2023 Hyundai Sonata

2023 is a carry-over year of the eighth-generation (DN8, 2020–) Sonata before the 2024 facelift; the naturally aspirated 2.5L is the standard engine on the volume SE/SEL trims.

Peak torque of the standard 2.5L engine on the volume SE/SEL trims, unchanged from 2022.

Hyundai publishes no 0–60 figure; instrumented tests of the mechanically unchanged 2020–2023 2.5L Sonata cluster around 8 seconds.

The 2.5L is quiet and smooth around town with adequate response, but sounds strained and feels merely adequate when pushed — mid-pack against Camry/Accord base engines.

The 8-speed automatic shifts smoothly and avoids CVT drone, though it is not the quickest to downshift; the N Line's 8-speed DCT is sharper but not the volume configuration.

The 2023 Sonata is front-wheel drive only on every trim; HTRAC AWD arrived only with the 2024 facelift.

Four distinct tunes — 2.5L NA, 1.6L turbo, 290-hp 2.5L turbo N Line and the Sonata Hybrid — cover value, mainstream, performance and efficiency buyers, though no PHEV or EV exists under the nameplate.

EPA combined rating for the volume SEL 2.5L without idle stop-go; only the SE's stop-start variant reaches 32.

EPA city rating for the volume SEL 2.5L configuration.

EPA highway rating for the volume SEL 2.5L configuration.

Computed from the SEL's tank and EPA combined MPG; for 2023 Hyundai lists the larger 15.9-gal tank on every trim above the base SE.

EPA's standard annual fuel cost estimate at 15,000 mi/yr on regular unleaded for the volume 2.5L.

Every 2023 Sonata gas engine, including the N Line turbo, is rated on regular unleaded.

NHTSA gives the 2023 Sonata FWD 5 stars overall. The only rating below 5 is the 4-star driver-side frontal result.

The 2023 Sonata is a Top Safety Pick, not a TSP+, and only for cars built after December 2022, once the Good-rated headlights became standard. It is rated Good on both small-overlap tests, the original moderate-overlap test, roof strength and head restraints. It rates Acceptable on the updated side test and Poor on the updated moderate-overlap test because of rear-passenger injury measures. The Poor result was tested on a 2023 SE.

SmartSense is standard on every trim: Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist with pedestrian detection, lane keeping and Lane Following Assist, Smart Cruise Control, driver attention warning and high beam assist. IIHS lists blind-spot detection as standard, so all five benchmark features are covered. Rear automatic braking and the camera-based blind-spot view are reserved for upper trims.

IIHS rates the standard Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist Superior for vehicle-to-vehicle and daytime pedestrian scenarios. Night pedestrian performance is rated Advanced rather than Superior.

IIHS lists blind-spot detection as standard, and the SEL volume trim adds collision-avoidance braking for blind-spot and rear cross-traffic situations. Rear automatic braking and the Blind-Spot View Monitor camera are limited to upper trims.

Lane Keeping Assist and Lane Following Assist centering are standard on every trim. Reviewers describe Hyundai's LFA as usable on well-marked highways, with some wander on faded lines.

Smart Cruise Control is standard on every trim and is well reviewed. Highway Driving Assist, which adds lane centering and nav-based speed adjustment, is reserved for SEL Plus and above, so the SEL volume trim gets capable ACC without the more integrated highway assist.

No 2023 Sonata trim offers hands-free highway driving. Highway Driving Assist requires hands on the wheel.

Hyundai made a running change during the 2023 model year: every trim built after December 2022 got the Good-rated LED projector headlights with high-beam assist. Earlier SE, SEL, SEL Plus and Hybrid builds used LED reflectors rated Marginal, so early-build 2023 cars keep the weaker lamps.

The fastback roofline and thick pillars create real rear-quarter blind zones. The Blind-Spot View Monitor and surround-view camera that make up for them are limited to upper trims.

