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Yeah, we did the wood in a teak. It looked good with all the other silly things we did to it.
I wonder if we will ever get back to luxury Hyundais in here again... One of the great topics where no one will ever change anyone else's mind....
I don't know how it is elsewhere, but I haven't seen a Genesis coupe or sedan other than on a dealer's lot in maybe 6 weeks or more.
Good to see you back!
A new Genesis coupe is not a bad choice at all.
Also the six cylinder Camaro would work too.
-either stopped me and wanted to look at my Genesis.
-people stopping and asking me what the name of the automobile
and who made it.
-driving along side of me, almost getting into an accident looking
because they were staring at the Genesis.
In every case they loved everything about the Genesis. People of all ages, background, are impressed the car as it speaks for itself.
Perhaps Hyundai was smart with it's research ( and not being lazy) and took all the best from the rest and produce a classic style that may look just as refreshing today as in 5 or so years from now.
Obviously, people's perception, style and tastes will determine if my observation the Genesis stands the test of time.
The other day I came out of a KFC and beside me was a new S class MB same color as mine and believe it or not I thought the Genesis looked more classier, cleaner That surprised me as I assumed the MB would be automatically the winner for looks and styling. Of course my thought process is bias towards the Genesis LOL
When Equus comes to the state, assuming the looks wont change, we'll have a real hard time tellking whether it's a Hyundai or a MB S-clss knockoff (as they dont sell Crowns in US).
Currently the only Hyundai products capable of making my head turn are Gen coupe, and probably the upcoming Kia Forte. Now that (Forte) looks cool despite Kia's obvious copying of some Honda Civic's lines.
I live near the beach in Fort Lauderdale and the most common cars in the immediate area are MB,BMW, Lexus, and Infinity. The Toyotas, Honda and Hyundai are in the suburbs where the middle class families reside. Luxury cars in my area come a dime a dozen.
That's just lazy reviewers.
There's nothing new under the sun. Every car has styling features that look like several other cars. Building a car that looks like no other in any way is nearly impossible and fully suicidal. There's a very fine line between "unique" and "weird".
Combine the above with size and aerodynamic constraints, and designers have very little to work with.
I'll admit my head turned for the first couple Genesis I saw, as I had never seen them before. But after that, it's just kind of like a 5er to me.
PS I've never been in the 5 or 7 series but in a 3 series plenty of times
A 3er isn't really a luxury car...a premium car, yes.
On the styling note, I will admit I am not so turned off by the weird beltline dip behind the B-pillar of the coupe. I'm still really not seeing any coupes on the road though.
Your right on the 3 series it really isn't a luxury but premium, but as materialistic as South Forida is many people here crave a BMW and the 3 series is the only BMW that comes close to being affordable. It's that prestige factor, or status symbol that many people crave. Hell with the bad economy many people have had to give up their "baby" for something more afordable. I know two women that took over leases of 3 series because of the original owners couldn't keep up with the payments.
Of course, the barrier between entry level luxury and upper level near luxury is very blur indeed. As more and more cars are trying to fill in every niche gap in existence the classifications will at one point become way too complex for humanity to comprehend IMO.
Bobad: nothing new under the sun? I disagree. Then what do you call Audi's current theme? No other company has yet to create such style. There are several (but few) automakers that offer distinct styling, Cadillac and Audi are some of them, and to some extent, Infiniti.
IMO we can;t really use Japanese brands as the styling cue, as they're mostly copying from European designs. I'm really curious to see if Hyundai will, one day, find it's own original theme, one that can last that is.
You have probably not seen Hyundai's latest designs, but the next-gen Tucson is quite striking, and unique I think. The 2011 Sonata will be a big departure from the current car but has a similarity to the CC. And of course the Genesis coupe has some uncommon styling elements. There are also other designs in the works--you can see some of them at hyundai.com.
Recall that Hyundai did go "original" in the past with mixed results. The original Santa Fe is one example. The Japanese, especially Honda and Toyota, have proven over the years that vanilla sells cars as well as ice cream.
I'm not saying that no car looks unique, just that no car looks totally unique.
