spwolf

It pretty much has same options as Avalon.. i like it, like affordable CLS.

Rolotomasu

iTrader: (1)

Surprisingly, that's not a bad looking car. It's hard to pass up Toyota reliability, even considering their recent troubles.

BNR34

iTrader: (1)

Do the latest Avalon have manual side curtain?

The 1st Toyota that got it was my UL LS430, now my co-worker's Sienna has it.

BNR34

iTrader: (1)

We don't know if the latest Hyundai products have any less reliability then Toyota though. Hyundai have improved in a huge way and Toyota have gone down. My guess is they are really close now as far as reliability goes.

spwolf

i am not sure how true is that or not, regular sonata seems to be fine so far, but for instance hybrid has more issues than any toyota in the history.

i think we will know more about reliability in 2 years from now.

spwolf

what is manual side curtain? thorax airbags?

BNR34

iTrader: (1)

TRDFantasy

Upcoming next-gen ES will surely blow this away, and I imagine the next-gen Avalon likely will as well.

You also don't know if Hyundai's products are anywhere close to Toyota long-term reliability. The onus is on Hyundai vehicles to prove themselves over the long-run. So far, even the new Hyundai models have a variety of quality and reliability-related issues that comparable Toyota models have not had.

Blackraven

For the sake of that car, it better. Because just looking at the current drab of boredom is simply just unbearable.



Just looking at it is guaranteed to reduce your maximum lifespan.

This is the perfect Toyota vehicle for those whose life is so boring that no one would care if you're dead.

Lol, you could just vomit or become disorientated by this sea of boredom. It's so bad that when I look at an ES350 (especially the MMC facelift), I can at least see some dynamism and sportiness........and even if many consider the ES350 as a glorified Asian Camry, it looks great and sells quite well (i.e. the car is currently in the TOP 3 of Lexus Manila most sold vehicles; heck it outsells the 2IS even by a small margin).

For the current Avalon though, all I can say is that it's so f***ing boring that I'd be dead long before I even set foot in this vehicle.

P.S.
Hey you know what. They should convert these things into hearses and funeral cars. What a way to represent loss of life with a vehicle that looks so damn lifeless

spwolf

Avalon IS made for old people though... they purposely made it that way... which is why i find it surprising that they will do some crazy car and call it avalon.

although, in real life pics, avalon doesnt look anywhere as bad... reminds me of cross between gs and es.

BNR34

iTrader: (1)

I hope so. One reason I love Hyundai putting out great product is so it put pressure on Toyota to make more amazing cars. I feel that the current generation of all Toyota/Lexus are not as great as they were before, due to lack of competitions.

Agreed 100%.

Like what? In the recent few years, I hear more issues and recalls on Toyota/Lexus then Hyundai. But it is true that all great Hyundai models are pretty much all brand new, not enough times for the issues to surface yet.

BNR34

iTrader: (1)

I agreed with you, it is boring looking. But I am with spwolf, it is designed that way on purpose to appeal to old people. It is not a mistake, they know exactly what they are doing.

haha....funny. In reality though, hearses are only build on full size RWD sedan for the obvious reason of the big load on the rear axle, so the FWD Avalon won't work. Hearses in Japan are all Crown or Celsior/LS430, which they are also like you said, super boring looking.

spwolf

i doubt that Azera will have quality interior or drive as Lexus ES... just like Sonata doesnt ride as well as Camry, and Azera has same interior design as Elantra and Sonata.

But that being said, ES will be 5k-10k more expensive...

Its true competitor is Avalon, and Avalon is built for old people so I am sure Azera will sell well.... i find Hyundai's lowball figure for sales surprising.

BNR34

iTrader: (1)

I love the interior design of the Elantra and Sonata, much cooler then any Accord/Camry/Civic/Corolla. My co-worker got a new Sonata, I don't feel it being any lesser then a comparable Camry.

I would guess the Azera will be just like the Genesis sedan, the Genesis comparing to the GS, is 20% lesser car for 20% less money. The Azera comparing to the ES350 might probably be the same formula, 20% lesser car for 20% less money. So yes I would think the new Azera will have a slightly less quality interior with slightly cheaper material and drive a bit less smooth then an ES350, but is $5k~$10k cheaper.

That's why I never think any of the new Hyundai offerings as a good deal, they are just offering slightly less for slightly less money. Only the Equus have a little higher value, it is 10~20% lesser car for 20~30% less money compare to the LS460.

That is Hyundai's intent, they said it, they are not trying to compete with Lexus at all, they are offering slightly lesser products for slightly less money. Same approach as Lexus really, Lexus are suppose to be a cheaper alternative to Benz, but it just happen that Lexus have better engineering and actually offer more.

akbergq

I had a 2009 camry and have a household member that has a 2010 or 2011 sonata. Both vehicles I have driven for about a year (mind you that a 2011 camry and 2009 camry drive the same)

I can actually say that the sonata beats the crap out of the camry in drive alone. It feels better and more rewarding than a floating boater like the camry. The interior is 10x better and the car looks 10x better. As far as reliability, the camry and sonata are about the same. However I have seen more issues recalls and problems with toyota recently than hyundai mind you.

Toyota has good products but hyundai has come a long way in offering better value from an apples to apples comparison between both brands.

On topic - im no spokesperson for hyundai but after seeing results from products like their new sonata and upcoming azera, i can say that this azera will be an appealing overall package. It is surprising why they would only want to sell 17000 a year in the US. Thats a lowball. It sells like hot pancakes in korea.