IIHS rates LATCH ease of use Acceptable. There are two full LATCH sets in the outboard rear positions plus a center tether. The tethers are easy to find, but the lower anchors sit too deep in the seat.

All 2023 Sonata trims seat five with a 60/40 split-folding rear bench.

Front headroom is at the top of the mid-size sedan band and unaffected by the sunroof.

46.1 in of front legroom exceeds the sedan band ceiling and is among the most in the class.

Rear headroom is generous for a fastback-style sedan; the SEL Convenience Package sunroof costs a full inch.

Rear legroom of 34.8 in trails Accord and Camry despite the 111.8-in wheelbase — the cabin is biased to the front seats.

A 16.0 cu ft trunk is mid-pack for the class, expandable via the standard 60/40 folding rear seat.

Competitive everyday storage, with a hands-free smart trunk, rear-seat USB and a pass-through fold on the SEL, but no standout storage innovation.

The SEL's 8-way power driver seat with lumbar gives a comfortable, adjustable front position, while tight rear legroom and some owner complaints about seat width hold it back.

The pre-refresh non-hybrid Sonata rides firmly without earning much handling in return; composed, but short of the Accord and the 2024 refresh.

An acoustic-laminated windshield is standard, but reviewers still find road and wind noise above average, with some engine noise at freeway speeds.

The volume SEL has heated front seats, dual-zone automatic climate and rear vents, but ventilated seats and a heated wheel are Limited-only and heated rear seats aren't offered.

The SE was the 2023 entry trim. Hyundai adjusted prices during the model year, so sources quote the SE delivered at between about $26,000 and $26,600.

The SEL was the volume gas trim, adding heated seats, blind-spot and rear cross-traffic alerts and keyless start over the SE. The 1.6T SEL Plus and Limited, and the 2.5T N Line, sit above it.

This is the same 2.5L DN8 powertrain as the adjacent years. Three years/36,000 miles of complimentary maintenance and a small repair line put it a little below the mid-size class norm.

KBB's current fair purchase price for a 2023 SEL is $19,100, about 66% of its roughly $28,840 original price at three years old. Projecting forward on the Sonata's usual curve gives low-50s retention at five years, level with the Altima and Malibu and behind the Accord and Camry.

Hyundai's standard bumper-to-bumper coverage for 2023, well ahead of the 3-year/36,000-mile segment norm.

Hyundai's 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain warranty for original owners is among the longest in the mainstream market.

Hyundai Complimentary Maintenance covers scheduled oil and filter changes and tire rotations for 3 years/36,000 miles, longer than most rivals' free-maintenance windows. Five years of unlimited-mileage roadside assistance and a Bluelink trial come with it, but there are no charging or other credits.

$28,840 volume-trim price minus its estimated resale value after 5 years (52% retained, or about $14,997) leaves about $13,843 in depreciation. Add the projected $4,300 in 5-year maintenance and repairs, and owning this vehicle for 5 years costs about $18,143 in total.

The signals for MY2023, the last pre-facelift year of the eighth-generation (DN8, 2020–) Sonata, are mixed. US News calls reliability 'good', while Consumer Reports marks the 2023 Sonata Hybrid below average for its model year. The 2023 car also has twice as many owner complaints on file as the 2024. That puts it at average-to-good, a little below the 2024 (72) and well below the Camry and Accord.

Hyundai is strong on initial quality but mid-pack on three-year dependability (J.D. Power VDS), and the brand still carries reputational drag from the Theta II engine campaigns. Held consistent with the 2024–2026 Sonata and the Elantra.

MY2023 has two NHTSA campaigns and both carry a fire risk. One is the Idle Stop & Go electric oil-pump controller, for which NHTSA issued a park-outside advisory. The other is a failed fuel-tank check valve that can let the tank melt against the exhaust. Neither is a repeated engine-failure pattern, but the severity of both keeps this item low in the typical band and below the 2024 (74), which has only a brake-light software recall.

