Hyundai was one of the first brands to officially announce a CarPlay partner in 2014, and the feature is now available across nearly all automakers’ lineups. I recently spent some time in the redesigned 2020 Hyundai Sonata with CarPlay and Hyundai’s native infotainment system, and I was impressed not only with Hyundai’s implementation of CarPlay, but in general with how much technology Hyundai was able to pack into the Sonata for its price. .
The 2020 Sonata starts at $23,600 and is available in four trim levels, with the Limited trim starting at about $34,000 plus destination charges. My test vehicle was the high-end Limited trim, which comes with all the bells and whistles with no extras package other than a $300 upcharge for optional accessories like Quartz White paint and floor mats and cargo customization. A traditional hybrid version of the redesigned Sonata with an available solar-panel roof should be available in the coming months.
Technology and security features
The 2020 Sonata is packed with technology, offering nearly every popular safety feature, many of which are even on the base SE trim. Smart Cruise with pedestrian detection, lane keep assist, lane follow assist, driver attention warning, and stop and go is standard on all trims, while SEL and higher trims add blind spot collision avoidance and rear cross traffic avoidance.
On the top end, the Limited trim gets parking collision avoidance, highway drive assist (which is an option on the SEL Plus trim), and a very handy Blind View Monitor that pops up a video feed of your blind spot any time you activate a turn. Signal video is displayed right on the gauge cluster and makes it very easy to check what’s right next to your car, a significant step up from traditional blind spot monitors that only illuminate when an object is detected.
Speaking of the gauge cluster, the Limited and SEL Plus trims come with a nice all-digital 12.3-inch screen, and it’s available as part of the Convenience Package on the SEL trim. The Limited trim includes a head-up display for more information available at a glance without the need to take your eyes off the road.
And of course, the limited-only “Smart Park” feature made famous by a Super Bowl ad this year, allows you to remotely start the car and move it slowly forward or backward without needing to be in the car. Hyundai markets this as a feature so you can maneuver the car into or out of tight parking spaces, and while it seems mostly a gimmick to me, it’s another sign of the semi-autonomous technologies that are constantly being rolled out among many automakers.
Infotainment
As for infotainment, the base Sonata comes with an 8-inch screen, but my Limited trim includes a larger 10.25-inch widescreen display with built-in navigation. The larger display is available as an option on the step-down SEL Plus trim if you add the $2,750 Tech Package that includes a sunroof, LED interior lights, premium Bose audio and highway drive assist. CarPlay and Android Auto are standard on all trims, regardless of display size.
Hyundai has introduced a revamped infotainment in the 2020 Sonata and it’s a massive improvement. It offers a clean look with layout and design that will feel familiar to any smartphone user. Customizability is embraced throughout the system, with the ability to edit home screen icons and widget layouts, and this customizability extends throughout the vehicle’s system with a vast array of options accessible through the infotainment system.
Like CarPlay, the Hyundai infotainment system offers several different home screen views, starting with a dashboard-style screen that lets you customize widgets like navigation, audio, weather and more. A swipe on the screen moves to an icon-based home screen that gives you access to all system functions. You’ll find all the usual functions here, including your driving performance data, a handy app for recording voice memos, and even a “Sounds of Nature” function that lets you pipe in relaxing sounds like forest scenes, ocean waves, rain. , or a crackling fireplace across the car.
There’s really only one tactile hardware control, and that’s the volume knob, but there are several capacitive buttons on either side of the display. You won’t really find them with a feel like you’d be able to with actual buttons, but at least they make it easy to jump to frequently used infotainment functions without needing to navigate through the system’s UI. There’s also a dedicated “Star” button that can be configured to offer one-touch access to CarPlay, for example.
Built-in navigation is provided here, and it proved to be a capable system with a solid POI database capable of pulling up nearly every destination I tried to find. It’s also easy to search by POI category, set shortcuts for multiple frequent destinations, and select your route options.
