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Is Hyundai poised to beat Toyota?

Discussion in 'Other Cars' started by priusmiselus, Feb 16, 2010.

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  1. priusmiselus

    priusmiselus New Member

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    I agree with almost everything you said about comparing the Prius with the Sonata, but want to make 2 observations.

    First, the Prius is a low profile hatch. This was one of my concerns because bulky items in the trunk can easily block your back vision, which is already greatly compromised in the Prius, allow me to note. I also found just impossible to see anything in the diagonal back area in the Prius. I would be highly worried about blind spots in that car. I actually prefer the huge trunk in the Sonata, which I can fit most of my stuff without a visual compromise. Funny, because what is an advantage to the Prius for you turned out to be a tremendous disadvantage for me. It's all relative.

    Second, better resale value? Are you kidding me? From what I was able to gather in this forum so far, the current poor resale value of the Prius has been highly pointed out here. True, this may change with time, if gas prices go very high particularly, but we are talking about a difference in price of 8K between the Sonata limited and Prius V. There is just no way on earth that I will recover that 8K in depreciation when reselling it, especially because in 7-8 years when I trade it, any of the cars may not even worth 8k at all.

    FYI, I also quoted insurance for both Prius V and Sonata limited. Guess which one has the lowest premium, not just a few dollars, but $198 less for 6-month in the Sonata. Did you know that a recent study showed Hyundais are among the least expensive cars to insure? Also, Toyota is considering extending their warranty to Hyundai levels. No wonder. If Hyundai is not a threat to Toyota by your own set of reasons, no problem, I just don’t want fight that. You win.

    Also, I want to stress that I’m not trying to hump the Sonata here and elude people out of the Prius. I’m just saying that I’m in the market for a new car and picked the Sonata over the Prius for the several reasons already discussed.
     
    #21 priusmiselus, Feb 17, 2010
  2. priusmiselus

    priusmiselus New Member

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    Hello, thanks for your post.

    Also you hit the nail on the head with the age predictions. I'm 33 and my sales guy said people between 30- to low 40s are the prevalent group ordering the new Sonata.

    Just an FYI, this is not official, but my dealer is also saying that Hyundai is changing their generation (especially the exterior) in all cars in the next 1-2 years and the Azera and Elantra are the next on their radar. So may be worth to wait for that new Azera.
     
    #22 priusmiselus, Feb 17, 2010
  3. a_gray_prius

    a_gray_prius Rare Non-Old-Blowhard Priuschat Member

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    It's not super-suprising - the car looks a little like a cross between a 5-series (tail, especially the lamp design) and a Mercedes CLS-class (coupe-like arch). That segment is kind of typical for these two cars.
     
    #23 a_gray_prius, Feb 17, 2010
  4. priusmiselus

    priusmiselus New Member

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    I totally agree with you. In my opinion, Toyotas have been boring for the several past years but I decided to check out their only cool idea, the Prius, but I was not sold on its value. Fuel efficiency is not everything; it is just a fraction of the whole package, especially when savings with gas are not enough to cover the higher price tag. Hope Prius fans are not disappointed. ;)
     
    #24 priusmiselus, Feb 17, 2010
  5. priusmiselus

    priusmiselus New Member

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    #25 priusmiselus, Feb 17, 2010
  6. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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    Maybe but I don't think it'll be very very soon. Hyundai is very strong competitor and remember that Hyundai can easily (relatively speaking) move upmarket because they own Kia and they can keep Kia as the mainstream, bargain-hunter brand. The Veracruz is stacking up very well to the Highlander and almost, almost to the RX. It just lacks the brand name and quality of the service department that the RX brings (not to mention the lack of hybrid technology).

    The Sonata I think is Hyundai's best car, followed by the Genesis (sedan and coupe). It's come a long way from being a cheap alternative to the Japanese Accord, Camry, Altima and 626. Hyundai has hit the nail on design, quality, features and price on the Sonata. It's done well with the Genesis coupe offering RWD drivetrain mated to a turbo 4 or a V6 in both manual and automatics (rare in this segment to have a manual V6 option). On top of that, it starts (at least in Canada) close to the base price of what Toyota wants for the Celica a few years ago.

    The Genesis sedan also does well against the entry-level vehicles from luxury marques such as Lexus, Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz. What it lacks in quality of the material (e.g. the leather and plastics), it makes up for size, power and price. It's an interesting tactic. Would you buy a $40k B-Class (Canada only) or $45k C230/C300 that's light on options or go for a very well equipped V6 Genesis sedan? It won't have the cache of any of the luxury marques but those that don't care (or maybe don't want their nosy neighbours to know) may swing for a Genesis sedan. Also, it doesn't hurt that the younger generation think the Genesis sedan is pretty sweet (esp. in black with tinted windows).
     
    #26 Tideland Prius, Feb 17, 2010
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  7. priusmiselus

    priusmiselus New Member

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    Excellent analysis. Thanks! :)
     
    #27 priusmiselus, Feb 17, 2010
  8. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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    I try =)
     
    #28 Tideland Prius, Feb 17, 2010
  9. bigcwill

    bigcwill Junior Member

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    Waiting for the 2011 Sonata in turbo and manual, and the wife will have to take over the Prius. Price, MPG, power, warranty, quality, style, low weight, and much cheaper to insure than a sports car.
     
    #29 bigcwill, Feb 18, 2010
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