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367 Hyundai Sonatas held TLC licenses on October 12, 2026, all as for-hire vehicles (FHVs). It ranks 38th among TLC models and is the most common Hyundai, ahead of the Tucson (276) and Santa Fe (269).
The Sonata fleet is mostly gas and older. 281 decode as gas and 86 as hybrid, and 36.0% are 2016 or older models, more than three times the share for all FHVs. If you drive an older Sonata that you rent from someone else, the second half of this page covers the TLC rules that protect you as a lessee.
How the Sonatas were counted
We took the VINs from TLC's FHV list and medallion list, which have no model field, and decoded them with NHTSA's vPIC. Gas vs hybrid comes from vPIC's fuel fields. One-day snapshot.
Model years: weighted to 2015–2017
The biggest years are 2016 (54), 2015 (51), 2021 (42) and 2017 (41). From 2022 on, each year has 30 or fewer, and 2026 has just 7, so few new Sonatas are joining. The median model year is 2018. Check how long an older Sonata can stay licensed in TLC vehicle retirement age.
Hybrid or gas: big EPA difference
For 2021, fueleconomy.gov rates the Sonata Hybrid at 47 mpg combined (45 city, 51 highway) and the Hybrid Blue trim at 52. The gas Sonata with the 2.5-liter engine is rated 31 (27 city, 37 highway); other gas versions range from 27 to 32. In the city, the hybrid's 45 mpg vs the gas car's 27 is a gap of about two-thirds more miles per gallon. Compare costs in the lease-vs-buy tool.
Base types
355 (96.7%) are at black car bases, 11 at livery and 1 at a luxury limousine base. None are marked "WAV"; 11 carry TLC's "PILOT" label, which the dataset doesn't define.
Renting a Sonata from an owner: your rights
Rule 59A-21 in chapter 59 applies whenever an FHV owner leases or otherwise makes a vehicle available to a driver for pay:
- Written lease. It must be in writing, signed by both sides, and you get a copy. It must list start and end times and every cost and fee, with the conditions for each. Missing lease: $500 per lease.
- Only listed fees. Charging anything not in the lease is an overcharge. The lessor can't ask for or accept a tip.
- Tickets. You can't be made to pay a summons not written to you, except parking or red-light tickets from your lease period (if you could dispute them), and certain inspection fines when the lease puts inspection on you and you were told the date.
- Car out of service. If the car can't be used for reasons that aren't your fault, the lease payment must be pro-rated.
- Deposit. The lease must say when it comes back, no later than 30 days after the lease ends, and which costs can be taken out of it.
- Complaints. The lease must say that overcharging is banned and that you can complain to TLC or call 311. Violations cost the lessor $500 for a first violation, then $1,000 and/or up to 30 days' suspension for later ones, plus repaying you the amount overcharged.
More: buying or leasing a TLC vehicle and TLC vehicle inspection.
See the Lexus ES, Chevrolet Malibu, Ford Fusion, Hyundai Tucson and TLC fleet by make and model.
More in the vehicles topic.
Data on this page
Aggregates of public data. They describe trips and vehicles, never individual people.
TLC's vehicle lists have no make/model column, so TLC Help decoded the VIN of every licensed vehicle with NHTSA's vPIC decoder (one representative VIN per manufacturer + model-descriptor + model-year pattern) and published only counts. 5 of 115,081 vehicles (0%) could not be decoded to a model and are left out. vPIC sometimes reports trim-family names (e.g. 'RX' not 'RX 350h'); powertrain comes from vPIC's electrification/fuel fields and may misclassify a few model years. Snapshot lists change daily.
- Hyundai Sonata: licensed TLC vehicles by model year — Active FHVs and authorized medallion taxis that are a Hyundai Sonata, by model year.NYC Open Data: FHV - Active (8wbx-tsch) and Medallion Vehicles - Authorized (rhe8-mgbb), VINs decoded with NHTSA vPIC · pulled Oct 12, 2026Model year from TLC's vehicle_year / model_year columns. Age limits for TLC vehicles come from TLC rules, not this chart.
- Hyundai Sonata in the TLC fleet: hybrid, electric or gas — Licensed Hyundai Sonata vehicles by powertrain (from decoded VINs).NYC Open Data: FHV - Active (8wbx-tsch) and Medallion Vehicles - Authorized (rhe8-mgbb), VINs decoded with NHTSA vPIC · pulled Oct 12, 2026
- Hyundai Sonata: where it is licensed (FHV base type vs medallion taxi) — Licensed Hyundai Sonata vehicles by fleet: FHVs by the type of base they are affiliated with, and medallion taxis.NYC Open Data: FHV - Active (8wbx-tsch) and Medallion Vehicles - Authorized (rhe8-mgbb), VINs decoded with NHTSA vPIC · pulled Oct 12, 2026Wheelchair-accessible (FHV list): 0 WAV, 11 PILOT. App-based (high-volume) work generally runs through black car bases.
Frequently asked questions
How many Hyundai Sonatas are licensed by the TLC?
367 on October 12, 2026, all for-hire vehicles and 0.32% of all TLC vehicles. It is the most common Hyundai on TLC plates. TLC Help counted them by decoding each VIN with NHTSA's vPIC decoder.
How many TLC Sonatas are hybrids?
86 decode as hybrid (23.4%) and 281 as gas.
If I rent a Sonata from an owner, can they make me pay the owner's tickets?
Mostly no. Rule 59A-21(c)(3) says a lessor can't make you pay a summons not written to you, except parking or red-light tickets from your lease period (if you had a chance to dispute them) and certain inspection fines if the lease made inspection your job and you had notice.
How fast must the owner return my deposit?
The lease must say when the deposit comes back, and it can't be more than 30 days after the lease ends (rule 59A-21(b)(3)(ii)(G)).
Sources
Last reviewed against the official sources on .
- NYC Open Data: For Hire Vehicles (FHV) – Active (8wbx-tsch) data.cityofnewyork.us
- NYC Open Data: Medallion Vehicles – Authorized (rhe8-mgbb) data.cityofnewyork.us
- NHTSA vPIC VIN decoder API vpic.nhtsa.dot.gov
- TLC Rule Book Chapter 59 (For-Hire Vehicles), updated Feb 27, 2026 nyc.gov
- fueleconomy.gov: 2021 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid fueleconomy.gov
- fueleconomy.gov: 2021 Hyundai Sonata Hybrid Blue fueleconomy.gov
- fueleconomy.gov: 2021 Hyundai Sonata 2.5 L fueleconomy.gov
Spotted something out of date? Tell us and we'll check it against the official source.
TLC Help is not a law firm and is not affiliated with the NYC Taxi & Limousine Commission or OATH. Explanations on this site are general information, not legal advice. Legal representation is provided by independent attorneys and OATH-registered representatives in our network.