Hyundai Azera 2006

snakeweasel · December 2005

Oh well there you go ruined a perfectly good wisecrack

averigejoe · December 2005

Is it time to re-evaluate your response in light of changed circumstances?

own3hyundais · December 2005

call edmunds.

snakeweasel · December 2005

I did thank you

own3hyundais · December 2005

this is the forst board i have logged into and given an opinion about anything.

do you people work at Hyundai or a Hyundai dealership ?

did you ever try and trade/sell a used Hyundai?

once the warranty is over you might as well paint a number on the side and enter them in the bomber class races on Friday nights at the local 1/4 mile dirt track.

snakeweasel · December 2005

do you people work at Hyundai or a Hyundai dealership ?

I do not, my company makes trucks, big trucks.

did you ever try and trade/sell a used Hyundai?

The only cars I have ever sold were to junk yards since I drive them until they cannot be driven anymore. If it runs or can be kept running I keep it.

once the warranty is over you might as well paint a number on the side and enter them in the bomber class races on Friday nights at the local 1/4 mile dirt track.

My warranty is way over, just for grits and shins I took mine over to the local Carmax and they offered me a little over 2k for it (close to Kelly Blue Book value for it). So I know I have some value left in it. I think thats good seeing there is 130k miles on it and I only paid $12k for it.

tenpin288 · December 2005

do you people work at Hyundai or a Hyundai dealership ?

Nope, I work for a major University in the northeast, and boy is it cold and snowy right now!

did you ever try and trade/sell a used Hyundai?

Again, nope. But I have had a devil of a time in the past getting decent trade-in values on the various Fords, Mercurys, Chryslers, and Chevy trucks that I have had. :sick:

once the warranty is over you might as well paint a number on the side and enter them in the bomber class races on Friday nights at the local 1/4 mile dirt track.

Maybe the way some drive and maintain their vehicles. Me, I either run them to the ground, or trade them after the warranty has expired, which will be long time on my current 04 Sonata and 05 Tucson. :shades:

danf1 · December 2005

There is a 27 month lease program on the Azera. 53%residual, .00119 money factor and $1,000 lease rebate. It is being advertised at 299/mo for 12k miles per year with 2,925 cash down.

danf1 · December 2005

I do work at a Hyundai dealership.

I have traded in and sold many used Hyundais.

Once the warranty is over, providing that you have done your maintenance, keep driving the car. Of course, most cars will last longer after their warranties expire because most warranties are 3 years, 5 at most. 10 years in one car is almost unheard of for the average American.

alpha01 · December 2005

Admittedly, I am not completely familiar with the features of a Azera Limited plus ultimate pkg, but here are those that I believe a loaded Avalon has that the loaded Azera doesnt. Please correct me if I am wrong.

Driver's Side Knee Airbag
Voice Command Navigation
Smart Key Entry and Ignition system
Dynamic Laser Cruise Control
Reclining Rear Seat
Driver's Seat Cushion extender
HID Headlamps
Steering Wheel Climate Controls
Ventilated Front Seats

~alpha

jeffreid · December 2005

Where is the Bingo! coming from? You seem to be talking about Azera vs. Sonata again. I was talking about Azera vs. Avalon.

Yes, older model Hyundai's did lose a very noticable amount of value in the past. Ii have owned two in the past. One I traded for the other, and one I sold myself. Let's be serious. If you buy any car it will take a loss. If you are buying a car to sell it later, you are making a bad investment. If resale is that big of a deal, lease a car, so that you know what your trade/sale value will be before you sign the dotted line. My point is that we DO NOT have any way of knowing how the Azera or the new Sonata are going to resell due to the fact that nobody knows how these vehicles (as well as the Tucson in my opinion) are going to change the outlook on people's view of Hyundai. If I think that I can trust a car with 75k miles on it, I will pay a little more for it if it is form the brand I trust. Is that a 2002 Sonata right now? Probably not. Is that a 2006 Azera or Sonata in 4 or 5 years, maybe yes. That is where your resale value comes from.

If you want to buy an Azera for 4000-4500 off MSRP, it may happen in 6-8 months as you said before. With a little over 2000 markup, a 2000 reabte and maybe some owner loyalty will get you there!! 26k for an ultimate package does sound pretty good. My question, is this. Why should Hyundai build a great car and then price it way below it's competition, and then offer big rebates and discounts. If the auto world lets it be known that this is a great car, why drop the price even more? Wal-Mart discounts day old bread, not iPod Nano's. We'll see if the Azera is crusty or trendy.

jeffreid · December 2005

Sounds correct. No nav on any Azera. The Azera has the rear side airbags, but none for knees. Azera does have cruise, but not with lasers. No recling rear seats. No HID's. No steering wheel climate controls.

