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Comments
Well, have they arrived?
Should I speak to my dealer about my concerns before I sign on the dotted line?
I am new to forum . I appreciate your feedback.
Most Hyundai dealers will stonewall warranty "issues" and plead ignorance to published TSB's with the "they all do that" and "it's normal" and the unbelievable "what TSB"?
Should you process, you'll have a great car / value, even though no one will have a clue as to what you are driving.
Good luck!
It is impossible to determine every defect that might be present in the particular car that you purchase. Discuss the possible strut situation of which you are aware with the Sales and Service Managers prior to making your purchase and get their assurance that if you car has this problem, that they will deal with it immediately.
If you are too concerned with this potential problem, I would suggest that you purchase a different vehicle.
Buying a new car is supposed to be enjoyable, don't stress over it.
The Azera is a good car, and most of us who experienced any difficulties have had them resolved.
Good luck!
Merry Christmas
Group: Chassis, published Sept. '07. "Front Shock Replacement - Hollow Knocking Noise." The exact description seems to vary from owner to owner. In my case, the annoying noise at certain speeds on certain road surfaces is coming from the rear and not the front suspension.
Limp Home, (in the event of an electrical problem which may otherwise disable the car),allows you to enter a predetermined code # and thus "limp home or to the dealer for service. Easy exit seat adjustments and auto door locks are computer settings for the steering wheel and locks you determine is best for you. My doors lock when place in gear, unlock when placed in Park. The mechanic can program with a handheld device.
Thanks, Merry Christmas to you as well.
I have 7,000 miles on my 2007 Limited with Ultimate package. Everything works like a charm. Had the struts/shocks/whatevers replaced a few weeks or so ago. The ride improved a lot and the noise went away. Handling is also better.
However, the car does not ride as well as it really should due to the coil springs or some other suspension component which cannot be replaced.
On irregular road surfaces, you feel it in the seat. Could be the seats, but I don't think so. However, the Edmunds Editors said the same thing about the Infiniti M35.
I test drove a Lexus LS 460 and an Infiniti M35 this past week for the heck of it. LS is very comfortable, but at $64,500, it should be.
The M35 ride at $43,500 was only a little better than my Azera over the same roads. Didn't have near the bells and whistles of the Azera.
I have noticed that cloth seats tend to be more comfortable than leather ones, at least to me.
It is still a very good car, gets better gas mileage, has more toys and costs a heck of a lot less.
BTW, Carmax offered me $18,000 for mine in excellent condition.
Upstate Hyundai in Anderson, South Carolina has been excellent to work with. They even reset the auto locks and the limp home code a second time at no charge. When I said I wanted new struts and gave them the TSB, they ordered them no questions asked.
Enjoy the car and accept that all cars have some trade offs.
I'm I wrong about this ???
Thanks for comments.Would an Azera with build date later in 2007 be less likely to have suspension/ride problems ( date on vehicle I had planned on purchasing is 11/06)?? On non ultimate Azera(limited only), does steering wheel allow for computer settings ?
Knowing this, it might be wise to consider a build date later than Feb 26 '07 if one is available and you can get the deal you have been offered that now makes you inclined to "sign".
The TSB is not an iron glad guarantee for improvement by any stretch. I have read posts from other owners that claim no improvement after the switch, regardless of 041 / 040.
Nothing within reason is "innapropriate" before you commit that kind of money and by all means the dealer will be reimbursed by Hyundai for any / all warranty repairs.
Get everything documented on dealer letterhead before you reach for your checkbook.
Good luck.
Right?
If you haven't signed a check yet then you are in the driver's seat. Don't buy until you get a written commitment from the sales and service managers. I will say this though, if you have a good service manager, such as I have, you won't have any problems. I have an 06 Limited and just mentioning the noisy front end got me new shocks, before the TSB came out. If you do one thing, establish a relationship with your service manager. It will serve you well, in the future. My Azzy is 16 mos. old and has 12,000+ miles and it is truly one of the best cars I have ever owned. This is comparing it to several Acura TL's that I leased previously. I also own an 06 Sonata LX6 and love that car too. My wife drives the Azzy, primarily, except when we are using one car together then it's the Azzy. Get any doubts cleared up. Hyundai suspensions are not as quiet as some of the luxo cars but overall you will find the Azera a comfortable, quality built, well priced car with most all of the bells and whistles that would cost you thousands more in another car. I call your attention to the fact that there has been a massive recall of Lexus in Japan and here in the US. Also a huge recall of GM cars among Cadillacs, Pontiac's and Saturn's. The 2007 Toyota's didn't fare too well either. So drive the flying H with pride, I do.
