The sixth generation of the Hyundai Sonata showed no rest for the Korean car-manufacture in improving its mid-size sedan representative on the U.S. market. The Sonata fought all the way up to the level of the established mid-size sedans in the American market. It improved every single model it had from generation to generation and it didn't slow down the pace with the 2011 Sonata. It was launched in 2009 in the Korean market and a year later on the North American continent, as a 2011 model. The sixth generation of the Sonata had a totally new design over the previous generation. Its fluid design is a reminiscence of the bio-design era, imagined by Pininfarina in the late '60s. But the Koreans just named it "fluid design". Its elongated headlights over the fenders and hood gave a nicer look for the Sonata, a vehicle that didn't have a proper design on some of its previous generations. Inside, the 2011 Sonata features better quality materials and a design inspired by upscale, premium sedans. A new center console and instrument panel borrowed some cues from the Hyundai Veracruz. For the infotainment system, a new touch-scree display with navigation was offered as an option, while the standard was a radio-CD-MP3 player with USB and AUX-in jack. The engine offer started with a 2.4-liter unit, and the top version was a 3.3-liter V6. While the four-cylinder was mated as standard to a 5-speed manual, the V6 featured a 5-speed automatic SHIFTRONIC transmission.