A NEAT facelift does a lot to bring Hyundai's Sonata back into the styling mainstream, while extensive improvements in safety, comfort and on-road dynamics make it a stronger prospect in the mid-size category. The reintroduction of a four-cylinder version aims at broadening the appeal too, although it does not mean any decrease in entry-level pricing. A bigger capacity for the V6 gives more punch, but there's still some lack of verve below 3500rpm that becomes glaringly obvious in the manual transmission version. Equipment levels are reasonable with a driver's airbag and air-conditioning standard on all models. It is a little disappointing that there are virtually no visual differences between the cheapest and dearest models.