Dreamy Next-Gen Hyundai Sonata Concept Just Forgets the Sedan's Days Are Numbered

In America, for example, there are so few MPV and station wagon models left out there you can almost count them using only your fingers, and you may not even need your toes for additional help. Even the once-beloved sedans are turning into an endangered species despite some attempts from European and Asian automakers to safeguard their survival.

Hyundai, for example, is trying to reinvent the style with quirky stuff like the Ioniq 6. They are also selling the Elantra (plus Elantra Hybrid and Elantra N) and larger Sonata and Sonata Hybrid alongside the novel EV, but we heard the latter's days are numbered. Luckily, the Asian company has decided to go out with a bang, sort of speak.

More precisely, earlier this spring, the South Korean brand updated the Sonata series with the mid-cycle facelift for the eighth generation, ensuring the mid-size sedan will go out with a fresh design and plenty of powertrain choices. Of course, it's going to be easy to recognize it from afar as it adopts the Kona-like LED light bar styling front and rear.

However, the facelifted Sonata is not yet available in the United States, where the 2023 model year kicks off at $25,450 (very close to a Chevy Malibu's starting price of $25k), and the Sonata Hybrid can be had from just $3k more. Now, as we patiently wait for the arrival of the refreshed model to bid farewell to the series, what if we took a moment to dream about a ninth-generation Sonata?

And there's no need to fall asleep trying to steer your subconscious in that direction, as we have a little help from the imaginative realm of digital car content creators. The good folks over at a newly-established FutureAutoVisions channel on YouTube are committed to "cutting-edge ideas that will shape the future of transportation" and recently came up with their vision for the next-gen Sonata.

It's a daring idea, for sure, but the execution is far from flawless. More precisely, this is all due to the exaggerated use of AI-assisted software design as the resident pixel master cooked up no less than eleven different versions of a potential Hyundai Sonata successor. Logic dictates that one or two were more than enough, so we chose the second attempt as our favorite idea out of a total of eleven and never looked back.

What about you? Which of these renderings is your favorite – if any? And do you think Hyundai should conclude the Sonata series or give it one last chance at survival?