The 2011 Hyundai Sonata has been named Best Family Car, Best Car for Commuters, Best Buy, and Top Safety Pick, among many other accolades. Sonata’s most recent title, however, stands out from the rest. Hyundai’s award-winning sedan has been named a conquistador.
Polk, an automotive data and marketing solutions leader, bestowed the title “King of the Automotive Conquests” on the Sonata in a recent blog post. In the first quarter of the 2011 calendar year, the Hyundai Sonata conquested more owners than any other car in the U.S. marketplace, 18,587 to be exact.
“There is no denying that the Sonata is conquesting owners from both competitive and non-competitive brands,” said Brad Smith, director, Loyalty Management Practice, Polk. “Of greater concern for the competition is Hyundai’s ability to keep owners loyal to the brand with over 50 percent buying another Hyundai vehicle.”
“The Sonata continues to draw consumers into Hyundai dealerships with its exciting design, class-leading fuel economy, and outstanding residual value,” said Scott Margason, director of Product Planning, Hyundai Motor America. “Polk’s ‘conquesting’ data reaffirms the fact that Sonata has the ability to attract and emotionally engage consumers, ultimately allowing Hyundai to convert showroom traffic into buyers.”
The 2011 Sonata represents a modern approach to the traditional midsize sedan segment by using only advanced four-cylinder engines, emotional design and luxury features offered with Hyundai’s strong value proposition. The Sonata launched with a new Theta II 2.4-liter gasoline direct injection (GDI) engine and in-house six-speed automatic transmission. The vehicle offers class-leading fuel economy of 22 mpg city/35 mpg highway and 198 horsepower standard. Both hybrid and turbo powertrains round out the Sonata lineup, offering a trio of high value options for consumers.