How much is this Limited Avalon again? Somewhere between $37k and $40k I think with all of those options. The Avalon is a great car, I really like it. But my goodness at this price, we seem to be getting into a whole new class of cars from the Azera aren't we?

If a person wants all of those items and a near $40k price tag, I am waving the white flag with my Azera. I hope that most of the people that are looking at voth would be looking at the two in a somewhat comparable trim.

Thank you for the info though. I really do appreciate it.

snakeweasel · December 2005

For a price Ugarte, for a price.

remember that the fully loaded Avalon goes for $37,765 verses the fully loaded Azera at $31,880.

To be honest I would care about navigation systems, laser cruise control, anything about the back seat (I never sit there) and so on and so forth.

But then again I don't care about having 10 speakers in a car (I only have two ears) Adjustable pedals, rain sensing wipers or a power shade for the back window.

alpha01 · December 2005

My point being that people talk about a loaded Avalon being $38 grand, which it is. But for $38K, theres a LOT of major tech-type features that the Avalon has that the Azera does not. Subtract all the fancy stuff and go with a similarly equipped model, say a Touring plus the top option pkg (JBL 6 disc 360 watt changer, power moonroof, VSC, a few odds and ends), and the Avalon is $32.5K.

PS- Smart Key is really neat, I wish Hyundai would have offered this.

~alpha

snakeweasel · December 2005

that may be true but it it still more than a fully loaded Azera. Knock off some of the stuff I don't want off of the Azera and that price comes down more.

If it were a choice between the two the Azera has the edge as far as I am concerned.

averigejoe · December 2005

I sold two of my own used Hyundais so far, both as private sales. I did very well on both compared to what I paid for them new.
If you trade one in you don't really know what you are getting for it. If the salesman knows you want a high trade allowance, he'll give it to you, but then make his profit on the new car price and/or financing. If you want a super good deal on financing and new price, then you're going to get a very low trade-in allowance.
It almost ALWAYS works that way.
I prefer to sell my old car privately, negotiate the best new car price, and get my own financing unless somehow the dealer can make me a better offer on a loan.

gschultz3 · December 2005

You are not correct. The Navigation system, stability control and Dynamic laser control are all extra options on the Avalon LTD. I didn't look before I purchased mine and was surprized that the HID headlights aren't bi-xenon like the Azera's. My voice command nav really doesn't work very well.

snakeweasel · December 2005

To be fair alpha did say a fully loaded Avalon which to me means all extra options included.

delta4 · December 2005

It is true that the Avalon offers more options than current Azera in North America. Here are some features that are available in Korean version but did not make it on U.S. version:

HID Headlamps
Smart Key Entry and Ignition system
Exterior Side view Mirror Turn Signals
Rear Park Assist
Navigation System - **not sure if voice activated option.
AGCS - Active Geometry Control Suspension (rear motorized Suspension)
Source: Hyundai-Motor/Korea

Minus the above options which are unavailable in U. S. spec model agree that Avalon offers more upgrades than current Azera. I suspect keeping the price point below the competition was the motive.
************

Now features that don't come standard on Avalon:

Traction Control
Stability Control
Rear Side Airbags
Active Front Head Restraints - aka whiplash protection
Front Suspension: Double Wishbone vs Macpherson Strut
Rear Suspension: Multi-link vs Macpherson Strut
(interestingly enough both Avalon and ES330 use same type of suspension setup)

grandmarquis · December 2005

Is your upgraded sound system the same as the one in the Ultimate package or something different? Does it have a cassette player? What did you pay for it?

tinydog1 · December 2005

Hello all, new member, have been reading all your posts on the Azera. I just purchased a Black w/grey Limited with the Ultimate package. It had just come in this morning and was to be the general managers. Since I have purchased many cars from the same dealer, they let me have it. They are going to mark them up $2,000 above sticker, but let me have the first one at $29,000 drive out with an extended warranty and tint. Awsome, awsome, awsome. What a great car, well worth every penny. I stopped at an Advanced auto parts to get some clear floor mats and drew a crowd. People staring on the road trying to figure out what the heck it was. Driving dynamics are excellent, rides firm but not harsh, extremely quiet, great power, can't feel the engine at idle, throttle response is smooth, trans shifts undetectable, excellent sound system (includes cassette) seats extremely comfy, great driving position. And I love those rear LED lights. Excellent clarity of electoluminecent guage cluster, laser cut keys, one touch open/close for sunroof, power tilt/tele steering wheel, power pedals, power fold in mirrors and the most unexpected thing, in the dark, when you put the car in park these nice soft lights come on under the dash for the footwells, and the bottom center console storage is also illuminated. Anyway enough ranting, Will keep you posted.

