By Chris Haak

What’s the deal with with new cars today? In spite of uncertain fuel prices – which some experts feel are likely to spike again above $4 USD per gallon sometime during the next few years – when new cars are redesigned, they often times turn out to be larger and heavier than the model they have replaced. There are occasional exceptions, of course. Nissan’s 370Z weighs less than its 350Z, and its current Altima shrunk slightly from its predecessor’s size and weight. The 2011 Mazda2 and Ford Fiesta weigh less than did their non-US predecessors thanks to careful engineering and the application of high-strength steel. And now the 2011 Hyundai Sonata – the company’s volume model – is larger, more comfortable, more powerful and more attractive than the 2010 model. But somebody forgot to tell Hyundai that when cars gain size and power, they’re supposed to gain weight. This car weighs more than 100 pounds less than the model it replaced – and gets better fuel economy.

We’re not going to spill much digital ink re-hashing the Hyundai story, but the company made its US debut in the 1980s with the Yugo-competitive throwaway Hyundai Excel econobox, but has steadily improved the quality, engineering, performance, and design of its vehicles over the ensuing quarter century to the point that the company’s vehicles (as well as those of its Kia subsidiary) have made their way onto the shopping lists of many US consumers. As we noted recently, Hyundai-Kia has outsold Nissan-Infiniti in the US so far in 2010.

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