chungkopi

http://hyundaimotors.com/images/asse...e728_15692.pdf

hyundai veracruz beats lexus RX 350!

Pure Adrenaline

iTrader: (2)

mltk53

ehh~

minkl81

iTrader: (2)

damn loaded Veracruz is $38k! I thought limited versions were around $31K..

chungkopi

but any hyundai can be had 4-5grand under msrp. 30k azera is sold at 24-25k.

derrick

When is the RX up for an major model change? The current model is virtually indistinguishable from the first year it was introduced.

alex2364

The current generation was redesigned in 2004. I believe it's not scheduled to be redesigned again until 2009.

AsianRage

QFT!

F23A4

Good for Hyundai. That Veracruz looks like a cheaper but just as nice version of the RX. However, I do agree with MT's statement, "The Lexus faithful won't be moved by the Veracruz." To RX buyers, having that 'L' on the grill is worth the additional premium.

phile

You're taking it out of context. There is an additional premium. They did say the materials (real wood vs the Hyundai's plood) and fit and finish (misaligned pieces in the Hyundai's interior) were also better, as well as having some luxury touches the Hyundai didn't have (turning headlights). Premium is just not 10k's worth, though, which is where I agree.

Lister00169

I agree, it's the whole TL vs. BMW 3 series that is always argued on this forum.

There is the difference in quality materials and the brand factor that impacts a buyer's decision. I think a more fair comparison would be Veracruz vs. MDX, or the Nissan Murano.

I glad to see Hyundai making great steps to increase the viability and appeal of their brand .

Infamous425

i saw a veracruz at costco, looked pretty good

Crazy Bimmer

Impressive.

Takes regular gas and gets decent mileage too.

I do wonder why the RX350 weighs so much less.

chungkopi

also hyundai has a better gas mileage without using a premium. that's the most important part for me. i love my 03 MDX, but the gas mileage sux and i gotta put 93.

F23A4

Through my wording, maybe my inference was not clear as that was the context in which the 'L on the grill' comment was stated.

bl^5

This is the first I have ever heard of the veracruz....

chungkopi

not many people know about it yet. it just came out few months ago and hyundai haven't advertise it yet.

TLyoung'un

Good for Hyundai. Watching them progress is quite fun. I keep telling people Hyundai is improving by leaps and bounds but some people can't seem to get the perception of the old hyundai out of their narrow minds. Shame. I can honestly say that I would rock a hyundai

phile

I have seen only 1 on the road.

F23A4

I am sort of ashamed to admit that I failed to consider the Hyundai Azera when I purchased my 07 Accord.

It seems that Hyundai only real problem right now if brand identity.

65 Fury Convert

Do the Hyundai's come with a nav system? I didn't see one in the pictures and that would seem to me to be an option people shopping for a vehicle like this would expect.

Besides that, the Hyundai looks to be a winner

alex2364

Hyundai doesn't offer a navigation system in any of their cars yet. I read somewhere they will be offering a system next year. I think that's a problem when you're selling cars $30k+. Some people are going to want a navigation system.

dom

The Veracruz will likely be my wife's next SUV. The 'base' is 40K up here but considering the similarly equipped competition are all 45K+, its a steal.

BEETROOT

My buddy has had an Azera for the last three weeks while his car is in the shop. It is one of the most impressive vehicles I have driven/seen in a while. We took it on a 3 day road trip... packed it with bikes, coolers, a dog, all of our stuff. It still hauled ass and got great gas mileage. It rides as smooth as a lexus. The interior is fantastic, and it even looks pretty good on the outside.

Its actually been really funny having this thing around, EVERYONE compliments the car when they first ride in it. We all say the same thing though....if it didn't say "HYUNDAI" on it, it would be an awesome car.


oh yeah, when we pulled up and flipped the automatic rear sunshade everyone went

03silvertypeS

The Veracruz is pretty impressive...I'd like to see one in person, even though I'm not big on SUVs. Hyundai has definitely come a LONG way over the past few years with their designs and refinement. If they keep this up, my next car may be a Hyundai.

TMQ

I don't know how the comparison results come out. Did Motortrend use a point system? Or was it perception only - things seem similar so the cheaper one is a winner.

Regarding the Hyundai brand, in general it is still not that well perceived. They must have thought about creating a new brand for the up scale vehicles and lose the baggage, but maybe that's too costly.

