The blog has moved!

So all my readers know I have moved my blog. I can now be found here or here. I hope that you will follow me over!

Hyundai Genesis Sedan 4.6

The last of the the Hyundai cars that I was able to drive is the Hyundai Genesis sedan with the 385 hp v8. The idea behind the Genesis is that it is a vehicle that is supposed to be able to compete with luxury cars like the 5 series BMW and the E class Mercedes, but at a much lower cost. When you tell people that Hyundai has made a car that can compete with the likes of those types of cars they have a hard time believing it and indeed it is something that you would need to experience to believe.

The Genesis that I drove had almost every option available except the upgraded sound system. Still the Lexicon brand stereo that was in the car sounded great and the fact that it is the same brand that provides the stereos for Rolls Royce makes it even cooler. Everything you see in the car seems impressive. The materials that are in the car and the feel of them all say that it is luxury. You forget that you are riding in a Hyundai and when you step on the gas you almost forget that you are in a sedan! It accelerates very quickly but with dignity(o-60 in 5.3 seconds!). Each gear shift from the 6 speed auto is seamless and smooth with out the slightest lurch in between. The cabin is quiet and there is plenty of room in the back seat for adults to take a trip in. The car that I drove was priced at about 42k and with all the features it had it seemed like quite the bargain. I know of people that have paid much more for less power and tech.

The problems and I ran into with this car is 1: the back up camera and 2: the rear seat head rests. Backup cameras are showing up on more and more cars lately and on of the coolest features that you will find on them is the lines that will show where your car is tracking when you turn the steering wheel. With out the tracking you feel less inclined to look at the screen and more desirous to look back and see where you are going just in case the camera is wrong. The problem with looking back is that there are three separate headrests for the rear occupants and the middle headrest severely cuts down your visibility! You can very easily take them off but then you have to decide where you are going to put the head rests until you need them again and if I was the owner it would drive me nuts to not use all of the parts of the car so I would probably just leave them on and suffer with the limited visibility.

Still, when you think about what I am really saying it is a pretty trivial issue and one that most every one (including me) would be able to look past considering the excellent price that this much luxury comes with. The average person would be extremely happy with this car and if you care about comfort but the economy is crunching your budget I would seriously consider this car. The other bonus that comes with buying a new Hyundai is the fantastic warranty. They all come with a 5 year 60,000 bumper to bumper warranty and a 10 year 100,000 mile warranty. For that reason I will always look at what Hyundai has to offer before making my purchase.

To check out this and other excellent Hyundai vehicles be sure to stop by Hyundai of Tempe (http://www.hyundaioftempe.com/) and they will be more than happy to show you around and let you see what they have going for them in this competitive car market!

Hyundai Genesis Coupe

The Hyundai Genesis Coupe is one of the cars that I would not have had the opportunity to drive if it was not for Hyundai of Tempe and their Generosity. I initially went in with the expectation and desire to drive the Sonata only and all of the other cars were just an added bonus. I must say that it was a fantastic ride!

The car that I drove was a 3.8 Track which means that it had the 3.8 liter v6 engine mated to a 6 speed manual. It also had bright red Brembo brakes and with the black paint job, it really looked good! The 4 door coupe also had an aftermarket exhaust that was courtesy of a local shop that wanted a chance to work on the New coupe. It had the premium stereo system with navigation. and enough room in the trunk to hold two golf bags.

When you turn the car on it has a fantastic exhaust note which you can credit to the aftermarket exhaust and it made me want to constantly goose the throttle when I took it on it's test drive. The seats feel supportive and comfortable and there was great visibility out of the sides of the car. Usually when you sit in a coupe like that there can be blind spots and that can make lane changes a bit tricky. The transmission had short throws and it felt solid when you would put it in each gear slot which gave me confidence when shifting quickly through the gears. The steering wheel felt great and the throttle was responsive. I loved driving the car and it would rip through the gears very quickly. I was able to reach over 85 mph before even getting on the freeway! I have not been able to drive as many fast cars as I would like in my life time so this car was a real treat.

There was one glaring issue that tainted the experience for me and that was the clutch. The engagement was ridiculously high! I consider myself to be an above average driver when it comes to manual transmissions and I still experienced the shame of stalling the car at a red light. When I was ripping through the gears each engagement of a new gear was met with a slight jolt despite every effort I made to prevent that.

With that one issue I still think it is a fantastic car and if I was in the market I would seriously consider buying it just because of the tremendous value that this car is. The sticker for this car was about 32K and if you were to similarly equip an Infiniti G37 it would be well over ten grand more for the same car. The clutch you can maybe try to adjust or at the very least get used to and you would find very few other complaints.

http://www.hyundaioftempe.com/

Hyundai Veracruz

Hyundai of Tempe gave me a chance to drive 4 of the different Hyundai models that are available from Hyundai. One of them is the largest of the crossovers that they offer known as the Veracruz. The model that we drove was one of the upper trim levels. The idea behind the Veracruz is that it wants to be a competitor against the Lexus RX350 and other SUVs of that size but at a cheaper price with the MSRP ranging from 28k to 35k.

