Next Hyundai Sonata introduced in Korea

Hyundai revealed its redesigned 2015 Sonata sedan in South Korea on Monday. Until now all we've seen are teaser shots of the company's second-best selling vehicle, which falls behind the smaller Elantra in sales by about 5,000 units per year. It will make its North American debut at the New York auto show in April.

Hyundai says the new car “focuses on 'Inner Force,' a theme that points to its evolved aesthetic and confident perfection.” (What? –ED.) The company also says that the “equipment, style and status deliver a feeling typically associated with vehicles in the segment above.”

This is the Korean market car, and some things will change for the American model. Its design will be a little sportier, according to Hyundai. The American car will also have a bit more premium content inside, to fit our have-it-all mentalities, and basically the same powertrain setup. It will be launched outside of Korea during the second half of 2014.

The car will get three engines in its home country, including a liquefied petroleum gas version, but we'll assume that it won't appear here until Hyundai tells us otherwise.

The other two engines are a 165-hp, 2.0-liter four and a 190-hp, directed-injected 2.4-liter four. The Sonata stays with front-wheel drive, using either a six-speed automatic or a six-speed manual transmission. No word yet on fuel mileage numbers.

The new Sonata is about 1.3 inches longer than the outgoing model, and about 1 inch wider. More than half of the body is made from high-strength steel, an increase of 30 percent over the previous generation model. That results in a 41 percent increase in torsional strength and a 35 percent increase in bending strength.

To improve handling, performance and road manners, Hyundai tested the new sedan everywhere from the N

By Jake Lingeman