Hyundai’s jumping on the turbocharged engine bandwagon these days too—and their Sonata is now available with an up-level, two-litre turbo four-cylinder unit instead of the traditional V6. According to Hyundai’s National Manager of Product and Strategic Planning, Michael Ricciuto, it’s been tested to hell and back, too.

“Hyundai requires the same high standards of quality and durability from our turbochargers as we do of any other powertrain component. For example, the engine in the Sonata 2.0T was torture-tested at wide-open throttle for 300 hours and then immediately tested above redline for an additional 20 hours. It was designed to stand up to the kind of abuse most owners couldn’t even dream of inflicting”.

2011 Hyundai Sonata 2.0T (Photo: Mike Goetz/Auto123.com)

In fact, Hyundai was so determined to offer tremendous value for their customers, they even tuned their new 2.0T engine to run on regular gas instead of the pricey premium fuel many other boosted engines require.

Best of all, Volvo, Ford and Hyundai all report that there’s no additional maintenance or changes to driving habits required with a turbocharged engine. Service intervals and schedules remain the same as a ‘standard’ powerplant, helping keep more money in the owner’s pocket.

The Gist?
Investing in one of the market’s latest turbocharged models will provide drivers a unique performance experience that offers plenty of power and uses less fuel to do it. It’s a win-win situation.