The volume SE/SEL trims use the naturally aspirated 2.5L Smartstream GDI four (191 hp) with a conventional 8-speed automatic. It is a low-stress engine unrelated to the troubled Theta II family. Two things keep it below the Toyota and Honda benchmarks: direct-injection carbon-buildup concerns, and the ISG oil-pump campaign, which hits this model year specifically.

The pre-facelift DN8 cabin has a stylish layered dash, push-button shifter and optional 10.25-inch screen, and soft-touch upper surfaces on most trims. The base SE's 8-inch screen and the hard lower plastics look plainer than the 2024 facelift's curved dual-screen panel. Relative to price it is competitive with the Camry.

By its fourth year on a mature Alabama assembly line the Sonata shows no widespread rattle or panel-gap pattern. The owner complaints on file concentrate on powertrain and fuel systems rather than body or trim.

Hyundai's network of roughly 830 US dealers is dense, and the Sonata is a core nameplate every store services. Service satisfaction is mid-pack and varies from store to store.

As a long-running, high-volume US nameplate, the Sonata has abundant, cheap parts and broad independent-shop support. The 10-year/100k-mile powertrain warranty covers original owners. RepairPal rates it above average on repair cost.

For 2023 the SEL volume trim gets the 10.25-in navigation screen as standard; only the base SE keeps the 8-in unit.

Hyundai's 10.25-in system is logical and quick, with physical climate controls and a volume knob, though the DN8's push-button shifter and dash layout draw mixed reactions.

CarPlay and Android Auto are standard on every trim, but the 10.25-in navigation unit fitted from SEL up is wired-only; wireless projection was limited to the SE's 8-in screen until it went fleet-wide for 2024.

Embedded navigation and Dynamic Voice Recognition come standard on the SEL, so the volume trim has functional native nav, though most owners still default to phone projection.

The SEL keeps the six-speaker system; the 12-speaker Bose upgrade starts at SEL Plus, a solid but not class-leading premium setup.

The SEL ships with analog gauges and a 4.2-in color MID; the 12.3-in digital cluster requires the SEL Convenience Package or SEL Plus and up.

The pre-refresh 2023 Sonata has no meaningful over-the-air updates; navigation/software updates go through Hyundai's USB/SD updater or a dealer, with OTA map and multimedia updates arriving with the 2024 ccNC system.

Bluelink is standard from SEL, with remote start/climate, lock and locate plus an optional Hyundai Digital Key, but remote features become paid after the complimentary period.

Front and rear USB charge ports are standard on the SEL, but wireless charging needs the Convenience Package and there's no USB-C or household outlet.

The SEL gets proximity entry, push-button start and a hands-free auto-opening trunk, with a phone-as-key Digital Key available in a package; only the base SE uses a conventional key.

A rear camera with guidance lines and rear cross-traffic collision-avoidance are standard, but parking sensors, Surround View Monitor and Remote Smart Parking Assist are Limited-only.

A full-color HUD is offered, but only on the range-topping Limited, not the SEL volume trim.

Wide rear doors and a roomy-headroom rear bench help, but 34.8 in rear legroom squeezes rear-facing seats and IIHS rates the LATCH anchors only Acceptable (lower anchors too deep).

A 5-star NHTSA rating, an IIHS Top Safety Pick for later 2023 builds, and SmartSense with blind-spot and rear cross-traffic avoidance, Safe Exit Warning and Rear Occupant Alert standard on the base trim make it a strong family proposition.

Rear vents, a rear USB port and dual-zone climate on the SEL help long trips, but tight rear legroom and a 16 cu ft trunk limit four-adult, full-luggage touring.

The 2.5L with its conventional 8-speed automatic is smooth in traffic, and standard auto-hold plus Smart Cruise with Stop & Go lower stop-and-go fatigue; the firm ride is the main annoyance.

31 MPG combined on regular fuel and roughly $2,100/yr in fuel is average-to-good for a gas mid-size sedan, backed by three years of complimentary maintenance.

