ghosthunter

source
http://www.hyundai-blog.com/index.ph...eplace-sonata/


the 2010 Hyundai Sonata, a cross between current TL and Audi looks far better (i.e. Elegant) than the purposed 4th gen TL.

I was turned off by Hyundai's customer service few years ago, but their recent car design is very inspirational. Acura should learn something from it.

xenonhid

Yeah, I think that should have been the 09 TSX, compact, and sporty. Yet they made the 09 TSX fatter, longer, and heavier ????

TL should get a larger design IMO.

Acura's logic = thrown out the window......

carlos9827

iTrader: (2)

I saw a new loaded Hyundai Elantra at school the other day, When I first glanced at it, from the angle I saw it (right rear) I thought it was an 09 TSX!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I know others will agree that this is true. I don't think I would ever buy a Hyundai but their designs are getting BETTER and BETTER year after year, besides I haven't heard of any major problems with them. My cousin had a 2003 Hyundai Tiburon GT, he bought it brand new in April 2002. I have to admit I really liked that car, he recently traded it in couple years ago with 75k miles and he never had any problems with it, the new line of Hyundai's are very nice ranging from the Sonata to the Veracruz (SUV)

KeithL

Yeah Acura shoudl steal some Hyundai designers!! The Genesis is a real nice car, the 09 Sonata refresh looks great for what it is, a nice refresh on the Azera and they have a nice sedan line, also here is where Hynudai is doing right, there are very clear family resemblence across their sedans, then look at Acura, other than the grill I struggle to look at a TSX, TL and RL and see the obvious similarities.

Peters

Couldn't agree more. Here's the Genesis which I really like.

xenonhid

Couldn't agree more,


The Hyundai designs are becoming more and more balanced and aesthetically pleasing.




See, the 04-08 Acura lineup was successful because the two dominant themes in their design layout was.....

1) Clean and Sharp Design

2) and BALANCE. Everything just came "together".


But it seems Acura as lost its way. I think the early sales figures are going to drop off after the hype. People are going to realize the design flaws after their friends point it out to them, sad to say.

static808

Hyundai designs are basically last-gen Mercedes designs. Still have no clue why Mercedes hasn't sued them regarding the grille.

Their cars are getting better though. I saw a Genesis on the road, nice car but for $40K I'd get a 4th Gen TL SH-AWD.

If Hyundai was so proud of their flagship, why no badge on the hood. Embarrassed? Or do they want people to think its a 2002 Mercedes S-Class that was debadged at a airport parking lot?

At least Acura is trying to become more distinct. In the long run, Acura will survive and the redesign of the TL will be more positive then negative. 4Gen Acura TL is similar to the most recent 5 series design. Which was a radical departure from the norm. It should work but we'll need to see it first.

AcidHorse

[QUOTE=xenonhid;9949809]Yeah, I think that should have been the 09 TSX, compact, and sporty. Yet they made the 09 TSX fatter, longer, and heavier ????

[QUOTE]

What do you expect? Americans are getting fatter and heavier with a disregard for their health. Acura is just conforming to the people that are going to buy their products.

smsTL

iTrader: (1)

I hate Hyundai!

KeithL

I woudl encorage you to take a Genesis out for a spin, I did a few weeks ago. It is no TL in the handling department, but not a bad ride. The materials seem top notch and the styling is very nice. Still mixed on the dash layout in the center stack area. Also not a big fan of the leather dash, but overall the car was nice. The Navia screen was awesome, and the Lexicon sound system made the ELS in the TL sound like budget AM/FM. They are already dealing on the Genesis and I have seen 2 on the road already. The fit and finish actually seems better than the TL.

Peters

Why?

Peters

I can't believe it, but I find this 2009 model more visually appealing.

Mpunk

I agree that the Genesis looks pretty awesome on paper and the reviews on it have been pretty favorable, if not slightly skeptical that Hyundai is still able to turn a profit on it (unlike the '90 Lexus LS400, which was sold at a slight loss upon introduction).

The few things I really hate about the car is that they didn't carry the original concept car's front end styling and the tail lights. The concept car was totally bad-ass and even though the LED headlamps would've never made it to production, it would've been nice to retain the original angular shape. This is what the Infiniti M35/M45 shouldv'e been.

I know they have to tone things down for production models b/c of cost, feasibility, etc., but I don't see how the shape of the tail lights and front end would've been cost prohibitive. It's like Hyundai got too scared and dumbed it down to look like a bloated '04 Infiniti I35 instead.

KeithL

Never did see the concept Genesis before, hell I woudl mortgage the house for that car, very beautiful lines. Yeh the new Genesis is a bit toned down, but still elegant. What I never understand is wht concept cars liek theses that are not over the top radical never make it as is. I can easily see this car selling well for some time, they always scale it back. I am so lenaing toward a deep discount 08 G35 now and just giving up on Acura for a while. I love my 08 Type-S, but the fit and finish issues drive me nuts. I was at a light next to an 07/08 G35 yeatersday and it really hit me how tight that G35 is, the body gaps at the door panels and truck were almost non-existent compared to the TL. The way the the bumpers are so perfectly hung on every car and yet the TL bumpes alwys seem off a bit. Acura engineers a good mechanical car, but needs to step it up in build quality and fit and finish.

phile

The concept Genesis looked way better than the production. I don't even know why they couldn't have kept the grille the same. That's one of the things I don't like about the production Genesis. The other being that they totally scrapped the concept and instead took bits of Mercedes, Lexus and Acura RL and pieced them together to make a good looking, but generic, car.

