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Hyundai used to be an automotive punchline, but with the new Hyundai Sonata Turbo dishing up a cracking 274HP and 269 lb-ft of torque and 34 MPG from a twin-scroll turbocharged 2.0-liter direct-injection four-cylinder we wonder: who's laughing now? The 2011 Hyundai Sonata is striking a new pose in the hyper-competitive midsize family sedan market, abandoning the V6 in favor of an all inline-four-based lineup. The basic Sonata comes with a 200 HP 2.4-liter direct-injection four making 35 MPG, and the newly announced Sonata Hybrid uses a combo of a 2.4-liter 169 HP gas engine, 40 HP electric motor and lithium ion battery good for 37 MPG city/39 MPG highway (seems a bit disappointing), but the turbo model certainly spices things up. The addition of a twin scroll turbo to a 2.0-liter direct-injection four pushes output to 274 HP with 269 lb-ft of torque while returning 22 MPG city/34 MPG highway— that's on regular 87 octane by the way (black magic). The Mazdaspeed3 makes 263 horsepower and 280 lb-ft of torque at 25 MPG if you want to put that in context. Somewhat sadly, a new six-speed automatic is the only available transmission, so dash those fantasies of a proper four-cylinder turbocharged family sport sedan.
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