The Hyundai Sonata is preparing to go down in, if not quite a blaze of glory, a blaze of full-width light bar. Reports from Korea suggest the once-popular sedan won’t be renewed once this seventh-generation car has retired, but before it bows out there’s just time for one final, and distinctive, redesign.
We’ve only got a couple of very blurry pictures to go on, courtesy of a number of Korean forums including Bobaedream, but they appear to have been snapped while an undisguised car was being filmed for a commercial. But those images confirm that the facelifted Sonata will get a version of Hyundai’s slim, full-width light bar, as seen on the new Kona, Grandeur, and Staria minivan.
The narrow strip running right across the nose of the Sonata beneath the leading edge of the hood and across both fenders is only a daytime running light; the real headlights are stashed inside dark-colored recesses of the bumper on either side of the hexagonal grille.
Related: Sayonara Sonata? Report Claims Hyundai’s Family Sedan Is Reaching The End Of The Road
Contrasting color mirrors and the large expanses of black plastic in the grille suggest this Sonata must be in N-Line trim, and it certainly does look much tougher than the terminally boring car currently on offer in U.S. Hyundai showrooms. A second image showing the tail of the car viewed in profile suggests there are some changes taking place at the rear, too, potentially including an expanded light/reflector area below the kick-up edge of the trunk lid.
If the facelifted Sonata sticks with the current engine lineup base cars will come with a 191 hp (194 PS) 2.5-liter engine or 180 hp (183 PS) 1.6-liter turbocharged motor, leaving the 290 hp (294 PS) 2.5 turbo for the N-Line flagship.
The Sonata is one of the conventional sedans that has suffered as the public has switched its affection to SUVs. In 2012, the model’s best year, Hyundai sold over 230,000 Sonatas, but last year that number dropped to less than 60,000.
