HYUNDAI'S facelift to its Mk2 Sonata set out to improve the breed with work focussed on making it quieter and better to drive. The results were incremental but palpable, although the same can't be said for the look of the curious new nose treatment. Quality and durability questions also remained. The Sonata's Mk3 replacement of 1998 was appreciably bigger and better in all areas other than looks, where an Americanised approach to its three-box shape put many prospective buyers off. That was partly rectified with the 2001 facelift, but by then the Sonata sold mostly on the appeal of its cheap price and excellent warranty.