A 35.9 ft turning circle and standard rear camera make it manageable, but the 192.9-in length, sloping roof and lack of parking sensors below Limited mean you park it with care.

A FWD mid-size sedan with no published tow rating and a trunk-only body is not meaningfully work-capable.

A passenger-car platform with no fleet or work-duty reputation; its 2.5L/8AT powertrain is conventional but untested under abusive use.

There are no tie-downs, onboard power outlets or upfit ecosystem — just a 16 cu ft trunk.

Roughly 490 miles of range, standard stop-and-go adaptive cruise with lane following, and good front seats make it a capable cruiser, but freeway noise and a firm ride limit it; Highway Driving Assist is N Line/Limited only.

The 2023 Sonata is FWD-only with sedan ground clearance and no tow rating; AWD didn't arrive until the 2024 refresh.

A 60/40 fold and a hands-free auto-opening trunk help, but the sedan trunk opening, 16 cu ft of space and no roof rails or hitch restrict bulky gear.

Secure and fairly nimble, but the non-N Line Sonata's dynamics are matter-of-fact, trailing the Accord and Mazda6.

Steering is accurate enough but light and low on feedback.

No complaints of fade or poor pedal feel; reviewers call the brakes matter-of-fact. Instrumented data from the refreshed car on the same platform shows competitive stops.

The naturally aspirated 2.5L and conventional 8-speed automatic are smooth and free of CVT drone or DCT hesitation, if unhurried (about 8 s to 60).

The engine is audible at freeway speeds and under load, though not coarse.

A 35.9 ft turning diameter is mid-band for a mid-size sedan.

Generous front room and an 8-way power seat with lumbar give a good driving position, but the push-button shifter and sloping rear roofline hurt usability and rear visibility; memory is Limited-only.

The 2.5L SEL is pleasant but appliance-like; the fun lives in the 290 hp N Line, not the volume trim.

The roughly $26,000 SE carries the full SmartSense suite (forward collision-avoidance, lane-keeping and lane-following assist, driver attention warning, high-beam assist), an 8-inch touchscreen with CarPlay/Android Auto and LED lighting. The SEL adds blind-spot and rear cross-traffic assist and heated seats, content some rivals hold back for a mid trim.

Content per dollar is strong: a well-equipped SEL under $29,000, a 290-hp N Line for about $35,700 delivered and hybrids from about $28,000. The dull 191-hp base engine and middling resale keep it out of the top band.

Eight configurations across three gas engines (2.5L, 1.6T, 2.5T) and a hybrid, from the SE through SEL, SEL Plus, N Line and Limited, plus the Hybrid Blue, SEL and Limited. The range is well spaced, but AWD isn't offered (HTRAC arrived for 2024).

US sales fell again in 2023 to about 42,100, down roughly 19% from 2022, while the Camry and Accord sold several times that. It was a clear laggard in the segment until the 2024 refresh brought a rebound.

Hyundai's image was improving in 2023 on design, the warranty and the Ioniq 5/6 halo, but it still trails Toyota and Honda in badge pull, as the Sonata's middling resale shows.

Scored on how much buyers benefit. Inventory recovered through 2023 and, with sales soft and the refreshed 2024 announced, dealers returned to discounting and subvented financing on the outgoing Sonata. Early 2023 still carried post-shortage pricing close to MSRP.

2023 is year four of the DN8 generation launched for 2020 and a carry-over year. The mid-cycle refresh, with a new front end, curved dual 12.3-inch displays and AWD, was revealed in March 2023 for the 2024 model year, so 2023 buyers got the outgoing design just before a significant update.

It was well reviewed for style, value and the warranty: KBB rated it 4.4/5 and #4 of its Best Mid-Size Cars of 2023, and it earned IIHS Top Safety Pick and a 5-star NHTSA overall rating. It trailed the Accord and Camry in comparisons and was rarely the pick of the class.