swajames

There's no question that Hyundai is on a roll - sales are up, their product has never been better and they feel comfortable standing behind it with a stellar warranty. The established top tier brands ought to be paying very close attention. Neither Mercedes nor BMW felt Lexus was going to be serious threat to them when the Lexus brand was launched. Lexus finished 2010, once again, as the top selling luxury brand in the US...

Hyundai's new product is good enough to have warranted a relaunch under a new brand, and it's clear that they have all the top tier brands in their sights. To their credit, Hyundai wanted the new product (Genesis, Equus and Sonata) to reflect positively on the entire brand so they've kept them in the family. But I think anyone who underestimates where this brand is headed does so at their peril.

balbs

Hyundai has come a long way the past decade. I bet most of the people saying "I'll never buy a Hyundai" are the ones that saw Hyundai back in the mid 80's to 90's. If Hyundai keeps up their positive trend, I bet 10-15 years from now when current high school kids start earning decent money, Hyundai will not be at the bottom of the list when looking for a new car purchase.

pjinca

Maybe so, maybe I am too old, because I do remember the Hyudai Excel (what a POS that was). And sine knowing many people who owned Hyudais and Kias and THEY considered them crappy. I just haven't gotten over the mindset that Hyundai and Kia are cars for those people who couldn't get approved for the car they really wanted, that's why you never see just a Kia dealer, it's always attached to another dealership.
"Sorry Jim, we just can't get you approved for the car you wanted" - "But I need a new car" - "Have you seen the Kia............."

balbs

HA ha...Yeah I had friends that had the Excel and it was a POS. I heard Hyundai actually put steel or lead weights on the doors in order to get that heavy solid feel that German cars have.

I'm happy with Hyundai's trend. It provokes more competition especially in price with the top tier brands.

pjinca

True, if the heavier competition spurs BMW to include more standard features we can only benefit from it. Seems like it's starting already too, the new X3 has HD radio, BT and iPod connectivity standard (according to Roundel). I'll still never consider owning a Hyundai, but if the competition makes BMW's better it's still a win win for us all

JayArras

I hate to admit it, but I was one of those unfortunate owners. Got a demo fully loaded for about $8k. I guess I've come a long way, baby!

wtlb

+1 Some of the shapes of their new vehicles are very nice.