zyvox201 · December 2005

The dealer set me up with a car sound system guy that they often use. They are going to place a 10 disc Sony CD changer in the trunk, rip out factory sub woofers and put in Kenwood sub woofers, rip out factory speakers and put in Alpine speakers in their place. The neat thing is that the control system is able to be integrated with the factory control panel thus little or no alteration has to be done to the dash. The price that I was quoted was $1500.00. Is it worth it. I think so. The dealer did not budge on the MSRP of 27645 (including destination fees), so my total price ended up being 29145. After tax , title, tags, and administrative fees it all came to 30,550. I think that if I pushed I could have gotten a thousand off but with this model the dealer has the upper hand for the first few weeiks. I think tinydog1 can identify with me that the car is amazing in that it leaves you not doubting at all that the quality of the machine is on par with other near and entry level luxury cars. I drove my wife's Honda pilot today right after driving my Azera. The Honda pilot is a fairly smooth driving automobile; however, the Azera is feels like silk as compared to the Pilot. My wife still thinks I am crazy for putting 30K into a Hyundai. Her main argument is the resale value. I told her that I just want her to drive the Azera once. i bet her that she would love it. Unfortunately my wife is among those who are prejudiced against Hyundai. I bet 90% + of those who are open minded won't be disappointed either.

bwia · December 2005

How not to keep up with your neighbors.

I just received my copy of Car & Driver and Automobile Magazines. Surprisingly they are both lukewarm on the Azera. Also, they both used the same exterior photo which is not very flatering.

jeffreid · December 2005

A good deal is like a beautiful woman, in the eye of the beholder. Some people think that their trade-in is the most important thing to worry about. If that is the situation, the dealer SHOULD structure the deal to reflect a higher allowance. Generally, the deal will have some sort of set ACV (actual cash value) that the deal works off of for the trade and then the markup in the new one makes the difference from there.

I think that you are doing the ABSOLUTE best thing you could, doing your deals that way. When you sell your car yourself first, you are able to work it much better to your advantage. A dealer that buys your car ONLY buys it to resell and as a SERVICE to customers so that they do not have to worry with a private sale if they do not want to. A private buyer buys ONLY to drive for themselves.

BTW, when I sold my 2002 Sonata LX, I am right with you, I was VERY pleased with the sale price I got as well. I still stand behind my comments that as these new models hit the streets, Hyundai's resale value will rise in the future.

mbholla · December 2005

I am in NM & longing to see the car, it seems that every dealership in every other state has @ least 1 car for show. On your blog I read something about a "laser cut key". Do you mean laser cut as in Lexus/BMW/Audi type key?
Is the keyless entry remote and actual remote separate from the key or is the remote integrated onto the key itself?

6daysonroad · December 2005

Thanks, danf1.
What does the .0019 money factor equate to in an interest rate?

bwia · December 2005

Mutiply 0.0019 by 2400 and that equates an annual interest rate of 4.56%, not bad, but not great either.

backy · December 2005

It isn't a surprise at all that C/D is not glowing about the Azera. The Azera is a touring car, not a canyon-carver. C/D puts sharp handling above everything else in their evaluations of cars. If it handled like a 5 Series, then maybe they would have heaped more praise on it.

C/D's headline was interesting. IMO they were not taking a shot at the car, but pointing out that you can buy an Azera rather than follow the typical path to a near-luxury touring car, i.e. "keeping up with the Joneses" by getting an Avalon or Buick or whatever.

pwgilbert · December 2005

gy563 · December 2005

http://auto.joins.com/image_gallery/trial_ride/trial_tgl33005_11.jpg
(interior)

http://auto.joins.com/image_gallery/trial_ride/trial_tgl33005_04.jpg
(side Mirror)

http://auto.joins.com/image_gallery/trial_ride/trial_tgl33005_01.jpg
(front)

http://auto.joins.com/image_gallery/trial_ride/trial_tgl33005_05.jpg
(rear)

delta4 · December 2005

Very nice links gy563. thank you. Here is a review of the new Azera that I found. The writer mentions two minor quirks about the Azera but says that if this was a japanese brand like Lexus or Honda they could price it for even more than Hyundai's MSRP. i think it fair to say that this vehicle is going to help move Hyundai up and out of 'econo class'.

