Hyundai revises fuel-economy numbers downward again

Hyundai revamped its fuel numbers on its Sonata sedan on March 4, and on Monday it issued an apology for misleading buyers. This is the second time in two years the company has needed to make amends for false numbers.

Hyundai said the original number on its Sonata was 12.6 km per liter, which translates to 29.6 mpg. That has been revised downward to 12.1 km per liter, or about 28.4 mpg.

"We gave out a tentative figure we got from an internal test. The mistake resulted from our effort to emphasize the improved fuel economy of the new Sonata, even though it was heavier than the previous model," Hyundai said in a statement.

The company admitted to overstating its mileage figures on 2011-2013 vehicles in November 2012. It paid consumers $395 million as part of a settlement.

Here at Autoweek, we did return less than the stated mpgs on the Veloster, Sonata Hybrid and the Elantra GT. However, most of us are just teenagers in adult bodies, looking to eke out every bit of performance from a car, even one as unathletic as the Sonata Hybrid. We’re somewhat pleased to note that at least some of our shortfall is due to false advertising.

By Jake Lingeman