderful, but in a wet climate, ah, you're just spinning. Anyways, to go along with that acceleration as always, braking is equally important. So upfront, you will find 12 inch ventilated front discs for all trim levels, but the end line because the end line's gonna bump that up to 13.6 inches up front. In the back, 11.2 inch solid rear discs, again, bumped up for the end line coming in at 12.8 inches. As far as the 60 is your stopping distance goes, it's actually pretty impressive either way, 121 feet from the non-end line trim level and then 110 feet for the end line trim level. So going down this hill here, it's still actually really, really good even in the wet right here. So plenty of braking power on the end line without a doubt, definitely happy there. So then touching on suspension and handling, upfront you're gonna get a McPherson strut front suspension in the back, independent multi-link rear suspension, front and rear stabilizer bars. As far as ride quality goes, it's actually surprising. It's been perfectly fine in my short test drive here today. I will say maybe the SEL Plus is what I'm used to. I feel like you feel a bit more of the road with that one and that one does come with 19 inch wheels and high performance tires, all that stuff. Kind of like this one, but still, I feel like you feel a bit more of the road with the SEL Plus. It's definitely the most plush feel with the SE and SEL trims because they have the smaller wheels. I will say that as well, but honestly, in my end line here today, for whatever reason, it's been perfectly fine. So definitely no issues with the ride quality. As far as steering feel goes, it is substantially weightier in the end line compared to my SEL Plus. So a much heavier steering feel in this thing. Also, I do have it in sport driving mode so that is gonna adjust the steering feel there as well. So a little bit of something for everybody. I will say when you take it out of that sport driving mode, it does get very loosey-goosey. So that is why I typically leave it in custom mode. So that gives me the ability to make the steering feel much heavier, but not necessarily needing that instant acceleration all the time, especially in the rain like today. So that is gonna be there for you as well. And touching on cabin noise, it's actually not been too bad for me so far in my test drive here today. We'll see. You do get an acoustic laminated front windshield for all trim levels across the board. So that is wonderful. And if you go with the SEL trim level and up, you're gonna also get acoustic laminated front side glass. So for that reason, maybe that's why I'm getting a little bit of that awesome engine sound which I absolutely love. But other than that, it's been pretty serene quite honestly. So I haven't had any issues there. Touching on visibility with this shape of a sedan, you're 100% not gonna have any issues there at least with rear visibility. And if you were to go with the limited, you will also get a head up display projecting your speed, speed limit and safety information up on your windshield as well. So that's definitely gonna assist with full visibility there too. So that about rounds out the performance segment for this review guys. Let's now go ahead and take a look at the exterior of our brand new 2023 Hyundai Sonata. And see here she is you guys, the new 2023 Hyundai Sonata finished in Portofino gray. Definitely a very cool look and it kind of blends in with our color of the sky today. But anyways, let's go ahead and start up front. First thing I wanna mention is the front fascia is gonna differ pretty substantially amongst the trim levels. We of course have the most aggressive looking front fascia with this end line trim level here today. You guys can see the end line badging in the upper corner of that front grill there as well. But we'll say the SE trim level is going to have a chrome bar kind of going along the bottom that is going to be kind of the most least aggressive trim level. And then the SEL trim level and up the SEL plus the limited it's gonna have a lot more gloss black accents with a gloss black front lip. And then this end line is going to have a body colored front lip with more aggressive bottom corners there and more aggressive front grill there as well. And by the way, there are front air curtains helping direct air around the wheel the entire combination of front there as well. And of course, you actually have the adaptive cruise control sensor built in just below that Hyundai logo up front. You really can't even tell that that's what it is but that is pretty cool. But anyways, to the sides LED headlights do come standard for every single trim level across the board. So gotta love that automatic feature coming with them meaning when it starts to get dark at night the headlights will turn on automatically for you there. LED daytime running lights and the cool part about these LED daytime running lights I'm gonna get up a little closer here. Don't mind the, I got an umbrella here so hopefully it doesn't get in the shop but LED daytime running lights are on the bottom portion of that headlight and they kind of go up onto the hood and then they slowly fade out. Guys can see where that little creases right there that's where they stop. So that is one of the coolest looking LED headlights out there still today and they're like nothing else on the