What kind or written commitment would you be looking for?
What would it state.
The vehicle comes with a written warranty.
If that is not good enough, what would lead you to believe that a written commitment by a dealership employee gives you more security and protection?
The TSB is an in-house admission of a problem not serious enough to mandate a recall. They will roll the dice on an individual basis and pop for front shock replacement as a good faith gesture / commercial consideration.
These guys are crafty. They made 3 entirely different '07 Azeras for 3 markets and keep their US dealers in the dark. Point being, Hyundai has published the features and benefits of the '08 Azera, one of which is improved suspension. Trouble is, you can't buy an '08. If so, they could claim '07's produced after 2/26/07 have the "new improved" '08 suspension.
You know there is the possibilty of a problem with "some" based on remaining product for sale with a build date before 2/26. Avoid the "if only I had" and focus on a later build date.
"Recalls" are issued for safety issues only.
TSB's are advisories that usually come into effect upon the complaint of an owner.
Dealerships usually do not advise customers about TSB's.
I believe the gentleman said originally he was buying an '07 Wednesday of this week With regards to the '08 Azera being distributed in the US, it might be the 4th of July we will be celebrating the way things are going.
Can you imagine some bean counter sending wire transfers from Korea every month to US banks for "08 Azera storage"
No worries!
Not necessarily so. All 1999 Mustang SVT Cobras were recalled because they had up to 15HP less than the advertised 320HP. I wouldn't call having only 305HP a safety issue. The recall involved new mufflers, intake manifold honing and computer reprogramming.
You are right! I stand corrected.
It shows that there are exceptions to the rules.
Thank you!
That said, let's keep in mind that our topic here is the Azera Front End Problems and aim to get back on track.
Merry Christmas everyone!! Let's all go a'wassailing and enjoy the season!
Buyer Beware! My best advice is to look elsewhere for a car. Hyundai does not care about its customers.
As we are only days away from 2008, your Hyundai is considered a two year old car.
I am sure that when you purchased your Hyundai you were aware that they carry a low resale value.
With regard to the failures to resolve your problems with your vehicle, it appears that most buyers have been able to fight through most of the problems, and have gotten them pretty much resolved.
The 06 Azera was a new model and most cars in that "new" category go though that same manufacturer and dealership learning curve.
If you don't want to take the financial hit, tough it out, fight with dealer, get your car fixed and try to enjoy it.
Your suggestions above make me think, "why"? Why bother, why continue the battle with, (in this owners case) where the "partnership" between manufacturer & selling dealer to deliver a dependable product to the consumer has failed miserably.
While I feel for this owner, he fell victim to the rope-a-dope strategy of get-em in, sign-em up, get-em out the door.
I must be a genius, or lucky for leasing mine.
Also, don't compare trade-in value to resale value. Trade-in any relatively new car and then compare that value to what the dealer is "asking" for the car on his used car lot. You'll see that the dealers look to make much more profit on the used car than the difference between invoice & MSRP when the car was new.
Don
The same senereo would occur with almost all dealers with all models of cars.
I'm certain that most Azera owners are happy with their cars and realize that Hyundai is a low priced vehicle that will not usually get you Rolls Royce treatment at the dealership level.
As I previously stated, most owners report that their problems were eventually worked out.
This is the price that one pays for the bargain.
Bob you are absolutely correct. These are not "red carpet" stores. For that you go to Lexus, Infiniti, Rolls Royce, etc. You do pay for that treatment one way or another. If you own a BMW, after the 4 year free maintenance period expires just see how much they extract from your wallet for any kind of service. You can shop at Saks 5th Ave. or at Costco. The ambiance is quite different. Hyundai dealerships are not set up for red carpet treatment so those of us who purchased our Azeras expecting that kind of treatment as the norm might not necessarily be happy. I, for one, recognize the value of my 2 Hyundai vehicles, and have established an excellent relationship with the service department with a very with it Service Manager and Service Advisor. It's no different with other brands, there are good and bad. We all should recognize the fact that the Azera is not Lexus LS but on the other hand it costs half the price. For what we have it is an excellent automobile as long as we realize that this is not a high performance sport sedan. Most of us are never going to drive the car to its outer limits because this is not a "high performance" vehicle. Perhaps the Genesis will be. I got just what I was looking for. A comfortable car with most of the bells and whistles ( I can live without bluetooth and have a Garmin 350 that I can use in each car) that has good manners, looks really good, and has not given me any major headaches. Can't say that for some other cars. Happy that I chose the flying H.
