Sport model enlivens 2015 Sonata — sort of

2015 Sonata Sport 2.0 T

Vehicle type: front-engine, front-wheel-drive, 5-passenger, 4-door sedan

Price as tested: $23,985 (base price: $23,985)

Engine type: DOHC 16-valve inline-4, aluminum block and head, direct fuel injection

Power: 185 hp @ 6000 rpm

Torque: 178 lb-ft @ 4000 rpm

Transmission: 6-speed automatic with manual shifting mode

Fuel economy: EPA city/highway driving: 24/35 mpg; C/D observed: 27 mpg

Sharp, sensuous lines — the kind that define young rowdies in fine old photos — soften over time.

The long, lean muscles that keep hard-chargers two steps ahead of the yapping pack slacken, usually about the time the razor-cut, pinstriped wolves in back pick up the pace.

And suddenly, the smooth-faced kid with the green iPhone, the one who wears extremely skinny jeans and pointed shoes, gets all the choice assignments, not to mention your parking spot.

But don’t take the word of an aging boomer whose retirement plans will probably involve an old Airstream trailer somewhere in Arkansas — a sort of hillbilly version of The Rockford Files, the Rockabilly Files, I suppose.

Just ask Hyundai.

Back in 2009, Hyundai’s midsize Sonata sedan absolutely crackled with tight, taut new styling, giving a once-invisible car instant status in an extremely tough segment.

In one model year, the Sonata shot to the front of the pack design-wise, lording its hot lines over boring Camrys and Accords and Altimas.

Hyundai must have tired of the race, though because the restyled 2014 Sonata arrived looking suddenly soft and safe.

I initially thought: Get back to the gym. Quickly.

Not that there was anything unattractive about the quietly handsome car. It just resembled all the other ToyHonNisses in the midsize world.

So I had high hopes for the 2015 Sonata Sport 2.0 T, a saltier version of the Sonata with stiffer suspension, better steering and a more powerful turbocharged four-cylinder engine.

In the last version of the Sport, the turbo 2-liter twisted out 274 eager horsepower.

Moreover, the Sonata Sport I had recently came coated in rich dark-orange paint, looking as if it were ready to run.

Like the 2014 model, this year’s Sonata starts strongly enough with giant, elongated headlamps offset by a large horizontal three-bar grille.

A fairly long hood that gave the car a hint of power stretched back to a sleek, rakish windshield.

But it all kind of sagged from that point on.

While clean and well-proportioned, which is about all I aim for these days, the Sonata lacks its former edgy distinction.

Still, the Sonata had that turbo motor beneath the hood and pretty decent 18-inch wheels wearing reasonably assertive 235/45 tires.

It seemed to have promise.

As I discovered, though, the 2015 turbo motor got de-tuned, possibly in keeping with the new car’s more subdued nature or maybe just to scratch out a few more miles per gallon.

This year’s Sport cranks out 245 horsepower, a nearly 30 horsepower drop in a 3,600-pound sedan.

And it’s noticeable, particularly if you have passengers or are pushing it.

Both Car and Driver and Motor Trend found that the new Sonata Sport needed 8 long seconds to accelerate to 60, which is not even remotely high-performance and 1.9 seconds slower than the previous-gen Sonata Sport.

But I wouldn’t necessarily recommend that you skip the Sport and save the $8,000 difference between the entry-level Sonata and the Sport (mine had a window sticker of $29,510).

If you want a livelier Sonata, the Sport is still worth considering.

No major compromises, though, were inflicted on the car’s black interior.

Sure, like all midsize sedans, the Sport had plenty of hard plastic, from its softly curved dashboard to all the door panels.

But this generation of Sonata feels more German inside than the last car, which flashed a giant center stack in the middle of the dash that dropped all the way down to the console.

Even with the substantial $8,000 premium for the Sport version, the Sonata is still a pretty good deal — at least $3,000 below average new-car transaction prices in the U.S. with all its options.