http://cars.about.com/od/hyundai/fr/ag_06_azera.htm

zyvox201 · December 2005

To answer your question mbholla. the Azera does have a laser cut key similar to the luxury brands, but it is not integrated with the remote entry module.

alpha01 · December 2005

Thats generally true about C/D liking the canyon carvers, but you'll note that in their comparison test of 30K large cars, the Avalon was chosen over the better handling Chrysler 300, which is their Ten Best winner due to its MUCH broader range of offerings. (Personally I think its a hideous, over the top ghetto fabulous vehicle and not really a great offering as are sold the majority of models- with either th 2.7L engine or the 3.5L)

~alpha

backy · December 2005

The 300 is one of C/D's 10 Best only because of the Hemi engine ("boys will be boys"). The 300 tested vs. the Avalon had the 3.5L V6. And C/D seemed to like the handling of the Avalon (Touring model) OK--but not its harsh ride. Maybe the Azera needs a "Touring" version to get C/D to sit up and take notice.

ontop · December 2005

The Azera I test drove did nothing to pique my interest in this car. All it did was confirm that the Sonata is a better buy from Hyundai.

Nothing special comes to mind when describing the Azera.

delta4 · December 2005

The Azera will appeal to those looking for a large car with luxury like appointments that can be had for thousands less than the well established Japanese brands.

tinydog1 · December 2005

I test drove both the Sonata and Azera and found they are two totally different cars. The Sonata was noisy and harsh riding, the Azera felt solid, extremely quiet with a firm yet supple ride. I decided on the Azera. I still feel the Azera is a lot of bang for the buck. Have been enjoying it for 3 days now. No complaints, plenty of very positive comments from people who have seen it. I own the only one in a city of 1.3M. In fact, today, on my way home from work a guy in a Lexus LS430 came up behind me, stayed there for a bit, came around and drove beside for a while checking it out, then past me up and looked back, slowed down and gave me a thumbs up. Now I just need to find the right chrome wheels to go with it. Also I own a 2004 XG350L and with both cars parked in the garage I can see similarities in the exterior styling of both especially the sides and hood lines.

averigejoe · December 2005

How would you compare the ride qualities and engine/transmission smoothness of the 2006 Sonata you drove, your '04 XG350L and the Azera? Also, do you see any differences in fit and finish or materials quality? How about seat comfort of the three?

inajoong · December 2005

The salesman called when the car arrived. It wasn't even in the showroom yet when i checked it out. The car seemed pretty small from the outside, but was heck of a lot bigger from the inside. All the interior materials felt good to the touch except the pull knob that you use to open the door from the inside. It was that same grayish plastic(?) as the sonata. Now tell me if i'm wrong, but isn't that cheaper vs. the chrome? The salesman tried to tell me that the chrome was the cheaper... The rear shade is definetly a plus and the led lights in the back fascia is awesome! It had the beige interior which is ok, but i'm going back to check out the black interior when that comes in.

It was sitting next to a 40k Buick Lucerene, and for 10k less it sure didn't miss much. As a matter of fact, it had more!

backy · December 2005

Memo to Hyundai: C'mon, spend the extra ten bucks and put real metal pulls in the doors on your top-of-the-line car! That is one of the places that people will touch the most on the car--don't skimp on painted plastic there.

P.S. While you are at it, put them in the Sonata, too!

tinydog1 · December 2005

I owned a 2003 Sonata LX which I traded for the Azera. I can honestly say i liked it better then the new one. The 06 to me was not as quiet and the ride was way too harsh for my taste the seating position on the 06 was too high even with the power seat all the way down, materials, fit and finish, engine smoothness and trans shifting excellent on both. I love the XG, it looks elegant and traditional, high quality materials, fit and finish excellent, seats a little firm but not tiring even on a 14 hour stretch, smooth ride, decently quiet, smooth engine and trans although sometimes reluctant to downshift, which seems to be a problem with many makes of cars with electronic throttle control and driver adaptive trans. The Azera is excellent in every way, firm yet supple ride, first rate materials and fit and finish, super smooth engine and trans which shifts seemlessly and responds immidiately to throttle input, super quiet almost no wind noise even at 70mph, seats very comfortable with great( at least for me) driving position, great looks and excellent value. This is the 5th Hyundai I have owned since 2001 beginning with an 01 Elantra, 02 XG, 03 Sonata, 04 XG and now 06 Azera. Never had a service issue with any of them. I am now a genuine Hyundai convert. I also don't care for the inside door handles of my Azera, I am hoping chrome will be available in Korea and I will be able to order them as well as the hood ornament (it comes with one in Korea). I got the Korean spec one for my XG and it looks great.