road. So one of the reasons I personally love my Hyundai Sonata there and overall that pretty much rounds out the front end though. Listen, I'll go ahead and make our way to the side of the Sonata. All right, so but now, since we are around to the side of this one chrome windows surrounds will come standard on all trim levels but the SE which is actually going to give you kind of gloss black or matte black windows surround. So that is a substantial difference. It definitely makes a huge difference on the side profile. So I did want to mention that SEL trim level and up it's gonna get those chrome windows around so you guys are currently looking at. Endline Badge found on the front fender there that definitely looks pretty good as well. You get body colors satin chrome door handles. So there's a little bit of a two tone finish there. I also like that. Body color power adjustable side mirrors do come standard. It will be gloss black with the end line and the SEL plus. So didn't want to differentiate that for you guys. Heated LED integrated turn signals for the SEL trim level end up. Gloss black side skirts for all trim levels across the board definitely love that. Taking a look down at the wheel configuration they will also differ substantially amongst the trims. 16 inch alloys for the SE, 17 inch alloys for the SEL 19 inch alloys for the SEL plus and end line trims and 18 inch alloys then for the limited and I love the look of these end line wheels that we have here today. It's kind of like a gloss black and machine finished look. So big fan of that but that pretty much rounds out the side profile as the rain continues to pick up here. So now go ahead and make our way to the back. All right, so now since we are around to the back of this one body colored shark fin antenna all the way to the top. Unless you go with the end line or the SEL plus and then you're gonna get a gloss black shark fin antenna all the way to the top there. And actually the end line is the only trim level of all of the sonatas that will give you a gloss black rear spoiler. So I'm gonna show that to you guys real quick because otherwise it's actually gonna be body colored for every single other trim level. So it's kind of differentiated for the end line and I really like it because it actually ties in with the black portion of the tail lights here in the back as well. So actually it looks really, really good. I like the black piece there. Also wanted to mention center high mount stop lamp just below that shark fin antenna all the way to the top there. LED tail lights also coming standard at every single trim level across the board. So you gotta love that. You do have the sonata lettering spelled out horizontally. It definitely looks good as well. All the way to the bottom though, you will get a gloss black rear diffuser if you were to go with the end line trim that we have today. So I'm a big fan of that. That definitely looks very good. Unique end line rear bumper for the end line trim level of course. And to the sides, the exhaust outlets are gonna differ actually amongst the trim levels pretty substantially. So with the SE trim, the exhaust is gonna be a single exhaust and it will be hidden. But if you were to go with the SEL trim level and up, you're gonna get a single exhaust with dual satin chrome tips. But then if you were to go with the end line as the rain continues to pick up, you will get dual exhaust outlets with quad tips finished in satin chrome yet again. So having said that, I do believe you guys know what we have to do next. As always here is that exhaust clip. All right, so now since we are around to the back of the sonata, when it comes to opening that rear trunk, it actually is a hands-free smart trunk for the SE L trim level and up. I love this feature because my hands are constantly full with camera equipment and tripods and sliders and all that fun stuff. So when I walk up to the back, assuming the vehicle is locked, it will beep three times. It'll kind of chirp three times and then the trunk is automatically gonna completely open up for you. So all you need to do is get behind it with the key. It's gonna detect that key and automatically open up for you. It's one of the best features about the sonata that I absolutely love. And there's also a hidden way to open the trunk within the upper portion of the Hyundai logo as well if you wanted to go 007's James Bond style. So a big friend of that as well. Anyways, once opened up, cargo capacity comes in at an even 16 cubic feet. If that was not enough space, there is a 6040 split, meaning the rear seats do fold down for quite a bit of extra space. Then if you needed it, you do have some cargo lighting back there as well. There is an optional cargo net. We do have that with us here today. So I wanted to emphasize that. And if you were curious whether or not you got any inflow or storage or spare tire, if you lift up underneath that cargo floor, you do have a spare tire which I actually have already used and it was freezing out. So it was probably the quickest tire change I have ever done. I actually had a nail go in my tire. So anyways, that was very convenient to have that there. But then making our way up to the rear leg room, I just go in to come in at 34.8 inches. So for reference, I mean, even six feet tall. This is how much space I have back there. There is a rear center