Spy Shots: Hyundai Genesis interior
The Hyundai Genesis is one of many highly anticipated vehicles for calendar year 2008, with high-end features like RWD and powerful V6 and V8 engines at a Hyundai price. One area of intrigue for the Genesis is the production interior, and the folks over at KGP snapped some very clear shots that leave little to the imagination. The most interesting item in the picture looks like the Audi MMI control with navigation buttons around a joy stick. The interface actually looks a bit classier than that of the much pricier German luxury car, and we're hoping it works much more like the Audi interface than iDrive.The center console looks very Infiniti M45-like, with a chunky appearance and a sloping line with a protruding lip that separates the navigation screen from the rest of the controls. The shift lever has a manual mode, which is almost a forgotten technology in the age of the paddle shifter. The steering wheel is adorned in both leather and a wood-like substance, and it appears to have very simple redundant controls, plus a button for hands-free calling.
The interior wars are heating up much like the wonderful battle for powertrain supremacy, and customers again are the winners. While the Genesis interior may not look as nice as that of the 2008 CTS, try to remember that we're talking about a Hyundai. The folks from South Korea have come a long way in a very short period of time.
[Source: Inside Line]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
XJ 9:55AM (7/27/2007)
"While the Genesis interior may not look as nice as that of the 2008 CTS, try to remember that we're talking about a Hyundai."
Wow, you can already deduce that this interior is inferior to the CTS by looking at some crummy spy pics? Have you even seen the whole interior in production form and open to the public (clean and uncluttered) to make an unbiased comparison? Your piece obviously shows your prejudice of Hyundai cars.
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Mike 10:36AM (7/27/2007)
I fail to see whats so prejudice, for the most part nothing on the article was bad. And I would agree that from what I can see in the spy shots the CTS does look like it has a better interior. Think you need to not be so sensitive.
Chris Shunk 10:55AM (7/27/2007)
I don't think I've got a bias against the Hyundai interior... I just think the CTS will be the new gold standard for interiors... better than a 3 Series or the new C Class... and I like it a little more than the interior of the IS350, but the IS is right up there. The Genesis interior looks good but it's not on my list of top interiors for around $30,000-$40,000. Click on the link below to see the interior from another angle... not that impressive.
http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/MediaNav/articleId=120058/firstNav=Gallery/photoId=37827
Mike 10:07AM (7/27/2007)
Know what sucks about this car?
It's still going to have the reliability and performance of a Hyundai...no matter how many fancy buttons and European-emulated interior accoutrement's you glue in it...
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AlexP 10:09AM (7/27/2007)
And yet another douche fails to realize how much Hyundai has improved.
Ben 8:23PM (7/27/2007)
If the "performance of a Hyundai" includes RWD 300HP V8's then count me in
Mike 10:29AM (7/27/2007)
Douche? Listen $h1tbag, my roomie has owned 3 Hyundai's...Accent, Elantra and the latest Tiburon. He has been back to the shop so much he actually drinks on the weekends with the guys who work in the garage at the dealership. No lie. He keeps buying them for the same reason everyone else does, cheap sticker price and warranty promises.
Everything on his cars has failed, and repeatedly failed, again and again. Wiper motors, clutch position sensors, radio's, starters...I could make a full list but my fingers would get tired.
Hyundai uses sub-standard parts and slaps a huge warranty on them. They sucker you in with a low price car and claim, "If it breaks we will replace it." Yeah, well it does break and you will wind up at the shop and having to pay for a loaner again and again.
Ask any insurance guy or MBA, it's a corporate strategy. They use a $200 starter instead of a $600 one. They charge you $500 for it on the sticker and figure (based on failure rates) that once over the warranty period it will fail and they will have to replace it while thinking, "but hey we still make the $100!" If that starter beats estimates and fails outside the warranty period, they just sold you a p.o.s. and made $300. Lucky them, bad for you.
Drive a new Tiburon then go take a new BMW 325 for a drive. Then go see if you can find a 5 yr old Tiburon to drive and then borrow a 5 yr old 325. If the difference isn't clear to you than you are blinded by your Hyundai fanboy-ness (if you can even find a 5 yr old Tiburon still on the road)...
I agree, Hyundai is making moderately good looking cars with improving interiors...but that doesn't make them well engineered...
Douche...
seoultrain 1:03PM (7/27/2007)
wow, how's that for overreaction? anyway, it's pretty well known that the accent and elantra are not up to the quality of hyundai's other cars. And the Tiburon is a bit dated as well, although it is still a nice car. Anecdotal evidence gets you nowhere. Experience with less than 10 cars means nothing when hundreds of thousands are sold.
As for the 325 vs. Tiburon challenge, it's pretty obvious it'd be pretty pointless.
bob 1:03PM (7/27/2007)
How does that suck? Hyundai reliablity is pretty darn good nowadays, as is performance. A V6 Sonata will stomp damn near every other cars in it's class.
warsteiner89 4:23PM (7/27/2007)
"It's still going to have the reliability and performance of a Hyundai..."
I actually took this as a compliment...
If you think hyundais are cheap and unreliable, don't get one. No need to get so worked up, it's not good for your blood-pressure.
Merkidemis 10:52AM (7/27/2007)
Looks pretty nice! A few too many buttons on the steering wheel for my tastes, but I suppose once you got used to them they would be fine.
"The shift lever has a manual mode, which is almost a forgotten technology in the age of the paddle shifter."
It is? The vast majority of cars I've test driven lately have a manual mode. Paddle shifters are the rarity.