RyanCHICL

iTrader: (1)

That Sonata looks pretty nice for the drawing.

ghttf

invisiblewar

^ what a fucking horrible comparison, you my friend are retarded

Razzi

you know it's a bad day for acura when guys on an acura forum are praising a hyundai over their top selling car

CG2PROJECT

qft

JediMindTricks

joerockt?

and it's been awhile since i saw the genesis concept.

and while i think the genesis looks very nice, that concept looks crazy. wow.

ThermonMermon

as acura sales continue to fall, they have decided to take on more risk on radical design styling. more risk, more reward. but these design elements so far, have been "generically sporty" tack-ons. fender flares, corner bumper bulges, skewed headlights. lets not forget, tack-ons = tacky. as acura slapped on these styling cues in hopes to inspire more potential buyers, they decided in the end that they would need some type of unified branding across the line-up....hmm...it must be an oversized, flashy, noticable, and unprecedented...i got it, the plenum power grille.

ultimately, they have been churning out beastly creations that-
A. Have little resemblance to previous generation model
B. A palette of random "attractors" that are unfitting
C. A disgusting grille as a signifier. (oh, and did i mention acuras "vicious V" which rears its ugly head in any oppurtunity possible. lets thank this design element for making the front and rear of the TL undistinguishable.)

Ken1997TL

I don't like ANY of the new Acura/Hyundai/Lexus/BMW/Mercedes designs

So where does that put me?

Will Y.

SAAB? Dodge?

ThermonMermon

[QUOTE=ThermonMermon;9966830]as acura sales continue to fall, they have decided to take on more risk on radical design styling. more risk, more reward. but these design elements so far, have been "generically sporty" tack-ons. fender flares, corner bumper bulges, skewed headlights. lets not forget, tack-ons = tacky. as acura slapped on these styling cues in hopes to inspire more potential buyers, they decided in the end that they would need some type of unified branding across the line-up....hmm...it must be an oversized, flashy, noticable, and unprecedented...i got it, the plenum power grille.
QUOTE]

Ok, im quoting myself...this may be a bit narcissistic.

this theory is applicable to any manufacturer with dying sales. (while disregarding oil factor). Any company trying to reinvent a new image seems to not be doing such a good job. Also, there has been a huge turn in design over the past 5 years. engineering tighter fitting body panels and sheetmetal creases are now mastered. designers have the freedom of a blank canvas. it wasnt too long ago that cars were limited to 1/2" body panel gaps and "bumper car" bumpers. in this day and age there is limitless design. more room for error. the opportunity to have a radical creation. and this produced more opionated spectators. not too boot, consumers are ever more so swayed by marketing techniques. this has actually translated directly to the automotive industry. by veering away from traditional car design with unprecedented, radical designs, comes the polarized viewpoint of "hate it or love it" commentary. 10 years ago, cars were never "hate it or love it."

Sly Raskal

iTrader: (1)

Audi, Volvo, Mini? Personally, I love the look of the Civic SI sedan. If I didn't get the used Integra or the Avant, that is the car I would have bought in a heartbeat as a car for daily driving.

S14 n Tsx

good one, retard.

iforyou

iTrader: (1)

I think one of the reasons for the fit and finish issues is that the 08 TL is in its last year of production, the car came out in 2004. I'd imagine a newer car generally should have better quality.

iforyou

iTrader: (1)

IMO, shrinking the grille on the new TL would make the car look much better:

nokiaman

The lines and form of that new Sonata looks pretty appealing imo.

juniorbean

iTrader: (5)

I'm the same way, although I can't say I don't like any of the BMW or Mercedes designs.

However, where it put us was into Audi's. On our second one and love them...

Peters

Just look at this 2009 - Looks great to me.

majin ssj eric

If they would have just slapped the current Tl's grill on the new one instead of that stupid shield crap the car would look fine....

nspec_ya4

iTrader: (38)

i've worked on some of the new hyundais i.e. removed door panels, etc.
and i gotta tell u guys, i was highly amazed by the quality of work man ship they've been putting in to their vehicles.

The way their doors were put together were just like mercedes and bmws.

I do PDR and was fixing a dent on the new Veracruz, the quality of the metal is also almost as same as the Mercedes and Beamers, way better than Honda or Toyota.



I'm still not sure about the reliability of hyundias, but their quality has improved about 20 times.

and on the side note, i've been pretty unsatisfied w/ the workman ship of the new hondas. the way they're putting their new cars together is just like american cars. The quality is not the same any more.

Toyota is just like its always been.

I haven't had a chance to tear down a newer acura yet. I hope they atleast put some xtra work in to those.


Even though i still like hondas and toyotas, I would NOT mine buying a new Hyundai for a dialy driver.


oh yeah, by the way, Hyundai IS losing money on the new Genisis, next year, the prices should go up.

nokiaman

Looks really really good.

007Acura

I think it looks fine the way it is

if u think this front is ugly what about the cts?

1killercls

...Paint the big chrome piece next to the hood the same color as the hood.

FiveLiterCheater

Heres my photoshop...

iforyou

iTrader: (1)

This should be the normal TL:


And this should be the TL SH-AWD:

Whiskers

^^Does the nicer grill add HP and AWD?