A Ride in the 2011 Hyundai Equus With HMA CEO John Krafcik

so why would anybody buy this over a lexus ls, s class, or new xj? this is still a hyundai with many parts shared with the cheaper genisis and fake aluminum trim...

Although I applaud Hyundai's 1st efforts far making a large luxury flagship they must understand that it needs to be more exclusive in terms of sharing parts. I know they tried to keep the price in check but I think they could have spent a bit more money and gave their flagship its own parts.

I've seen it in person and the Equus is impressive. It has the presence of a flagship Lexus, Mercedes, etc

They are all black in Korea it seems. But it looks stunning in black. It has that high quality look that is so hard to achieve and few cars have.
When I first saw it, I had no idea what it was and thought maybe a new Maybach or Lexus. You don't get a sense of it from these pictures but it's the real deal.

I don't know how it will do in the US but it is a quality product and it won't fail on it's merits, that's for sure.

I'm no Hyundai cheerleader either. I really like german sports sedans but the Equus is impressive.

As for parts sharing, you better talk to Mercedes, Lexus and everyone else about that as well.

I'm not a fan of the front grill. Looks cheap and reminds me of a lincoln.

The inside of the car looks great.

I think whether it will succeed in U.S. depends on the definition of success. I doubt Hyundai dealerships who routinely advertises "Why buy used? You can get a brand new car for less than 10k!" are really ready to sell 50-60k luxury vehicle, and getting luxury car buyers seriously interested in a 50k Hyundai will be a pretty tough (nearly impossible even) task.

However, it will succeed in the role of a halo car, a reminder to buyers of all budgets that Hyundai is really capable of producing a quality luxury vehicle. Now, consider that Equus is very much established car in Hyundai's home market of Korea (where top of the line models go for over 100k). It's already a quite profitable product line for Hyundai, so it's not like they are pouring money on an unprofitable halo car project. The cost of bringing the car to the U.S. will be significant, and Hyundai may very well never recoup that cost here. But it will undeniably raise its brand image in ways that no amount of advertisement dollars can do. If that translates to better sales for Genesis's and Sonata's, then this endeavor would certainly be considered as a success.

just too funny to see people talk about fake aluminum and that is the only reason why they prefer other manufacturers. LOL!!!!!!!!!! Come on, when you actually get in a car, do you really care whether it is real or fake aluminum?? I drive a bimmer 745i and I don't give a damn.

Oh by the way, I would definitely buy this car over MB S class, BMW 7 Series, and of course not to mention about Lexus LS (one i think that has worst design).

Luxurious perhaps; styling is horrendously unattractive but extremely gaudy and "in your face"=urban drug dealers have found their replacement for the Escalade.

I have no doubt that the Equus is going to be an extremely accomplished and impressive luxury sedan, but Hyundai is flattering themselves to think it is going to steal S-Class sales. If I was Mercedes I would definitely worry about losing E-Class sales to the larger and more exclusive Hyundai, but if you have the money you are not going to settle for the Equus (especially if brand cache matters). The Benz has an attention to detail and quality of execution that can only come from decades of careful evolution. Plus, the S-Class has about twice the amount of available technology (making it the clear choice for techno-philes) and will undeniably perform better.

I am not trying to be a snob here, but the S seems like a bargain at its $90K base price. It isn't that the Equus isn't good, it is just that the S is impossibly good.

@cruiserhead1-
I can't speak for Lexus or BMW, but the S-Class and CL-Class don't share a single interior trim piece with any other Mercedes model. The design is similar, but the flagships get real metals/woods/hand-stitchedleathers while lower end models often get plastic.

They need to pop that blackhead in the middle of the grill and ditch the tacky hood ornament.

This is gonna clobber Lexus, Infiniti, Acura, Lincoln and maybe Caddy. The bargain basement Luxo lines (Lexus, Acura and Infiniti) are gonna get smacked by this thing.

Please save your brand-toting drama mercedesfan. Merc has been a piece of crap for over a decade and just now waking up to the fact they have to make quality cars again.
The E coupe is based on the C class and if you don't think there is parts sharing up and down the range, denial ain't just a river in africa.

You have the antiquated notions of people laughing at Toyota and Lexus as they entered the markets. In fact, unwilling to actually take note of the actual product but base factless opinion on those notions.

I have no problem singing the praises of my fav euro brands but also call it like I see it with them too. Mercedes in particular flushed their reputation down the drain and are just starting to try and rebuild it.

The Equus is a great entry into the market and rightfully deserves due consideration in the price range they are asking. Just as with the Genesis, the Equus gives you a lot for the money. But then again, I actually have experienced the product.

It is also a FAR better entry than anything Acura has ever done in attempting to enter this market. It's on par with Lexus in many respects- and imo, handily beats the Lexus in presence and commanding attention.

compliance,
the emblems and hood ornament are Korean market badging.

In similar fashion,
Genesis are labeled with a winged 'genesis' emblem not in the USA.

GENESIS is actually a brand- like Lexus - but they changed their strategy for the USA and made it a Hyundai. I think there was resistence from the US dealerships on setting up a new Genesis dealership storefront for these premium cars.

@cruiser-

You attacked me for points I never made. I never claimed that there wasn't parts sharing among Mercedes lines, just that the flagships do not share visible parts with other MB models. The S and CL have unique trim pieces found only in those two model lines.

Secondly, I never claimed that MB didn't have a shaky past. The 1999-2006 S-Class was one of the worst Mercedes ever built. However, the new S is unequivocally one of the best cars they have ever made in every sense of quality, reliability, and performance.