Audi's front, rear, and profile all look familiar to me. It would take a lot of study, but anyone could find features on the Audi's or any car that reminds them of several other cars.
What frosts me is the auto writers automatically assume that Genesis copied just because some features remind them of other cars. They automatically assume that because Genesis styling is so nice, that Hyundai couldn't have come up with it themselves. Hyundai happens to have a great styling team (that got raided by Toyota a while back) Unlike the writers, Audi and BMW don't get a free pass from me just because of their legendary badges.
I'm not criticizing any auto maker for accidentally borrowing styling cues. It happens, but there's nothing they hate more than their cars resembling any other car. They spend big bucks on stylists and spies to make sure it doesn't happen. There's just too many cars, and it usually happens anyway.
There's a definite Hofmeister kink in the Genesis, and the front profile is very Lexus. The rear profile seems kind of BMW, too. I will say the grille is original...and I don't see anyone running to copy it, either :shades:
Most styling cues do not evolve by accident. The resemblance between the original Lexus LS and the MB W126 was no coincidence, for example.
I saw a 2008-2009 Audi the other day, and the front grill reminded me of a 300C. Shame on Audi!
All kidding aside, the car writers are saying "parts of Genesis' design is borrowed from xxx". If you look at any PART of any car, it looks like something else before it. I think they're lazy pilers on, and aren't paying attention,
I would bet you a dollar to a donut (is that even good odds any more) that Genesis tried very hard to avoid looking like any other car. From the remarks I'm reading, they well succeeded in designing a classy looking car that won't look dated in 5 years.
Someone is always first to develop a styling cue. The 300 has a wide low trapezoid shape, where the Audi has a narrower deeper 'big mouth bass' look. I think the 300 looks a lot more menacing, and adds an element of width not seen in the Audi. I don't think either would gain by mimicking the other.
BMW greenhouse, BMW rear end, Lexus front cues...maybe they didn't try hard enough to be unique.
Remember, there's a very fine line between "unique" and "weird". No stylist or CEO in their right mind wants to take a chance on making a weird design.
"It hinged on the Genesis," Krafcik told us. "If the Genesis did well we could bring the Equus."
Hyundai CEO Confirms Equus Sales in the U.S. (Straightline)
2008 Hyundai Equus
We have a bunch of Genesis ones too.
You don't think the Equus is luxo enough to include in here?
Oh, and it definitely pushes Hyundai farther into the "luxury market". :shades:
Lincoln or Mercury?
2013 LX 570 2016 LS 460
I heard that! I bet a modern 250 HP turbodiesel and 8 speed transmission would qualify for the "cash for clunkers" incentive. Not only that, but I bet it would sound nice running through the gears.
Nice interior...quiet...fairly peppy(4.6).....Definitely a Lexus competitor.
Actually Audi came up with it first in 2003, way before the 300c was introduced. :shades:
Audi is pretty much a trend setter, check out the massive grille treatment, Aud came up with it forst and then Chrysler Cadillac and even BMW is following it (although BMW's new overlarge kidneys make it look like gorilla nostrils gaping for air :P )
Fixing the styling (waayyy too much Toyota Crown and MB S-class there) is the only homework that needs to be done so far.
I think a lot of people still associate them with VW and some of their reliability problems and that old unintended acceleration deal. Audi needs to take a page from Hyundai and come out with at least a 5 year 60,000 mile bumper to bumper warranty if they want to compete here. Sort of put their money where their mouth is.
Some of those nice clean diesels would be nice here also.
2013 LX 570 2016 LS 460
That said, the quality on my Audi was awful. Electric window problems (all 4!), master cylinder, air conditioning, radiator, auto trans... that car was the most unreliable car I ever owned. The seats were nice, but at speeds above 70mph it felt flaky. My Quantum could cruise at 110 all day, and felt rock solid, but like the Audi, it also slowly fell apart. German cars are pretty, but the quality and reliability are well below Asian cars to this day.
Yea, me too (the girl, that is). But since I don't marry my cars, I will take the solid, reliable one.
Here's my answer to my own question. She's an AMC Gremlin in baby blue, circa 1970. :shades:
2021 Kia Soul LX 6-speed stick