Hyundai executives had a good reason to dash from the sun and sand of Hawaii - where at the Hyundai-Santa-Cruz-Crossover-concept-109-876x535 weekend the Hyundai Tournament Of Champions golf tournament kicked-off the 2015 PGA Tour – to snow-bound Detroit as the Auto Show saw the debut of the Korean giant’s first plug-in hybrid vehicle in the form of the all-new Sonata.
Power comes from the 114kW/190Nm 2.0-litre ‘Nu’ direct-injection petrol engine and a 50kW electric motor.
Combined-cycle fuel consumption is rated at 7.1l/100kms.
In pure electric mode the all-new Hyundai Sonata Hybrid can cover 36kms.
Compared to the rest of the all-new Hyundai Sonata lineup (which arrives in Australia shortly), the hybrid version runs unique wheels, bumpers, front fenders, lights, grille and of course the charging port (left-side front fender).
Inside is additional instrumentation for the electronic functions and the availability of a unique ‘Blue Pearl’ leather for the seats.
A clever innovation is charge indicator on-top of the dashboard which enables the driver to see the level of battery charge before entering the vehicle.
And the ‘Blue Link’ smartphone app will permit Hyundai Sonata Hybrid owners remote functionality like starting the engine and unlocking and to access times for cheaper electric rates for battery re-charging.