Anyone knows what the Consumer report says about the long term reliability of Hyundai?

And what differentiates Kia from Hyundai? it's essentially the same company now.

chungkopi

i think genesis will change people's perception significantly. and within 5-6 years hyundai should pass honda in sales.

alex2364

As good as Hyundai is right now, there is no way it will pass Honda in sales anytime soon. So far this year, they've had less sales than they had this time last year. They have a lot of work to do just to match their sale numbers from last year.

chungkopi

i think hyundai sales went up this year by 3-4%

http://www.montgomeryadvertiser.com/...706020336/1003
record may sales

anyway, i think hyundai will surpass honda sooner or later simply because hyundai will have full lineups like toyota. maybe not in 5 years but definitely within 10 years. globally hyundai is much bigger than honda, so it will be just a matter of time IMO.

alex2364

I was talking about year to date sales. Anyone can have a fluke and have record sales for one month. If you looked at year to date sales for Hyundai it is 187,227 for 2007 compared to 189,527 to 2006. Also their worldwide sales aren't doing much better either. They are down 2% year to date. Now if you looked at Honda, their worldwide sales are up 7%. I don't know how you can say Hyundai is much bigger than Honda globally when they have sold 1.2 million cars so far in 2007 compared to Hyundai with 800,000. They might be coming out with RWD and V8 soon but that is not going to increase their sales by that much. Most people don't care about that and it's a small market.

http://worldwide.hyundai-motor.com/c...d_2007_16.html
http://www.automotive.com/features/9...031/index.html
http://world.honda.com/news/2007/c07...tomobileSales/

chungkopi

i bet you my house that hyundai will have another 2-4% increase in sales this year. except sonata and tucson, every vehicles should have increase in sales. also, i really do believe genesis, RWD tibby, veloster concept, and possible truck will help hyundai to become poorman's toyota.

chungkopi

however if people still think 'it's just a hyundai' in 2017, then maybe hyundai will be neck to neck with nissan, but won't reach honda's number.

but i think hyundai bashing will expire within the next 4-5 years because people will realize that hyundai is as good as toyota and honda. i really do think the genesis and rwd tibby is a key to success because genesis has a potential to change hyundai's bad rep permenantly.

unlemming

The problem is the quality still isn't up to Honda/Toyota levels, fit and finish and materials quality. I'm not sure if they are targeting Toyota or Honda with ride quality, but it's not terribly quiet in a Sonata and it handles worse than a last gen Camry (can't speak to this gen). Don't get me wrong, very nice car, good price, but not on par with Honda/Toyota. As far as they've come in the last 5-10 years though, in 5-10 years they could be in another realm. As long as they don't stop improving now because they think they're already there. That would be a GM/Ford kinda stupid move to make.

chungkopi

santa fe, veracruz, azera, entourage=as good as honyota

sonata=not as good as camcord, but it's significantly cheaper by 4-5 grand.
elantra=better than corolla but not as good as civic.
tucson=very competitive. i would say it's pretty close.
tiburon=doesn't have a direct competitor. it's too old and weak. but when RWD comes out it will surprise many.

hyundai's quality continues to get better and better. i think quality is a non issue IMO. almost every vehicles are competitive. probably not class leading, but definitely not bottom feeders either.


it's the perception. that's all it is, and that's a bad MOFO.

chungkopi

it's the 'it's just a hyundai' thing. nothing to do with hyundai's quality IMO. motortrend chose veracruz over RX350.

even if sonata is better than camry and accord, i highly doubt sonata would be the best seller in the U.S. people would just prefer camcord even if sonata rides like 3 series.

Interesting to note, 73% would purchase the Veracruz with the emblems/badges covered, while 52% would purchase when they find out it was Hyundai.

but i think hyundai's bad rep won't last forever. i really do think hyundai bashing will be gone within 4-5 years. it will probably have a brand image near nissan's level.

JediMindTricks

to hyundai

i've yet to see a veracruz on the road, but i've been meaning to test drive one when i have the chance. but i'm starting to see more santa fes and azeras on the road now, so that's a good thing.

and i do agree that brand conception and image is the main hurdle for hyundai, but as we've seen with the japanese cars, time will tell.

Black Tire

oh damn....look out Lexus!