The pic above shows off the high-end Korean-spec version with soft cream leather upholstery and if you look closely you can see the gear shift lever for the automatic transmission.

Knowing that the Sonata would be used by the well heeled who would not be caught dead behind the wheel and would prefer to be chauffeured, Hyundai has worked extra long and hard to give the rear seat occupants more room and better comfort. The India-spec Sonata will feature the bigger rear seat from the Grandeur XG luxo-limo in a bid to keep the high and mighty in good shape. For a part of our media drive from Ulsan to Seoul I was made to sit in the rear seat and experience the pleasure of being chauffeured. I can say that I enjoyed it, much to my surprise, thanks to there being more room to stretch, and revel in.

And that is where the Sonata will be in its element thanks to its rigid body structure coupled with superbly optimised independent suspension all around. At the front there is double wishbone type suspension gear with gas charged shock absorbers while a multi-link set-up is used at the rear, again with gas charged shocks. Add to that precisely weighted steering which is accurate and just quick enough keeping in mind the car's dimensions. All this - chassis, suspension and steering, plus those 15-inch tyres help endow the Sonata with an outstanding ride quality which is apparent at any speed. It is not overtly plush or unduly harsh at any speed and this was a major factor in me being pleasantly surprised while being forced to take a backseat!

In terms of handling and road behaviour, the Sonata is as good as any other car in its class thanks to taut body control with not much roll even when cornered enthusiastically. On the eight-lane Korean super highways, the car displayed amazing straight line stability even when clipping close to the double ton - 200kmph - mark. And a word about the retardation needed to allow the driver to power to such speeds. The Sonata is equipped with disc brakes on all four wheels, with the fronts being of the ventilated type. Pedal pressures needed to haul this high roller down to safe stops are not physically intensive, only a firm caress gets the job done. There is superb feel and feedback as the brakes do their job but then one has also got to understand that the Sonata comes with ABS and TCS traction control as standard, even for India. This is a very good move and will further help place the goal posts a bit further in the overall progress of the Indian automobile industry.