I am coming across mixed reviews about the hyundai sonata…

I agree, staying away from luxuries like remote start, push-button start, navigation, parking aid, climate-controlled seats would be a perk. They are nice when they work but super expensive when they fail. At a time there will be no more of those parts available. So if one of these perks fails once the vehicle is 4 or 5 years old. There may be no parts to repair it. Simple is better in the long run. here we answer more questions about perks on the car more so than driveline, engine, and transmission issues. Across all makes and models, I bet we get 40 push-button start issues per DAY.

You mentioned Honda and Toyota. Those used to be the premium car for longevity but that was because they were competing with EPA and MPG standards against other make vehicles that offered SUVs and trucks.

Let's pick on Ford, they make a lot of cars, and Suvs and vans and trucks. Across the board, they have to meet a set amount of MPG and emissions. Ford is known best for big engines and Explorer and F150 and Crown Victoria sales. Those cars destroyed their overall numbers. The same is for Ford, Dodge, and Chevy. All other makes did not have this issue because few to none offered big vehicles and bog engines, so their small cars were better. This is not the case anymore. Nissan, Toyota, Honda, all offer V8 trucks. So the platform is now level and the Honda and Toyota are not the leaders in the best cars anymore.

Kia and Hyundai are kicking butt. They offer a lot and do so cheap. They are pretty darn good vehicles. I even have my mom looking for one to replace her current 03 Escape. My wife has a 13 Kia Sorrento and I prefer Ford's but I need the big truck for towing reasons. My suggestion is to go to cars.com and search for what is in your price range. I cannot pick a vehicle for you, there are too many things one likes or does not like about a car.

For example I searched used Kia's under $15k under 20,000 ( which is great for a used car). 22 vehicle came up within 100 miles of me.

https://www.cars.com/for-sale/searchresults.action/?dealerType=all&mkId=20068&mlgId=28871&page=1&perPage=20&prMx=15000&rd=100&searchSource=GN_REFINEMENT&sort=relevance&stkTypId=28881&zc=37055

If I were to instruct you on a car to buy that is the most bang for your buck and has good reliability, maintenance, and repair costs. it would be Kia, or Hyundai.

If any part of my first answer is confusing or needing more detail. Please let me know so I can help more. I want you to receive a 5-star excellent experience and rate as such. Thanks for letting me assist you, Chris.

Around 2013 is when push-button start began in many models and after that is more common in most vehicles. That may be one feature you are not going to be able to get around.

Yes, if you get a push-button start vehicle and or one with remote start. At some point, it is going to break and leave you stranded. The repairs will be expensive and most likely have to be completed by a dealer. however there is not much you can do about that. If you purchase a newer car, it is going to come with a lot of amenities and those will eventually break. Cars have always been nothing near an investment and nowadays they are loaded with expensive extras that will soon fail and have no parts to repair them with. Aftermarket companies are not making as many parts to fit current vehicles.