ultcar · December 2005

Congratulations, tinydog1. I had an '02 XG, which I traded in for my new 06 Sonata. I'm extremely happy with my Sonata, but I sometimes miss the great sound system and the larger seats of the XG, not to mention the smooth ride. That said, I wanted to ask if you hear any excessive road noise from the wheels in your new Azera? Also, do you find the handling (especially when you make turns) more improved in the Azera, compared to the XG? Thanks in advance!!!

tinydog1 · December 2005

Tire road noise in minimal if non-existent, no engine or exhaust noise, the only thing is a very muffled thump then driving over large bumps or road imperfections. Yes, the handling characteristics on the Azera are way better. The steering feel on the Azera is also lighter and more responsive than that of the XG.

ultcar · December 2005

I'm sorry if this has been mentioned previously, but it looks like the consumer rating link on top of this page (presumably for Azera) brings up a page for the 1993 Mercedes Benz-300 Class.

delta4 · December 2005

Ultcar you're correct. Kirstie can you correct the link? for the 'Consumer rating' so that it links to the Azera.

Thanks

backy · December 2005

Saw my first Azera at my local Hyundai dealer in Bloomington, MN today. They have only one, a Limited with moonroof and CD changer, $29,075 sticker. It's Aub... er, dark red I guess. In the dim light of a snowy afternoon it looked black. The sales rep said they don't know when they will get another one. HMA told them to hold onto it for test drives, but the rep said if someone came in and wanted to buy it, they would probably sell it.

It's a nice looking car in person, especially from the rear. It doesn't look very big because of the streamlining. I'm surprised some Accord fan hasn't mentioned this yet, but the tailights look a LOT like the '03-'05 Accord's lights to me, but much smoother and less Buick-y. The dash looks a little plain to me in person--lots of tan plastic. Not terrible, but if I were to buy a car in this class I'd like something a little snazzier. For example, the dash of the new Santa Fe looks a lot richer to me than the Azera's dash.

thegraduate · December 2005

Now I just need to find the right chrome wheels to go with it.

Uh oh, I feel a "Pimp-My-Ride" coming on...

What faults do you find with the current 17" alloys?

delta4 · December 2005

This early C&D review of a brief ride and drive in Azera is in a word impressive. Here quote for quote is how the intro begins: "This upstart Korean automaker has gone, in just one generation, from the XG350 to the Azera. Just like that. Thats how Hyundai does things. Its almost as if the company owned a big computerized car processor, and the engineers feed in datalike high-end styling, class-leading interior space, more safety equipment, luxury equipment levels, competitive power output, a stiff structure, and contemporary NVH levelsand out the other end comes a car. A good car."

The article goes on about the supple ride and interior quietness comparing it to a Lexus. What is impressive is that I am reading more and more comments from different online auto mags that have confirmed the same about the Azera. I believe Hyundai has a hit here.

For the full article Copy and paste the link below:

www.caranddriver.com/article.asp?section_id=19&article_id=10397

tinydog1 · December 2005

Pimp-my-ride, I'd never pimp my ride, just make a great looking car look better. My Azera is black, it needs a touch of chrome. I'm not changing the wheel size, just the style. I've just never been a big fan of painted cast wheels, they remind me of cheap plastic hubcaps. Don't get me wrong, I love the design on the oem ones, just not the finish. I think they should be available in chrome at least as an option. Now, I hope I will be able to get my hands on the OEM hood ornament from Korea, thats when I'll be pimpin. Ok, ok, I'll admit it, I still think vinyl and carriage tops are classy.LOL Still stuck in the 80's I guess.

rjribm · December 2005

I sat in a Venetian Blue Limited Azera yesterday. Coming from an ES300 and LS400 ( my wifes car ), I liked it. I told my wife that is very Lexus like. Salesman was impressed with the folding mirrors. Other than seeing it happen... Not sure I would use it. Same goes for the sun shade. That being said. The tan interior was nice. Instrument panel looked good. If felt quiet ( I know, how can you feel quiet ). I took my wife back to see it later in the day. Although marked Demo Only, salesman wanted me to write up a deal. He said financing offered $1000 off. Only required you to keep the loan for 90 days, then there was a $50 fee for pay off. I am looking forward to taking it for a spin.

Hyundai Azera 2006

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