Hyundai is on a serious roll with the Sonata. It started out with the redesigned 2011 Sonata and its very capable standard power plant — a 198-horsepower, direct-injected 2.4-liter engine — and it escalated at last month’s New York auto show with the unveiling of the 274-hp Sonata 2.0T and the lithium-polymer battery-equipped Sonata Hybrid.

So what’s Hyundai’s next move? Well, sources close to the company have suggested it will be the Sonata Coupe. When you look at the fast roofline of the sedan, it’s as if the coupe body style is meant to be — and we have no doubt Hyundai picked the final design for the Sonata with this in mind.

It’s a logical move, we think, given that Honda has managed to make money in the front-drive midsize coupe segment for many years now with its Accord coupe, while Nissan moved in with its Altima coupe in the 2008 model year. Styling carries some weight among the two-doors in this price range, and a two-door Sonata would likely be the most fashionable of the three.

Since Hyundai already has the rear-drive Genesis Coupe to lure enthusiast-minded buyers, the Sonata Coupe probably won’t be overtly sporty. Don’t be surprised, though, to see Hyundai offer slightly more aggressive suspension tuning and tires on a high-line SE model with the 2.0-liter turbocharged engine. Lower-line coupes will come with the normally aspirated 2.4-liter engine.

Don’t look for the Hyundai Sonata Coupe before the late 2011 to early 2012 time frame.