i feel hyundai's been making some major improvements over the past few years and their new models have been gaining solid reviews and recognition.

i understand that it will still take some time to rid people of their ignorance against hyundai. but eventually, i strongly feel that hyundai will be a brand that can compete with the likes of its japanese counterparts: honda, toyota, nissan, etc. actually, i think hyundai is really going after toyota. seems like a lot of hyundais models and future models are directly competing against toyotas. i remember hearing how a toyota exec is most afraid of hyundai.

anyhow, even though hyundai's still got a lot to learn, how soon can we expect hyundai to start creating and selling an upscale brand to compete with lexuses (lexi?), infinitis, and acuras?

 

100 years

 

Maybe they need to start making their own transmissions first. It's hard to go after Toyota when your cars come with Toyota transmissions...

 

Really? I did not know that. Wow, I guess you learn something new everyday.....

 

What would they call the brand?

 

didn't know that hyundai was using transmissions built by toyota.

here's an article i found:

http://www.businessweek.com/magazine...9/b3962066.htm

it's old, from last year. but it looks it's in the works. when? who knows..

------------------
BMW, Mercedes -- And Hyundai?
Not quite, but the carmaker is gunning for the luxury market

Amid the current spate of riches-to-rags tales in the auto industry, Hyundai Motor Co. stands out for moving in the other direction. Since 1999, Korea's largest carmaker has transformed itself from an easy target for late-night comedians into a global leader in quality. In the process, the company has grown faster than any other major auto maker, setting up factories, research centers, and design labs worldwide, including its first U.S. plant -- in Alabama -- in May.

Now Hyundai is hitting the accelerator again. Aiming to shed forever its image as a builder of crude econo-boxes, Hyundai is moving upscale. In the U.S., the campaign revs up in December. That's when Hyundai plans the American launch of the Azera, the most expensive car it has ever sold in the U.S. "It is the first model for our metamorphosis," says Kim Jae Il, senior executive vice-president for overseas business. "Other models will follow to make Hyundai a premium brand."

THE SAMSUNG PLAYBOOK
Will anybody want a premium Hyundai? Company executives think 40,000 Americans will buy Azeras next year and 100,000 will do so the year after. The sedan is expected to go head-to-head with Toyota's (TM ) Avalon, Nissan's (NSANY ) Maxima, and Ford's (F ) 500. But with sticker prices ranging from $25,000 to $30,000, the Azera will come in anywhere from $1,600 to $4,000 lower than its rivals. "Our key strategy is to ensure our customers get the equipment they really want at a fair price," says John Krafcik, vice-president for development and strategic planning at Hyundai's U.S. sales subsidiary.

In that, Hyundai is taking a page from the playbook of its compatriot Samsung Electronics Co. Since 2000, Korea's other giant has changed its image from that of a cheap, low-quality manufacturer to a high-end contender by offering feature-packed cell phones. Similarly, Hyundai plans to offer oodles of extras as standard fare and hopes to make a name for itself as a leader in safety at the same time. Safety will be "a key part of our DNA," says Krafcik.

Take the Azera. The base model is equipped with extras normally reserved for the high end: eight air bags, electronic stability control, a traction control system, rain-sensing wipers, a six-CD changer, and a power rear sunshade that retracts when the driver puts the car into reverse. The Azera replaces the XG350, an earlier stab at the luxury market that never took off. After the XG350's lackluster sales -- it peaked at just 18,000 units, in 2003 -- Hyundai studied its mistakes. Customers found that model's ride too mushy, its engine underpowered, and its lines a bit stodgy. So to give the Azera more oomph, Hyundai developed a 3.8-liter aluminum V6 engine, called Lambda, which Hyundai says will rocket the sedan to 60 miles per hour in 6.5 seconds, on par with many luxury sedans. It beefed up the suspension and streamlined the design. And the car's cabin is roomier than the Avalon, the Mercedes-Benz (DCX ) S-Class, and BMW's 7 Series.

The Azera, though, is only the beginning. In 2007 the company will roll out a true luxury model, with a U.S. debut the following year, possibly under an upmarket nameplate like Toyota's Lexus or Honda's Acura. The car, code-named BH, will be the Korean carmaker's first rear-wheel-drive sedan and will sport a powerful 4.6-liter engine to make it a rival of the BMW 5 series. "We still have to overcome a perception problem, but we have confidence in our new lineup of vehicles," says Brandon Yea, Hyundai's marketing director.

Investors and drivers seem to have confidence, too. Hyundai's stock has soared 51% in the past six months as the company projects sales will jump 12% this year, to $35 billion. That growth will help boost net profit by 35%, to $2.3 billion, Daewoo Securities estimates. Koreans, meanwhile, have bought 40,000 Azeras since its launch in May, and today there's a one-month waiting list. "I've driven Mercedes and BMWs, but I'm happy with my new car in every measure," says 43-year-old Henry Oh, a sales director at a logistics company in Seoul, who bought an Azera in September.

