baxterdown

We attended the Hyundai Genesis Drive event this morning. They had V6s and V8s available to drive. Competitor cars were a Cadillac CTS and a Mercedes Benz E550.

The Car
We were both very impressed with the Genesis. It is HUGE inside. The seats are right up there with Lexus or BMW Comfort Seats. The fit and finish is first class. It is very obvious they are after the Japs (Lexus, Infiniti) and not the Germans (MB, BMW, Audi). The drive is fully insulated and luxurious; again more Lexus-like than Mercedes.

Technology is very Monica Lewinsky--close, but no cigar. A few great attempts but all fall short just a notch. The MMI-like system is well organized and responsive (HD, not DVD); however, BT doesn't download the address book and voice control only works the phone, radio, and satellite. There is no nav voice control. The camera has guides (like BMW and Audi) but they are static. The proximity sensors are audio only, no visual. The rearview mirrors tilt down, but do not fold. Only the driver's seat has cooling system and memory. Etc.

The Event
What a mess! The event took place at the Gulfstream Race Track. We were booked for the 8:00 time slot. We got there at 7:30 and there was not a soul to be found. There were a few guys setting up cones on the track and that was it. We were told that registration was about two blocks away at the racetrack building, but there were no directional signs anywhere.

We walked over to the registraton area an waited. Event staff showed up at 7:45 and didn't acknowledge a single waiting attendee. Instead, they all piled up by the registration desk while they texted, fixed their shirts, did their make-up, etc.

There was one car by the registration desk (locked) and nothing else. Oh, and the registration desk was at a terrace on the side of the building; not the most convenient place considering its 95 degrees with 90% humidity in South Florida right now.

After registration we were shuttled back to the track and allowed to drive twice, which meant you could drive both Genesis (V6 and V8) or a Genesis and a competitor. And that was it! After the two laps, they shuttled us back to the registration area where they had the sole car now open with a few product specialists answering questions.

My humble opinion
The Genesis is a great car that feels more like an S-Class or an LS460 than a sports sedan like an E350 or A6. The small misses I mention above will probably not swing the pendulum for the target audience. They're gonna march in droves over to this car like ants on sugar. Compared to its intended competition (Cadillac, Buick, Lincoln) Genesis is great bang for the buck ($42,000 for a loaded V8). No, it's not a Mercedes or BMW, but I don't think they are trying to be one either.

Regarding the event, I've attended many BMW, Audi, and MB events. They are always top notch with air conditioned tents, introductory videos and presentations, food and beverages and lifestyle partners that add to the look and feel of the event (Neiman’s, Saks, B&O, Bose, Vuitton, etc). The Genesis event was amateurish at best. There was no product introduction, nothing to drink (not even water), you were not allowed to drive more than twice (even thought there were only 8 of us with 10 cars available). To top it all off, there was not even a bathroom to be found. I hope the event is not a reflection of what the ownership/service experience is going to be like.

Jose

mrphotoman

How was the power of the V8, I seen one of the cars at the mall and it looked great. The coupe is going to be a blast to drive, Hyundai is improving exponentially every year.

Kar don

huge inside?? I thought it was tiny! The seats barely go back, I had no room up front.

baxterdown

Mrphotoman,

The V8 is AMAZING. Silky mooth, whisper quiet, POTENT, you name it. At 3,000 RPM torque kicks in and it blasts the car. At first sight, it looks like a lot of fun to drive.

Kar don,

Yes, IMHO it is HUGE. I am 6' and I didn't move the seat all the way back. THe back seat has more leg room than an LS460; DEFINITELY a lot more than our E350. It felt like Lincoln Town Car huge.

K-A

Stylistically I think it looks like they copied a bit of everything, namely the 5-Series....That poor car has been copied by all the Mid-Size Japanese Cars and now Korean car/s....And it wasn't nice to begin with IMO

Looks like the bar has been raised again though. This past year ALOT of major improvements have been going on with the Japanese/Korean cars to edge them closer the the Germans (or above in quite a few cases). With this Economy, Gas Prices, era of Hybrids being more "hot" than big ole' Luxo mobiles, alot of people are going to settle for these more and more IMO....Good thing is that will only keep the Germans (hopefully) striving to improve and improve....Unfortunately with them, that means higher $$ in most cases, which again won't fly as these competitors are right there with them, but for far less $$.

The down side is, everything is looking EXACTLY the same, I mean non car buffs can't tell a Bimmer from a Honda, or a Honda from a Hyndai, etc. Everybody has taken styling cues from BMW and M-B and now even some of those can look generic....Look at the tailights for example of every car out right now, they all share similar look, which happens to be that of the new M-B look of single white slab in the middle (not saying they started it, but they have it). I'm driving a new C300 Sport around right now as a Loaner, and gotta say, besides the Giant M-B Grille up-front, I don't feel as if I'm getting into anything more superior or stylistically eye grabbing then the *enter high selling Japanese car model here* sitting right next to it.

One thing about L.A though is, if it says M-B, and they have the money, they will always buy it simply for the name sake, I can't say that isn't what steered me toward one somewhat (I always dreamed of owning a Benz), I doubt that's how it is everywhere though.

Dema

I think Genesis is lacking in a good PR. I can't say that the car is huge; it is just 4" longer than MB E class or BMW 5 series. It doesn't compete with S or LS though.
My impressions are quite similar, seats are too cushy for my taste, acceleration even 6 cylinders is very good (thanks 290hp), it has better fuel economy than E class 28mpg against 24 mpg of E350. The car is very stable in turns, feels nice on freeway. I do not like only suspension. Leather accents instead of wood look interesting, although I’d prefer wood. Windows switches and other buttons look and feel a bit cheap. So the car a bit losing in luxury feelings. My local dealer didn't have a model with tech pack (sold too fast), so I can't tell much about electronics. What is bad about Genesis it is a bit expensive if you lease.

mkaresh

Hi, Dema.