I also never denied that the Equus would be a great car, I just cannot imagine it will be truly competitive with the S-Class. It just can't be for that little money, costs had to be cut somewhere. Yeah, I have no personal experience with it, but I do have plenty of experience with the W221. There isn't anything on the road like it.

Does Mercedes have a backpedal or is it just you?

"I also never denied that the Equus would be a great car, I just cannot imagine it will be truly competitive with the S-Class. "
~mercedesfan

"The Equus is a total joke. The car is a complete copy of the Lexus LS430 inside and out. And I don't mean a copy of the proportions like Lexus initially did with Mercedes. I mean complete copy where even certain styling details are exactly the same (although the ugly character line is a Hyundai original). Hyundai will never succeed in the high-end luxury segmant unless they develope some stylistic originality or some engineering ingenuinty. As it is now, they just copy what everyone else does, only they do it in a slightly more user-friendly way for less money."
~mercedesfan
http://blogs.edmunds.com/straightline/2009/07/hyundai-readies-equus-for-us-sales.html#comments

@cruiser-

I am actually surprised no one brought that up earlier because I anticipated it. I never in my previous post said that the Equus was a bad car. I said it was a "joke" in terms of its design. The design is so obviously a Lexus-clone that it is embarassing. Nonetheless, having not read much of anything about it at that point I never commented on the car itself, just the design. Don't read more into that than there was.

Secondly, I do not represent Mercedes nor am I affiliated with them in any way and resent the accusation. I happen to work in the Aerospace industry, not that it is any of your business.

And the Lexus is a clone of the last gen S, so it's a copy of a copy.

I wouldn't worry about who looks like who.

Doesn't matter if it's the Equus, Lexus or S Class, none of them is going to make anyone say "WOW" as it drives the the street.

I'm interested in how it drives and what it's like to ride in. I don't think Hyundai can match the top players yet but am seriously impressed that they are trying.

Nothing makes the big guys jump like an upstart nipping at their heels. For the car buyer there is no downside here.

Now if you could copy the reliability of the Lexus..the handlng of a BMW or Infiniti and the old Mercedes branding without the bling bling, then you would have something. If they would improve the handling of the Genesis Sedan, I would be buy it...I'm sure the Equus will handle similarly..a little non-refined or cushy. The Lexus is too soft for me and the Mercedes sucks after 70K miles for reliabiliy. The value is what makes this car interesting. BMW, Lexus and Mercedes are all overpriced by 7-15K as you move up in classes based on their so called built-in maintenance. Infiniti's are good to lease if you need to buy miles up front at 10 cents per mile..they handle well and you can feel the road..if you drive 10K a year and don't like a driving experience...go with Lexus. You're Bimmer or Benz will be in the shop maintenance or not.

(1) "I just cannot imagine it will be truly competitive with the S-Class. It just can't be for that little money, costs had to be cut somewhere." - mercedesfan

**** The original LS undercut the S Class at the time by tens of thousands and most auto journalists considered it the equal, if not better than the S Class.

Not saying the Equus will do the same, but the price differential largely has to do w/ the difference in currency exchange rates as well as Hyundai pricing in a modest profit.

(2) "I never in my previous post said that the Equus was a bad car. I said it was a "joke" in terms of its design. The design is so obviously a Lexus-clone that it is embarassing."

**** Aside from maybe the rear, the Equus looks nothing like the LS.

Otoh, the LS430 was a virtual clone of the W140 S Class.

W/ regard to parts sharing, the Lexus LS shares power/drivetrains w/ the Toyota Crown Majesta, and Aston Martin and Mercedes have a parts sharing agreement where many components of the S Class are to be shared w/ the new Lagonda (not sure if the Lagonda project is still ongoing).

While Hyundai definitely should have made the metal trim the real thing and not painted plastic, keep in mind the the wood grain around the console for the 2009 S Class was PLASTIC VENEER (for the 2010 model, it was changed to real wood).

"the silver is plastic???
Even a Nissan Murano has real aluminum trim.
Shame on Hyundai!"

**** Yeah, definitely should be the real thing, but the "aluminum" trim on many luxury models are or were painted plastic (i.e. - Infiniti's flagship, the M45 had painted plastic instead of the real thing).

The downside to the real thing, however, is the glare one gets from reflected sunlight.

@j2j-

The Equus could very well be the next LS400, but the Lexus had one major advantage: a brand name that was new and different. I can remember people who bought LS400's purely to be different. I know far too many coleagues who will write the Equus off completely purely because it shares obvious DNA with a $9995 subcompact. Most people are too dumb to realize that the LS shares DNA with an equally cheap subcompact (Toyota Yaris) and the S-Class does as well (European A-Class).

Also, I see nothing but LS430 in the front end and nothing but LS460 in the rear, but I realize styling is purely subjective.

Lastly, I never said I had issue with the Equus' faux brushed aluminum. As an engineer I feel that if it gets the job done and you can save money doing it, by all means go right a head. I find issue with the Hyunda's cheap looking wood grain and unappealing plastic and leather textures. I also think it is worth noting that only the S550 had faux wood around the console, the S63, S600 and S65 all had real, but yes it still should have been real from the get go for $86,000.

Oh I forgot to mention:

@cardawg1-

I have an S550 with over 70,000 miles on it and have never had the thing in for anything but scheduled maintenance. Likewise, my father has a W140 with 250,000 miles on it whose only problem has been failed throttle valve. Even the terrible W220 has held up well mechanically. I know a guy with a 2001 S430 with 160,000 miles on it that has had tons of electrical issues but not a single mechanical failure.

Of course there are Benzes out there that have been mechanical nightmares, but so it is with Honda and Toyota as well.