armrest with cup holders for the SEL trim level and up. You do get rear ventilation for the SEL plus trim level and up. And there is a rear USB charging port for the SEL plus trim level and up yet again. So just about everything you possibly want for the rear passengers of a sedan. Then making our way up to the front seats, manually adjustable cloth seating for the SE, suede leather at combination for the SEL plus and the end line. That of course is what you guys are looking at today. And I do like the end specific badging on the upper portion of the seats. That looks pretty cool too. Leather seating for the limited eight way power driver seat for the SEL trim level and up, heated front seats for the SEL trim level and up, ventilated front seats then for the limited and limited is also gonna add memory settings. But overall these seats specifically the end line seats are 100% on point. They definitely hug you, they hold you in place. So big fan of the end line seats. And it is a substantial difference between the end line seats and all the other trim levels of the Sonata. I will say that. But then take a look at the steering wheel. It is tilt and telescoping and is leather wrapped for the SEL plus trim level and up. And that leather wrapped steering wheel is gonna be optional on the SEL. And then a heated steering wheel is going to come on the limited trim level if you wanted that. But now let's go ahead and make our way to the startup. Let me start by showing you guys the key here. You do have your Hyundai logo on the one side. Then when you flip it over lock unlock the button to pop the rear trunk. The whole button is gonna be your remote start actually. And you do get the Hyundai digital key for the SEL plus trim level and up. They're gonna give you a Hyundai key card. You can also download the Hyundai app on your phone. So essentially you would not even need your keys at that point. As long as your phone has battery I guess you could say and you put it up to the door handle. It's gonna unlock and then you put it on the wireless phone charger and it's gonna start up for you. So that's pretty cool. Smart part coming with the limited trim level. So that's gonna pull your vehicle in and out of a parking spot from the key fob without you having to get into it. So that is pretty cool. But essentially for the SEL trim level and up it's all gonna be keyless entry with a push button start. Silver push button start for all trim levels but the end line. End line is gonna give you kind of a dark finish to all of the buttons for that matter including the shift buttons. But I'm just gonna put my phone in the break and press that engine start button. But so but then once started up gauge cluster will differ amongst the trim levels. If you were to go with the SEL plus trim level and up you're gonna get a 12.3 inch digital gauge cluster which is currently what you guys are looking at right now. All the other trim levels below that the SE and the SEL are going to give you analog gauges. So you can imagine what that is going to look like but I do love the digital gauge cluster have that in my SEL plus. Essentially when you change the drive modes like from sport to normal it's gonna substantially change the look of those gauges. So I am a huge fan of that. And of course you have steering wheel mounted controls on the right side of the steering wheel. Allowing you to adjust different things like boost pressure apparently on the end line trim level. I don't have that on my SEL plus. There's also safety information up there. You can display a picture of the Sonata itself. That is pretty cool. There's a compass tire pressure information for each individual tire. The list goes on. So pretty much everything you could possibly want on the digital portion of the gauges there. They make our way to overall interior quality. There is a panoramic sunroof for the SEL plus trim level and up. That sunroof is gonna be optional then on the SEL. LED interior lighting coming with the end line and the limited trims auto dimming rear view mirror with home link controls for the end line and limited trims as well. Previously though, this auto dimming rear view mirror came on the SEL plus but apparently no longer for the 2023 model year. So did want to mention that dual zoom climate control coming with the SEL trim level and up wireless phone charger for the SEL plus trim level and up aluminum sport pedals for the end line that we have today. And this end line is actually also going to give you 64 colors of ambient lighting which also of course get on the limited. So I absolutely 100% love that. So that is a huge win for me. But overall interior quality is actually quite wonderful. I definitely love that. It's one of the things I love about my own Sonata. So just in front of the shift buttons you have a couple USB charging ports, a 12 volt power outlet, the wireless phone charger. Just to the right of the shift buttons you have dual cup holders along with a little spot to put yourself in if you like. Then the center armrest, there's a decent amount of storage. You have red contrast stitching throughout this thing. One of the things I really like that Hyundai did with the Sonata is they finished around the cup holders rather than in just a basic matte black plastic. They put actually put a design to it. It is plastic but so many manufacturers will leave