Critics, however, say it may be tough for Hyundai to break into the luxury segment. "Hyundai has to make its brand carry prestige if it wants to be a major player," says Park Sung Jin, an analyst at Hannuri Investment & Securities in Seoul. "But I don't see Hyundai competing head-on with the likes of BMW anytime soon." Although the Azera will help boost Hyundai's image, Park says the company may have trouble reaching its ambitious sales targets. Some also wonder whether the move toward bigger cars makes sense as oil prices skyrocket. Hyundai executives answer that the new models will be snapped up by customers trading down from even bigger gas guzzlers. The Azera gets a respectable 19 mpg in the city and 28 on the highway.

SOCCER MOM APPEAL
Hyundai is taking its sport-utility vehicles upmarket, too. The Tucson, introduced in the U.S. last year, will cover the low end of the segment, while a revamped Santa Fe will target more upscale buyers. The company on Nov. 22 unveiled the new Santa Fe in Korea and expects to introduce it in the U.S. next year. The SUV, bigger and more expensive than today's model, is aimed squarely at Toyota's Highlander. The engine is 20% bigger than the current Santa Fe's. The car's styling will change from a rugged, muscular look to more refined, sleek lines designed to appeal to soccer moms. The Santa Fe also will have an optional third row of seats to accommodate seven people, compared with a maximum capacity of five in the current model. And like the Azera, the new Santa Fe will have numerous air bags, electronic stability control, antilock brakes, and active headrests -- all standard. Sticker price? About $2,000 more than the $22,000 to $24,000 that this year's model costs, compared with $25,000 to $31,000 for a 2006 Highlander.

While Hyundai is hardly a luxury brand today, it already has shifted upscale in recent years. In 2002, Hyundai models sold for 15% below comparable Toyotas across the board, company executives say. Today, that gap has narrowed to less than 10%, though Hyundai typically offers more extras as standard features. In October, Hyundai grabbed a record 5.7% share in the fiercely competitive mid-size sedan segment with its new Sonata, a revamped model designed to challenge Toyota's Camry. That compares with 4.3% last year and 1% in 1999. The Sonata is a crucial test for Hyundai's U.S. business as it is the first car built in its Alabama factory. Helped by the new Sonata, Hyundai expects its U.S. sales to climb to 470,000 vehicles this year from 418,600 in 2004 and 164,190 six years ago. Next year, Hyundai intends to sell 570,000 cars in the U.S.

As it pushes upmarket, the Korean carmaker isn't ignoring smaller cars. Next year it plans to launch a new Elantra compact and a revamped Accent subcompact. But Hyundai wants the Sonata, Azera, and the SUVs to account for the bulk of its U.S. sales, with the Alabama plant churning out 25,000 Sonatas and Santa Fes every month starting next spring. In these troubled times for the U.S. auto industry, numbers like that are no joke.

 

Oh - Toyota transmissions aren't bad by any stretch of the imagination. It's just hard to go up against one of your key suppliers and not expect any backlash.

 

I saw the new Hyundai Santa Fe go past me...for a second I thought I was looking at a Mercedes. Nice job.

 

they are doing just fine.. I can't wait to see one too.

 

I haven't see one yet but heard many good things about them.

 

I totally agree, IMO if Honda doesn't watch out Hyundai WILL surpass them.

 

i remember the first time i saw one on the road, and i thought it looked so sharp and sleek.

my girlfriend and i are korean, and she couldn't believe it was a hyundai.

 

It's just a matter of time... The Sonata looks like a pretty decent vehicle to me...

Acura started in 1986 around the same time that Hyundai Excel came out... so given that timeline, I'd say give 'em another 25 years or so...

Most of the peeps here don't remember the humble beginnings of Hondas automotive division.

Honda made a roadster (s360) in the 60's that had a chain to drive the rear wheels !!

http://www.hondasportsregistry.com/about.php

 

I keep hoping Hyundai takes some cues from their own designs, like this HCD7 concept from a few years ago:

 

So? BMW used a GM auto transmission in the last gen 5-series.

Parts sharing between companies is common these days. It means nothing. One supplier can and actually does do business with many different manufacturers. Manufacturers sell parts to one another. It's common.

Hyundai is actually the 6th largest automaker in the world, bigger than Honda and Nissan. The Hyundai you see in the U.S. accounts for an extremely small portion of the Hyundai empire around the globe. Hyundai is into shipbuilding, electronics, textiles, construction, heavy machinery, mass transportation, the list goes on and on. It is one of the largest corporations in the world.

Will Hyundai launch a new, upscale division in the U.S.? That remains to be seen. Is Hyundai making improvements? Hell, yes. Are they ready to expand? I think so.

 

They have a come a long way! But they still have a ways to come.

 

I doubt it. Even Acura owners on this site say "Who the hell would buy a $50,000 Acura/Honda?"

I say, who the hell would buy a $40,000 Hyundai? No one would even buy the $30,000 XG.

I would think they would see an upscale Hyundai brand in South Korea before we see it over here in NA.

 

They already have done it past 5 years. Azera is the one of the most expensive car in Korea. The U.S. is actually getting real good deal for the car. In Korea, you are looking at around 60-70k dollar car or even more but more option.

 

I agree. They have not totally lost the poor rep, but they have come a long way. I would also say that it's going to be another 20 years of good quality cars before they lose the "excel" stigma. Look how far Toyota has come when they were considered crap in the 70's... Also, not really the same comparrison, but Infiniti has done quite welll in recent years after their poor marketing efforts in the late 80's/90's. Bottom line, it takes time.