Hyundai Kicks Lexus To "Has Been" Status And Focuses On BMW With The 429HP Genesis R-Spec

HP per liter right now neither Lexus or Merc can beat them. That is a strong indicator that just how far they have come.

009...

The Genesis is ok- but facts are facts.

What Lexus/non-AMG MB/non-M BMW or Audi sedan offers 429HP right now?

None.

If the R-spec is launched before summer it will beat the new 430HP TTV8
from Benz by a few months.

All this from a company nobody even talked about 5 years ago.

These times they are a changin'...............

As much as I tip my hat to Hyundai for their many significant achievements, I feel we'd be hard pressed to say they have displaced Lexus in any way. Although Hyundai is making inroads into the luxury segment, they are still newcomers, and their Equus styling is awkward (to North American eyes), falling short of widespread desirability. In short, Lexus buyers are not turning away in droves from Lexus show rooms and running to Hyundai's. That's *today*. Who knows where Hyundai will take us in a decade? Perhaps they'll be the new Toyota/Lexus (in their glory days).

As for Hyundai going head to head against BMW, well, let's just say that a great many auto makers have been doing that for quite some time. You'll see the comparisons all the time, such as how a Cadillac CTS goes up against a BMW 5 on The Ring. Pick up a car magazine and it's BMW vs X, Y, or Z. And the bottom line is that in spite of all these head-on challenges to BMW, BMW is still the sports sedan benchmark. I don't believe newcomer Hyundai is going to change that any time soon.

That said, I encourage Hyundai to take on the giants, and to be all they can be. They've done a great job so far.

have you seen lexus interiors? Between the orange wood, and the ton of cheap plastic switches. Hyundai really didn't have to go far to surpass them.

You may not like them but Hyundai has earned their "E" for effort. They won't slay any of the giants anytime soon but they can quickly make a name for themselves with product like this. BTW, isn't the Equus getting the same engine and trans next year?

They are already have quality issues. It won't be long before it all starts crumbling down. It's cheaper for a reason. They won't hold up long term.....

Another article for my bird cage thanks to 009.

Remember when the first ipods first came out, suddenly you had hundreds of companies selling you MP3 players that were supposed to be better in every aspect, how many of them are left today ?

I'm sure Hyundai will make a great Zune

But Lexus is still the Ipod in allot of people's perception.

Then again ... for some people Hyundai is the new Google to Lexus's Yahoo ...

What you smokin bro?

What ever it is, its powerful stuff.

And you're on it A LOT!!!

And I want to try some.....LOL

Unless Hyundai spins off the Genesis and Equus into a luxury brand like the Japanese this will be an epic failure....

I do not own a Hyundai. I hated them for years. However, their newer cars seem very appealing. Have any of you driven a Genesis? I rented the V8 a year ago as a free-upgrade. I was shocked. Engine was just rip roaring fun. The car handled reasonably well (it's no M-5). The interior materials seems to be better than a BMW, not as good as an Audi.

If they can sell this car for $45k, I would consider it.

"The interior materials seems to be better than a BMW, not as good as an Audi." lol Have you even seen any of BMW's recent interiors? Hyundai isn't even close

bmw interiors are notoriously lame

^Except the new 6 series...

Lol

When will you guys ever learn? Tittles like these are designed to get you mad and create traffic for this site.

Yea Sherlock

Everyone is entitled to their opinion but really 009?? Have you lost your mind!? The day Hyundai thinks they can focus on BMW or kick Lexus to the has been curb is the day I'll have a pig fly out of my ass. When I look outside or on the street I see plenty of new Lexus vehicles and see maybe one or two genesis variants and none have the dealer plates. And two models (genesis and equus) aren't going to kick Lexus with 9 models across a broad range when Hyundai still has an $8k model on the lot

It's good to see that Hyundai is taking on the initiative but they have to get the execution right. We'll see...

009 works for hyundai

Hyundai is more reliable than the BMW, and better looking than the Lexus, it has come a long way, although I would only buy it if it could out perform the other two and still be more reliable. I would take the BMW, but this car looks great, who would ever have thought how far they would go.

If I were some of you, I'd just sit back, shut up, pop some popcorn, and enjoy the show. Ten years ago we were laughing when Hyundai said they were going to tackle the Accord and Camry. Just a reminder (in case you forgot).

Talk is cheap, show and prove. Thats my motto. Im not listening to what Hyundai is saying but they have showed and proved so Im not even doubting them anymore. I know I will get deboosted just because Im telling it like it is but some of you guys should quit being a HATER (Having.Anger.Towards.Everyone.Reaching.Success)...

*looks at this fella* I could give two d*mns about Hyundai but while you are laughing, they are laughing all the way to the bank with their steady rise in sales. The few of you on here are OBVIOUSLY in the minority with what you think of Hyundai...

*curtseys and exits*

Compare the Genesis to its competition today and its probably on par to just below the BMW, Audi, Lexus, etc. Then think real hard and compare the first lexus, the ES 250, to its then competition and you will see that Hyundai is way ahead of the game. Granted Lexus has come a long way since the ES 250. However Hyundai is nearly on par with its luxury competitors which means it is way ahead of where Lexus was in its second year producing "luxury vehicles".

look at the ES 250 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lexus_ES#First_generation_.28V20.29

then look at its direct competitor in 89, the acura legend
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acura_Legend#First_generation_.281986.E2.80.931990.29

The ES was so crappy compared to the legend at that time.

You need to get your "I just became a car enthusiast last year" looking *ss outta here...

(Sorry, the hood came outta me. Stupidity does that...)

A mess. You said "son".
Where do they do that at??? (another "hood" line)

Also, you are lame. Why do you keep boosting your own comments? If you also havent noticed, I dont de-boost you. Thats gay. Im gay and its gayer than me...

I am a 38 year old guy who was part of Hyuandai's first cars and to me the name still has a major negative effect on me. Hyundai is probably the best bang for the buck car company and their cars are pretty darned good(now). So what's my suggestion Hyundai? CHANGE YOUR NAME!! Even when my generation dies off the name Hyandai will still BLOW.

"If Toyota was moving forward at even half the pace these guys are you’d be gushing like a little girl. While Hyundai is bringing out new product and technology almost faster than most of us can even keep track your beloved Toyota gives us what… a warmed over Matrix?

Yes, maybe someday Hyundai does need to get off the pot and spin off a real luxury division, but what’s happening now is that the bottom end of their lineup is improving so rapidly the gap to the top also seems to be narrowing. You don’t think that someone buying a new Elantra or Sonata is going to look at the Genesis also on the same showroom floor and say ‘holy sh*t… these guys build some really nice cars’ and maybe aspire to owning one someday?

Meanwhile over at the Toyota store someone buying a Corolla or a Camry looks around and sees what… an Avalon? Might as well have a funeral parlor right next to the parts counter"

Have you seen how dated the Corola is? Compare it to the competition, it's laughable.

So true, the Corolla looks like a 90s car

The Corolla may look like a 90s car but somehow that doesn't stop the Toyota aftermarket of being one of the most popular, and it's normal, you can run a Toyota to 200 000 miles with minimal maintenance.

Some companies invest massively in design and gizmos over reliability.

We saw it with BMW, Mercedes etc ... I had an S 500 with computer adjusted air suspension.

It broke down after 2 months