Hyundai’s new Sonata Hybrid will hit the market in January with a manufacturer’s suggested retail price of $25,795, making it a less expensive buy than its family-sedan brethren the Toyota Camry Hybrid ($26,575) or the Ford Fusion Hybrid ($28,240).

In a press release announcing the pricing, Hyundai touted the 2011 Sonata Hybrid’s fuel economy, saying it delivered a “segment-leading 40-mpg highway rating.”  If that’s the case, Hyundai must put the Sonata in a different category than the Environmental Protection Agency. According the EPA it’s a family sedan, just like the Fusion, which checks in with 36 MPG on the highway. [Editor's Note: Fusion mileage is actually 36 MPG highway and 41 MPG city. The wrong numbers were reported earlier.]

image via Hyundai

And what of the Prius? It beats the Sonata by a hefty margin on both price and fuel economy. But  the Hyundai spinmeisters might be excused for not making that comparison, say the bloggers at KickingTires who follow this sort of thing carefully: “The Toyota Prius technically is a midsize vehicle, according to the EPA — and it’s cheaper and more fuel efficient than the Sonata Hybrid at 50 mpg combined and $21,650 — but that vehicle is smaller nonetheless.”

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