everything around the cup holders just a boring black or a matte gray or something like that. So I do like that Hyundai put the extra effort into that because so many manufacturers do not. So we'll just say that. But now let's go ahead and make our way to the infotainment screen here. And so eight inch color touchscreen display coming with the SE 10 and a quarter inch color touchscreen display for the SEL trim level and up which by the way is probably the biggest new feature for the 2023 Sonata because previously even the SEO plus gave you an eight inch color touchscreen display but now with the SEL you get a 10 and a quarter inch screen. So that is a big, big update for the 2023 model year. Bluetooth and audio streaming coming either way Android, auto Apple CarPlay coming either way factory navigation system though SEL trim level end up. That is definitely new as well. Of course that's because of the 10 and a quarter inch screen voice memo system you can check out up there climate control settings, radio information as well. And so when it comes to the sound systems you will find six speakers for the SE and SEL trims and then a 12 speaker Bose sound system for the SEL plus trim level and up. Man, I wish I would have got my SEL plus in more recent days like now because I believe it's an eight speaker sound system on my SEL plus and it's certainly not Bose. So that is another big upgrade for the 2023 model year. But having said that since we do have that Bose sound system let's go ahead and turn on the radio see what we've got playing today and let's test out the clarity of this one. Yeah, that sound system crushes it. A ton, ton of bass substantially better than my eight speaker sound system. So wow, thank you Hyundai for putting that amazing Bose sound system in the SEL plus trim levels and up now because I don't have it in my SEL plus that that was an amazing sound system and I have had Bose sound systems in my vehicles before they've never broken or failed on me. So Bose is a very reputable company. So big fan of that. But last thing I wanna mention to you guys on the infotainment screen is when you do put the Sonata in reverse you will find a review camera coming standard for all trim levels across the board but you will also get a surround view monitor with the limited trim level specifically letting you know what is completely all around you which is always is going to lead us into safety. And so to start IHS top safety pick so that pretty much has it all right there. That's very good. Side side curtain airbags do come standard drivers knee airbag up front as well. In the back you're gonna have latch AKA lower anchors to tethers to children for the rear car seats, rear child door locks, tire pressure monitoring system but also coming standard forward collision avoidance assist with pedestrian detection, lane keep assist, lane following assist, driver attention warning system adaptive cruise control with stop and go, blind spot monitoring system with rear cross traffic alert safe, exit warning and high beam assist as well. It's a lot of standard safety. Then if you were to go with the end line you're gonna get highway driving assist which essentially is Hyundai's level two autonomous driving system and then with the limited you're gonna get a blind spot view monitor. So when you put on the turn signal it's gonna display what's in your blind spot up on the digital gauges that you got there. So overall when it comes to my final thoughts and after having my latest generation Sonata for 40,000 miles. Now the digital gauges are absolutely wonderful. I am still a huge fan of the gauges and they still work perfectly fine in case anybody's wondering about that. So big friend of that ambient lighting available. I love the ambient lighting in this end line. I wish it had it in my SEL plus adaptive cruise control system on all of the Sonatas are absolutely freaking amazing. I put it on quite frequently since I do a lot of highway driving and it keeps you centered in the lane. It will slow down with a vehicle in front of you slows down completely to a stop. And then maybe when there's a green light it automatically hits the gas for you and it continues to follow that vehicle in front of you. So that is pretty darn cool. Impressive MPGs on my SEL plus like I mentioned I average around 40 miles per gallon. They do a lot of highway driving there. And so as far as room for improvement the really only thing I could think of is given all wheel drive option. You know the Nissan Altima has an all wheel drive option. The Toyota Camry has an all wheel drive option. So I think all wheel drive would do pretty darn good in the Sonata especially for the end line. The power is essentially useless when it rains. I will say that because you're just spinning. There's so much power to the front wheels. But anyways let me know what you guys think of the Sonata in the comments section below. That is about it for this one you guys. Thank you so much for watching for free to follow me on social media at the bottom of the screen if you want to see what's coming next on the channel before it gets to YouTube be sure to hit subscribe and the bell notification button if you're in any new car reviews that is what we do here on this channel after all. Do appreciate you guys watching more than you know I will see you guys all in the next video. Stay Gold.