dunnojack

Looks like quality is up a lot.

It has almost everything your lexus has..
well, except for resale value and price.

really though, this is probably comparable to toyota SUVs.
it has a neutral rugged appearance

So far, hyundai and kia products have been slowly chipping away at my bias against the korean carmakers.

i may give them serious consideration in 7 years...

those painted silver plastic parts on the door have to go. Those things will fade and rub off after a few years.

while Lexus is still using light bulbs on the ES350 tail lights, this kia has a crap load of LEDs

looks like Peter Schreyer is doing a good job over there






on the other hand, GM is coming up with crap like this. Didn't they learn anything from the pontiac Asstek:

vboy418

it actually doesnt look to bad at all...

sirCharles

7 years?
it could stack up against competition based on price/value right now.

dunnojack

i'm saying that my bias might wear off in 7 years.

i'm a badge wh*re

Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

Looks very well designed and thought out. The materials look great. I'm glad to see that most automakers are stepping up their game
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pagemaster

Kia and Hyundai are a little ahead of Toyota. The new Borrego has an independent rear as well the as the outstanding 4.6...the 4runner/GX still use the solid rear and ancient 4.7

Epik151

Yeah they're definitely ahead of Toyota and a few individual cars can be compared with Lexus.

This new Sorento is pretty polished and I can see people favoring it over the RX.

mmarshall

Go to some Hyundai and Kia dealerships, look at some of them for yourself, close up, and take some test-drives (and, of course, there are my reviews right here on CL). You will probably find a lot more of those chips coming off.

To be honest, though, Hyundai may have reached its peak in quality a couple of years ago. The latest Sonata and Genesis coupe, for example (not the Genesis sedan), show a few signs of interior cost-cutting, as with many manufacturers. I'll withhold opinion on this new Sorento until I see it personally (I reviewed the old one several months ago), but you've posted some nice pictures.

The Sorento's brown leather package, BTW, in the image you posted, seems to be more or less the same one offered on the Hyundai Veracruz Limited.

MPLexus301

iTrader: (3)

That looks very nice

GFerg

I dont care for it inside or out. The design looks outdated IMO.

FKL

Blah, doesn't do anything new. Interior looks nice in a picture, but I doubt the materials are up to a Japanese car. The Kia Borrego has a cheap and trashy interior. Looks good in photos though. I just hope Hyundai/Kia put more energy into a safe and solid cage, the last Sorrento was rated "poor" for roof strength, along with the Ford Escape. The roof caved in completely. What is it's selling point? Looks like Hyundai/Kia just went for "good enough" and hopes to sell it on a value basis. Nothing bad, but this is the same way every other car they sell is. Nothing original, no driving involvement, which would be fine if they were totally up to Toyota and Honda, but they aren't. The Genesis is not not a real Lexus, no matter how hard they tried. The G. Coupe is not a BMW, it's not an Infiniti. They are just generic from my viewpoint. Nice solid cars, but Toyota already has this filled. I wish Hyundai would do something different.

And that rear end. Not very original, and really quite atrocious. Front end is nothing new, looks like an Outlander.

CDNROCKIES

Lol....while Kia and Hyundai have made some great improvements, they are nowhere near Toyota....and light years from Lexus.

The new Genesis is particularly nice, but still not a true competitor to the luxury brands. Unless you want to discuss value for dollar, which is still subjective these comparisons are weak.

The only reason to choose a Kia or Hyundai over a Toyota/Lexus is the perceived savings. The bottom line is that you pay for quality and luxury.

YEH

Actually looks better in video than in stills.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_hfPCjnJd3A

Huh? The current Sonata's interior is better than before the 2009 refresh and better than the Camry's rather boring interior.

As for the GenCoupe, Hyundai couldn't spend as much $$ on the interior if they wanted to keep the base price at $22k (it's no worse than what one will find in the new Mustang or Camaro) and it's really not that much worse than that of the first couple of years of the G35 (and that was a "luxury" model).

Uhh, the Sorento has better front side impact scores than the 4Runner (5* for both front and side impact).

http://www.automotive.com/2008/12/ki...sts/index.html

http://www.automotive.com/2007/12/to...sts/index.html

As for the roof crush test, I think you are talking about the Kia Sportage - which is long due for a redesign.

Otoh, the relatively new Honda CR-V got a marginal score - what does that say about the Japanese/Honda?

FKL

YEH brings up lots of great points. I just wish Hyundai would do something unique, original, do their own thing, be instantly recognizable as a Hyundai. Right now I just see them as a vastly improving automaker who wants to be Toyota. They are shameless in their emulation and benchmarking of various Honda/Toyota/Lexus models, which could be seen as good thing, or as meaning they have not much of their own ideas. I've seen this before particularly in the way Samsung operates. For mobile phones, they will shamelessly copy the basic concept from another vendor (Motorola lets say), tweak it slightly, and then sell it. Mind you, this strategy eventually netted them huge market share, crushing Motorola in the process, so it is very effective (and why the company is twice as large as Sony). We all know the size of the Hyundai/Samsung Korean Chaebol's, so I can see why Toyota would be worried not about Ford, GM, or VW, but their neighbor across the sea.

We'll see, I like Hyundai, they provide a quality automobile, but at the same time, I would ask myself, why not buy the real thing (The GS, the G37, etc.), especially as a 2-3 year old vehicle. I wouldn't be buying a Genesis "Tau" V8, I'd be looking at a GS or an A6, again, the real things.

And sorry man, you are correct about the roof.

dunnojack

so the Sorrento goes up against the Venza?

or the highlander?


when it comes to car design, there's a pool of design elements that just work. Eventually, all cars will look similar. Every carmaker now has the hoffmeister kink and a fastback roof. There's just not much you can do with a door and window.

The sorrento front lights do look kinda like the honda civic or acura tsx. But overall, you wouldn't confuse the kia with a honda.

kia and hyundai make generic looking cars for generic people who just need a generic appliance to move from point A to B.