I test drove the V6 a couple of days ago.

I think they nailed the suspension tuning and refinement. Composed handling, yet the ride is never harsh. The small stuff is very well filtered out, and no "head toss." The handling is better than a Lexus, and I'd say very close to the S-Class. Not a sports sedan, but also never clumsy or floaty. Even with the V6 performance is good. Noise levels are all low.

Seats are cushy and comfortable--comfort seats, not sport seats. I think there's lots of room--but I'm only 5-9. The rear seat is comfortably high off the floor.

So what's not to like? The anonymous mix-n-match styling, and features/materials that are those of a $40,000 car, so good for the price but not those of a $60,000 car. Passenger seat gets only 4-way power and heat; no lumber, height/tilt, or cooler.

Also, the car I drove had some fit-and-finish issues. The exterior trim fits aren't quite perfect, and the black paint (though not the other shades) has a ton of orange peel in it. The height adjuster on the driver seat was broken. The front passenger window had a lot of distortion in it.

Overall, they've gotten the hard stuff right. Now they just need to tweak the fit-and-finish, and over the long term develop an identity for the car.

baxterdown

mkaresh,

You nailed it. +1

C43AMG

...funny ,with a lead in like that , I would have thought you would have said it blowed.

Dema

Did you check Lexicon audio? It is audiophile level brand, but I think it is quite new for cars.

Scraz51

To me the car looks like a blend of the S, 5 Series, and the LS. I personally think it may be a good option as well for someone who isn't willing to fork out the $ for a European car as well.

Sal Collaziano

The Genesis is stealing sales mainly from BMW, Lexus and Infiniti.. I see lots of people trading in their top tier luxury cars for the Genesis. So far, however, only one Mercedes owner. I doubt anyone would go from an S-Class to a Genesis.. There ARE, however, people trading in their 745i's...

AMGTTV8

I'm sorry I must disagree...Drove it at one of Hyundai's sign and drive events at a car show recently and it was horrible in my opinion.

I really wouldn't feel safe against even a golf cart.

It was just cheap - doors felt like they were made of balsa wood.

Good attempt, poor execution and delivery.

Just my 2cents

Dema

People coming to Genesis becasue can't afford a better cars in my opinion.

K-A

I just checked one out at the L.A Auto show. Not bad, but it's more comparable to a Loaded Accord than an M-B, with it being pretty superior to an Accord IMO.

The feelings of the interior pieces in the Benz, just the overall car, everything about it, feels stronger and more solid.

Untertürkheim

I think and hope it will steal a lot of potential Lexus LS customers.

K-A

For real. I've always found the LS to be one of the most mind-numbingly boring cars of all time. I sat in one at the Auto Show, and aside from the fact that the interior IMO was way boring and cheaper overall than it's Euro counterparts, the exerior left even more to be desired. I'd say the Genesis was more fun to look at and sit in.

Untertürkheim

The LS is in a different category than it's Euro counterparts, like a Seiko vs. A. Lange. Both are cheap functional imitations. In this way, the Hyundai trounces the Lexus, it does the same thing (with a better transmission and warranty) for half the price.

AMGTTV8

+1

1985mb

I disagree. I don't see too many people cross-shopping cars where one is twice the price of the other. If there is any Lexus that will lose sales to the Genesis, it is probably the ES. The marketing approach is the same - attempting to offer more space and more luxury in the entry-lux market, while the performance end of that spectrum is occupied by the likes of the 3 series and Infiniti G.

Now that I think about it, the C class isn't exactly safe either. In its ever-improving class, it doesn't specialize in any particular area, e.g. performance (either power, handling, or any other aspect), space, luxury, features, new tech, etc.

And I don't think they had an MB E-class b/c that is necessarily their target market. The E is so far above the C in all respects that, if anyone walked away from there thinking it was 90 or even 80% as good as the E, they would definitlely choose a Genesis over a C. Does that make sense or not really?

Dema

No any close LS comparison. I drove both and LS has more solid feel, faster and much luxury. Certainly $20K price difference. I guess you meant ES. Here I agree, Genesis can compete better against Camry.

Untertürkheim

Hyundai Genesis 4.6 with all options is $41.250
Lesus LS460 base is $63.675

For $22.425 extra you can get 5 hp, less headroom, less legroom, fewer features, worse sound system, far worse warranty, higher fuel consumption, and still a completely numb drive and appliance-like car.

I can see why Toyota is such a great value

Dema

I doubt that people do car decision just based on spec comparisons and MSRP. So I had the dilemma and really was excited how good I can be saving $30K and getting Genesis. After driving both cars and figuring out that LS sold $17K under MSRP I decided that no Genesis for me. I’d take LS even over E350 considering the same prices and equal options.

MADCAT

From my observation. This car was never intended to go against the Germans, but the Japanese. Specially Lexus. However, some of the posters are right. Hyundai has been improving at a very fast and for some, scary pace. Already out doing Acura, some Infinites and Lexus. Don’t be surprised they come up with cars to go against the Germans very soon. They’ve been concentrating on RWD more then the other Japanese for sure. And that’s what a lot of premium car buyers want to see instead of FWD.

Dema

A bit of topic. I just got a letter from Jaguar, XF is going for 0% financing. Did somebody consider XF? Is it easy to negotiate invoice? I like the car look, but didn’t drive yet.