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Mike 10:33AM (7/27/2007)
@AlexP: Douche? Listen, my roomie has owned 3 Hyundai's...Accent, Elantra and the latest Tiburon. He has been back to the shop so much he actually drinks on the weekends with the guys who work in the garage at the dealership. No lie. He keeps buying them for the same reason everyone else does, cheap sticker price and warranty promises.
Everything on his cars has failed, and repeatedly failed, again and again. Wiper motors, clutch position sensors, radio's, starters...I could make a full list but my fingers would get tired.
Hyundai uses sub-standard parts and slaps a huge warranty on them. They sucker you in with a low price car and claim, "If it breaks we will replace it." Yeah, well it does break and you will wind up at the shop and having to pay for a loaner again and again.
Ask any insurance guy or MBA, it's a corporate strategy. They use a $200 starter instead of a $600 one. They charge you $500 for it on the sticker and figure (based on failure rates) that once over the warranty period it will fail and they will have to replace it while thinking, "but hey we still make the $100!" If that starter beats estimates and fails outside the warranty period, they just sold you a p.o.s. and made $300. Lucky them, bad for you.
Drive a new Tiburon then go take a new BMW 325 for a drive. Then go see if you can find a 5 yr old Tiburon to drive and then borrow a 5 yr old 325. If the difference isn't clear to you than you are blinded by your Hyundai fanboy-ness (if you can even find a 5 yr old Tiburon still on the road)...
I agree, Hyundai is making moderately good looking cars with improving interiors...but that doesn't make them well engineered...
Douche...
Reply
1337 10:58AM (7/27/2007)
Isn't the $200 starter and every other powertrain component backed by the immense warranty that Hyundai pioneered?
The base 3-series is now the 328i.
The "latest" Tiburon has not been updated for a long time and desperately needs a redesign. It also costs half what a 328i costs. Don't tell me comparing a sub-$20k FWD coupe with a $40k+ coupe is not douchebaggery. It is.
Try driving a BMW X3 and then driving a Hyundai Veracruz--or even a Santa Fe. The Hyundai SUVs more reliable, are better riding, are larger, cost less similarly equipped, and only handle slightly worse.
DriftPunch 10:35AM (7/27/2007)
Anyone else find it ironic that among some people, Hyundai gets a pass that GM doesn't?
-Mid 80s Hyundai=Crappy Car not even in the same league as the rest
-Mid-late 00s Hyundai=Enormous improvement, nice car, much better styling, not quite as nice other cars, but THE BEST VALUE out there
-Hyundai Reputation=A company looking to perform well in the future and be competitive in all categories produced.
-Mid 80s GM=Crappy Car at the bottom of the 'reasonable' cars available
-Mid-late 00s GM=Enormous improvement, massive interior improvements and more modern exterior styling among other quality improvements. Nearly as good as the Japanese
- GM Reputation- You bastards suck because my mommy's '84 Celebrity was a POS...
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1337 10:50AM (7/27/2007)
Or perhaps, "You suck because whenever you introduce a new car it is 5 years behind the competition." Look at the Cobalt/G5/Ion and Malibu/G6...they were dated before they hit showrooms. GM is certainly not catching up--the 2009 Camaro is designed to compete with the Mustang that came out in 2005! While Hyundai improves, GM continues to blunder along.
Mike 11:06AM (7/27/2007)
@1337: Sure they are under warranty, that is their plan. They will replace it for free, but my time is worth money...and the resale value of the car suffers as well.
Also, it is Hyundai and Hyundai fanboys that draw the parallel between the BMW, MB, Lexus, etc. and Hyundai...I didn't use the 325 as an example by mistake.
The bottom line is that Hyundai is working very hard to improve styling and interiors and proclaiming that they offer similar comfort, performance, etc. to the best in the car business and I think it's a stretch to say so.
BTW, nice user name he he.
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Juan 11:10AM (7/27/2007)
Wish they had better shots. I can't really say that I like it or dislike it. I guess I'll have to wait a few more months to get better shots...
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JeremyClarkson 11:18AM (7/27/2007)
If you wanna see other spyshots of Hyundai Genesis's changed interior, then
Check this out
http://www.bobaedream.co.kr/board/data/data_view.php?code=special&No=75456&page=1&select=&content=&r_no=36&search_gubun=&s_pagescale=&search_day=&Answer=29
Bonus!
If you wanna see newly-publicized Kia Offenbach's interior spyshots
Check out this link also
http://www.bobaedream.co.kr/board/data/data_view.php?code=special&No=75476&page=1&select=&content=&r_no=19&search_gubun=&s_pagescale=&search_day=&Answer=20
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Triboy16 12:49PM (7/27/2007)
"While the Genesis interior may not look as nice as that of the 2008 CTS, try to remember that we're talking about a Hyundai. The folks from South Korea have come a long way in a very short period of time."
autoblogger are you serious?? i think you should think more before you write this or at least see the final product before making such a statement
I think the CTS interior looks very nice and crisp but it is on the traditional side. Take a look
http://www.autobytel.com/images/2008/Cadillac/CTS/400/2008_cadillac_cts_08.jpg
Then look at the bigger picture of the hyundai genesis interior you failed to link on your site.
http://www.motortrend.com/future/spied_vehicles/112_0707_hyundai_genesis/photo_02.html
I think the genesis interior looks amazing as of now. And i think by the end it will be better and especially more unique than the cts
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felipe 11:31AM (7/27/2007)
nice links..... and i would buy a Hyundai LONGGG before I'd buy a Cadilac.... i have had both.......
74k miles on my 04 Hyundai tib, never a repair. car is as solid and rattle free as the day i got it.
my 3rd hyundai
would never buy GM product again.
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