The navigation system offers a side view with a large screen that shows your overall upcoming route and a smaller side panel that has specific information for your next upcoming turn, but you can drag over another side panel that basically splits the widescreen display into thirds and the same. Also displays other infotainment system data like audio.
Carplay
CarPlay in the 2020 Sonata requires a wired connection, which is still very common among automakers, though many are turning to wireless connectivity options in their next-generation infotainment systems that are just starting to roll out.
Perhaps my favorite thing about CarPlay on the 2020 Sonata is the ability to set user preferences for widescreen or side-by-side screens. Widescreen infotainment systems are becoming more and more popular, and manufacturers generally fall into one of two camps when it comes to supporting CarPlay in them: let CarPlay take up the entire screen or limit it to a small portion of the screen to display information from the native system. panel.
Hyundai lets the user choose, though it’s not a setting you can easily switch while driving as it’s managed within the connected phone’s settings.
Whichever option you choose, you’ll see a typical ‘CarPlay’ experience with interactions happening via the expansive touchscreen or Siri. Maps in particular look great on widescreen, but even on a smaller scale you’ll have a reasonable view of what’s around you.
The touchscreen is responsive in both the native system and CarPlay, and I didn’t experience any issues with CarPlay connectivity in my testing. Capacitive buttons on either side of the display make it easy to access the native system, while the customizable star button makes for one-touch access to return to ‘CarPlay’.
As is typical for steering wheel controls, there is a single voice control button that serves dual duty. A short press brings up the Hyundai Voice system while a long press activates Siri.
Climate control
Despite the raft of features included in the 2020 Sonata, Hyundai has done a lot to reduce the complexity of the controls. Climate controls are thankfully hardware-based and separate from the infotainment system, and it’s a relatively clean setup that even integrates controls for the heated and ventilated front seats.
Hyundai has made fairly heavy use of space-saving switches for things like A/C mode control, fan speed and drive mode, creating a simpler layout than other systems that use multiple buttons for each function.
port and wireless charging
All trims on the Sonata have a pair of USB-A ports on the front, one for data and one for charging only. A single charge-only USB-A port for rear passengers is included standard on the Limited and SEL Plus trims, while it’s part of the $1200 Convenience Package on the SEL trim. It’s not available at all on the base SE trim.
Hyundai also offers Qi wireless phone charging on some trims of the 2020 Sonata, with the charger coming as an option on the Limited trim and the SEL Plus trim. It is not available on SEL or SE trims
I experienced some weirdness with the charger, as it was not able to charge my iPhone 11 Pro Max with Apple’s Smart Battery Case. After setting up my phone’s charging pad, my phone would vibrate as if charging had started, but then it would repeat every few seconds and the charging status light on top of the charger would never light up.
I removed the ‘smart battery case’ and tried with bare phone and charging worked fine. I tried it with an iPhone XS Max with and without the official Smart Battery Case – for that model – and everything worked fine.
Another handy phone storage option the Sonata offers is a slot in the center console between the two cupholders. A phone sits upright in the slot, making it easy to grab on the way out of the car and a convenient space-saving solution for holding the phone while connected to the infotainment system for ‘CarPlay’, as long as you keep the phone. On the opposite side
finish
The 2020 Sonata packs an impressive amount of technology for its price, and I look forward to seeing these capabilities and the revamped infotainment system make their way across the rest of the Hyundai lineup.
While I’d like to see wireless CarPlay, the wired solution works well and integrates smoothly with the new infotainment system. The spacious widescreen display available on the higher trims is great, and I like the amount Hyundai provides, extending all the way to allow standard or full-screen CarPlay.
The 2020 Sonata starts at a reasonable $23,600 and tops out at just over $34,000, even with all that technology built in. Aside from lacking some of the pep found in similarly sized luxury cars, the Sonata feels like a much more expensive sedan than it is in a high-end trim.