Camissa also replaced the shocks even though they could not hear a clunk.They go out of their way to make me happy.It is a small place, maybe only 6 bays so maybe that helps.They also sell high end cars like Ferraris.
The service department at McCafferty in Langhorne Pa is excellent to deal with. I have no complaints about them. The reason I didn't take the car to service when it seemed to start falling apart is because I no longer had confidence in the vehicle. Yeah, they might fix what was wrong now (if of course the problem was detectible at that time), but I would still have this vehicle that shouldn't have had a fraction of these issues at this point in its life - especially when JD Power is giving them an award for initial quality. I knew when I purchased a Hyundai, that the resale would be in the toilet. I want to have this vehicle for the long term so that wasn't an issue to me. Now that I felt that I needed to dump it, the only way that I wouldn't be completely killed on trade, was to go back to the same dealership/manufacturer and state that they sold me a bad apple and they needed to make good on that. I still feel that most owners have a quality product - I was not so lucky on the 2006. I want to believe the 2007 is the one but already the engine severely hesitated when I pulled out of my driveway. There is one other concern I have that the 07 does and the 06 didn't do. When the motor is cold(not run for past 12 hrs or more) and it is started, there seems to be no oil pressure in the top half of the motor. You can clearly hear a loud rattling/clanging sound for 2-3 second as the oil reaches the pistons and/or cams. I have never heard a car start like this unless it has been sitting for a long time(weeks). That is the most critical time for an engine and I am calling the dealership this afternoon. Anyone else experiencing this?
Sounds like the timing chain tensioner problem that had a TSB.
I thought that it only occurred in some 06 Azeras
The service manager that I just spoke to said by the way I described it that it is the hydraulic lifters that aren’t pressurized immediately at start up. He also said that he has a Santa Fe with the 3.3 and it does the same thing only longer. I still think it is too loud and the 2006 Azera I had didn’t make such noise.
12/26/05-10/20/07-54611 3L041
10/20/07-now -54611 3L641
So far I am very please with car and especially value. Hopefully reliability will be good. Will watch for suspension problems. Happy New Year.
I hear $100 each for revalved stock shocks.
There is a replacement shock for the rear, shock # 55311-3LO40. On or about 12-26-05 Hyundai stopped installing #55311-3L040[rear shocks] and #54611-3L040[front shocks] on Azeras.They began installing different shocks front and rear ending with suffix 041.Below is a page from the Azera parts computer.
I think that the rear 040 will offer better low velocity damping . You might get back to them and tell them that you want the restocking fee returned to you.
I believe that the front and rear shocks 041 are a revalved version of 040. The Hyundai ride engineers were opting for an even smoother ride and they probably accomplished that, however, shock revalving is a balancing act. There is an aspect of shock design called [velocity damping]. If the shock is subject to high velocity [compressing and extending quickly] , it offers high resistance to that movement. If the shock is subject to low velocity[compressing and extending slowly] , it offers low resistance to that movement.
I believe they erred by designing too little resistance to movement into the low velocity damping design of the front and rear shocks 041. This can explain why the "clunking noise" occurs only at low speed over an irregular surface[ but not potholes]. In that instance, the shock is exhibiting poor low velocity damping and my impression of my Azera is that the shock is allowing the tires to rapidly bounce off the pavement. The "clunking noise"sound I hear is similar to the noise of shaking a 3 ball tennis can with one ball missing in the can. Poor low velocity damping can also explain the porpoising effect that some owners experience.
The TSB is calling for the replacement shock to be 040 and not 041 because 040 has better low velocity damping. I think that all 4 shocks should be replaced on all Azeras within the TSB build date range. As I have mentioned many times on these forums, I want 4 shocks replaced , and I am still biding my time.
For some reason, I am having trouble posting this rear shock image. I can't post a full size image. BELOW IS A CLICKABLE IMAGE
PAGE FROM AZERA PARTS COMPUTER
12/26/05-10/20/07-54611 3L041
10/20/07-now -54611 3L641
grgoeb
Thanks for that info. My question....what vehicle is the shock 54611 3L641 installed on. My guess...on 10-20-07, Hyundai began stamping 2008 on the Azeras coming off the assembly line. 3L641 is the revalved 2008 shock . How do I get 4 3L641's on my Azera and still keep my visa card in my wallet?
Does any one have thoughts or info on shock 3L641?