It's getting harder for car buyers to rationalize paying a premium price, even for a premium car.
A good example is the Hyundai Azera. It's a full-size car that has about all the features, poise and punch you'd get in a $35,000-to-$40,000 car for $25,000 to $30,000.
Created by, loosely speaking, enlarging the chassis of the automaker's Sonata midsize sedan, Azera is meant to replace the baroque XG350 in the lineup. And it's an appealing piece of work.
The test car was a nearly loaded Limited version, priced about $28,000. Its amenities included heated seats, power sunshade for the back window, auto-down and auto-up windows, side air bags in the back seat rather than only in front. None of those is breathtaking by itself, but combined they illustrate the high-end attributes available in a midprice machine. And they help make Azera a legitimate alternative to the likes of Buick Lucerne and Toyota Avalon, rather than a wannabe.
Full review here