I've been a fan of the Hyundai Azera since it made its debut in 2006, but the Azera has never been a hit with the public, and in the last couple of years sales have slowed to a trickle. For 2012, Hyundai has given the Azera a complete re-do, and now it's the car that it always should have been -- handsome outside, posh inside, loaded with standard features, and priced so low that you'll wonder if one or more of Hyundai's accountants have a drinking problem.
First Glance: What's in a name?
Back in Hyundai's home market of South Korea, silly car names are the order of the day. You might drive to work in your Hyundai Getz and spend the morning making deliveries with a Kia Bongo. If you're lucky, your boss will take you to lunch in his SsangYong Chairman W -- unless he's a gearhead, in which case it'll be a white-knuckle ride in his twin-turbo Oullim Spirra EX.
Over there, the car we know as the Azera is called the Hyundai Grandeur. Grandeur is defined by Webster's dictionary as "The state of being grand; magnificence." And while Grandeur might not roll off the tongue the way Azera does, now that the car has been completely redesigned for 2012, it's a much more apt description.
While the old Azera was a bit of an anonymous blob, the new one looks -- well, rather grand. From the front, the new Azera bears a strong family resemblance to the Sonata, but out back, there's a long, flowing, almost fastback-like rear end, with a back window that runs nearly to the trailing edge of the car. It emulates the hatchback/coupe look now in vogue with German automakers, but unlike the Volkswagen CC and Audi A7, there's no sacrificing of back-seat headroom -- the Azera's shape is practical as well as attractive.
In the Driver's Seat: Extreme luxury, extreme value
From the moment I sat in the Azera's comfortable leather seats and felt my elbows ooze into the softly-padded armrests, I knew the Azera and I would get along just fine. Grandeur, indeed -- this is Hyundai at their best, and it shows in the logical control layout, the top-quality materials, and the smooth, well-damped feel of all the controls. Only one detail really stuck out, and that was the wide gap between the doors and the dashboard -- it really interrupts the flow of the dash into the rest of the interior. Surely Hyundai could have engineered a better fit, couldn't they?
But there are no such glitches in the back seat. The Azera isn't quite as roomy as a Buick LaCrosse, but it offers more rear-seat legroom than a Lexus ES350 or Hyundai's own Sonata, and the trunk checks in at a generous 16.3 cubic feet.
If you're looking for a low-priced, stripped-down Azera, you'll be disappointed; you'll have to make due with a low-priced loaded-up Azera. Standard equipment includes -- better sit down, it's a long list -- leather, navigation, power-adjustable front seats, heated front and rear seats, dual-zone climate control, an air conditioned glovebox, rear-view camera, automatic headlights, Bluetooth speakerphone, iPod compatible stereo with XM and HD radio, keyless entry and ignition, and BlueLink, which is Hyundai's answer to GM's OnStar. As for the price -- how does $32,875 grab you? That's about seven grand less than a comparably-equipped Lexus ES350.
The Azera is offered with a single option, the Technology Package, which includes a 12-speaker Infinity stereo, air conditioned front seats, memory function for the driver's seat, power-adjustable steering column, panoramic sunroof, sunshades for the rear and rear-side windows, a panoramic sunroof, a parking assistance system, and interior mood lighting. So equipped, the Azera lists for $36,895. Can you name another new car that offers all that equipment for such a low price? I can't.
On the Road: Ordinary is okay
So how did Hyundai keep the price down? I imagine the humble mechanical bits helped quite a bit. The 2012 Azera is based on the outgoing model, which itself is based on the previous-generation Sonata. The Azera's suspension is tuned for a soft, quiet, isolated ride; I expected the handing to be yacht-like, but the Azera actually responds crisply when you tug at the wheel -- in fact, I like the steering feel better than the latest batch of front-drive Hyundais. The Azera is certainly no BMW, but nor is it a Lexus; it handles emergency swerves and sweeping on-ramps with grace and dignity.
For power, Hyundai wanted an engine that would separate the Azera from the all-four-cylinder lineup in the Sonata while still retaining some semblance of decent fuel economy. So they took the old Azera's 3.3 liter "Lambda" V6 and added direct fuel injection, boosting horsepower to 293 and torque to 255 lb-ft. (The old 3.3 produced 263 hp and 233 lb-ft.) It's the same story as the handling: The Azera isn't over-the-top fast, but it has plenty of power for merging and passing, and packs the torquey punch and smooth-sounding engine note that V6s are expected to deliver. EPA fuel economy estimates are 20 MPG city and 29 MPG highway, a tad better than average compared to other large front-drive sedans.
Journey's End: A heck of a deal with limited appeal
As you can tell, I'm a big fan of the new Azera. If you can do without cutting-edge driving dynamics or high-tech gadgets like radar cruise control or a lane-departure warning system, the Azera is the best deal you're going to find on a luxury car, bar none. Toss in the long warranty and ever-increasing resale values, and it's difficult to see why one would pass up an Azera in favor of rivals like the Buick LaCrosse, Toyota Avalon, Lexus ES350, or even the newly-updated Acura TL.
The Azera still faces one huge speed bump: It's squeezed between two very appealing products, the Sonata and the Genesis Sedan. The Azera is designed for buyers who want a traditional V6-powered mid-size sedan, people who might be turned off by the Sonata's all-four-cylinder lineup but don't want to pay for the rear-drive hardware in the Genesis (not that Hyundai charges much for it). It's a slim group of buyers that will only get slimmer as gas gets pricier and buyers discover the advantages of modern, direct-injected turbo four-cylinders like the one that powers the Sonata.
Actually, it'd be nice to see an Azera with a turbo four-cylinder, or maybe a hybrid drivetrain, and perhaps some more advanced high-tech features. But such an Azera might also eat into Sonata and Genesis sales, and we can't have that, now can we? Good as the new Azera is, it's almost a shame that Hyundai is aiming it at a market that is likely to disappear. Perhaps the grandeur of this car will broaden its appeal. -- Aaron Gold
What I liked about the Hyundai Azera:
- High-class luxury interior
- Unbeatable value-for-money
- Should have decent resale values
What I didn't like:
- Hobbled by its "traditional" market position
- Unremarkable fuel economy
- That one annoyingly big panel gap
Description:
- Azera is slightly bigger, more posh, and more traditional than the mid-size Sonata
- Price range: $32,875 - $36,895
- Powertrain: 3.3 liter V6/293 hp, 6-speed automatic, front-wheel-drive
- EPA fuel economy estimates: 20 MPG city/29 MPG highway
- Best rivals: Buick LaCrosse, Lexus ES350, Acura TL
No comments:
Post a Comment