The things that I enjoyed when I drove it were the power that was available and the steering feel. It felt like it was solid enough and had great acceleration. The Veracruz had great visibility and it was easy to check lanes before switching and the ride height was such that it was easy to see where I was going. Some of the crossover sport utilities don't feel like you have better visibility along with the greater size but the Veracruz gave me a view well ahead of the car right in front of me. The gauges and features were nice and easy to get to and similar to the option you would find on other SUVs of that size and class. There were climate and stereo controls in the back seat as well which I would appreciate as a back seat passenger.

When I talk about Hyundai with other people the first thing they say is why would I even bother looking at a Hyundai? The answer is because they deserve a look. They make cars that compete in a higher price range than they are sold for and they are pleasant to drive. The Veracruz while not my first choice for looks offers a ton of great features for a great price. The stigma behind Hyundai that it is lacking in quality and class is just that, a stigma. Do I think that it is comparable with the likes of a Lexus and Infiniti? Not the one that I drove although it could be with a few more options. It was roomy and comfortable and had plenty of room and storage space but it didn't feel or look like a luxury SUV. Still, if you are looking for a comfortable strong SUV that can haul you and 6 others this is the way to go. It is cooler than a minivan but falls short of a Genesis coupe. Thanks to Hyundai of Tempe for letting me take it out for a spin!

http://www.hyundaioftempe.com

2011 Hyundai Sonata

Today I was given the opportunity to visit a Hyundai of Tempe and sample a few of the cars that they are currently offering. There is a lot to be excited about when it comes to the Hyundai brand. When you look at what is currently offered at Hyundai compared what was offered 15 years ago there is a significant change and improvement in terms of quality and design.

The latest iteration of the Hyundai Sonata is quite the looker and it has a lot of nice features too! One of the first things I noticed is the power that is available from the car. There is no V6 offered for the sonata (though a turbo 4 cyl is going to be avail soon along with a hybrid) and the engine that you have available is a 2.4 liter direct injection 4 cyl that offers 200 horsepower. It is mated to a 6 speed automatic transmission that delivers good response as well as good mpg (22 city/35 hwy). My wife and I looked at the Sonata a few weeks ago on the Hyundai website and we lie the looks but were hesitant about the 4 cyl engine and that is a concern no more.

Looking around the car. There were a few things that stood out to me. When you walk up to it you think it looks small and feel like it is going to be a bit cramped. then you get in it and you feel the opposite. The Hyundai Sonata has the best in class space. There is tons of trunk space (pictured) and the front seat when I sat in it was raised all the way up and there was still plenty of head room! When you sit in the drivers seat and feel the fit and finish, it is interesting and assuring. The steering wheel has different textures in different areas that are fun! There are cup holders and places to put stuff that you think are important to have.

Negative aspects? There is no manual transmission offered and the climate controls are less intuitive than you might expect. Also the gauges were hard for me to read because I couldn't find the sweet spot for gauge visibility and sitting position comfort.

When it comes time for my wife and I to be in the market for a car we are interested in the Nissan Leaf for starters but if it ends up not making sense for us I plan on looking at the Hyundai Sonata. With a 10 year 100,000 mile power train warranty and a 5 year 60,000 mile bumper to bumper warranty it makes sense for us.

Hyundai of Tempe was extremely helpful. Jeremy Day the general manager was nice enough to let me come down. Patrick Day was the consultant that took the time to take me out in the cars and share his product knowledge. I highly recommend them both!

http://www.hyundaioftempe.com

Military transport show. Fun time for the family!

I know this isn't the typical Blog post that I throw down on my website but I was looking around the interwebs at different events and car stuff going on in phoenix and I ran across this event. If you find military vehicles interesting and would like to see them up close this would be a great even to go to. The flier is pictured above and I think it could be a real fun time with your family!

http://ahmta.com/

Full size truck posts explanation

I was driving a bunch of full size truck last week and so I wanted to write about them. I think they are useful posts because you can kinda of see what I thought after I got to drive all of them back to back with in a 2 hour period. If I was forced to list them in order of most favorite to least favorite I would go as follows:

1: Nissan Titan

2: Ford F150

3: Chevrolet Silverado

4: Toyota Tundra

The F150 would have been first with out question if it had a stronger engine. You drive that truck and you are immedeatly impressed. The titan was a true truck to me becuase it had everything you needed and a bunch of clever ideas. I am aso lucky that I have a wife that likes to come with me and she has great opinions about these trucks too.