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I have never looked into Subaru but I hear many people talk about them. I might have to check them out
I would give Subaru a look, especially if you like the idea of AWD. Their styling used to be polarizing, but they've come into the mainstream lately, for better or worse. Their interior quality/fit & finish leaves a bit to be desired.
To address the question though, I like Hyundai. They've just taken what the other car makers have already figured out and applied what works. So they're not the most original... so, what? They've copied from the best.
Have several friends with Hyundais specifically the Hyundai Elantra Touring versions, no one is complaining. Hyundai have really upped their game over the last decade, i would at least give em a look..
I think Hyundai has solidly moved into the mainstream from their previous "bargain" position. They have, IMO, earned the right to be considered alongside the other mainstream brands such as Ford, Honda, Toyota, GM, Nissan, etc. The Genesis and Equus are "toe dips" into the US market to see how they would work here. Hyundai is massive in Korea where they own 75% of the market, so they build these cars to serve specific market segments on their home turf. It was an easy leap to bring them over here to try them out. I would not judge them on what they do with those cars, but would judge them on the Sonata, Elantra, etc.
In terms of initial quality they are right there with their mainstream brands. They still lag behind Toyota and Honda a bit, but are equal to Ford. All together, Ford, Hyundai, Toyota and Honda are the only four mainstream brands that beat the industry averages. GM (specifically Chevy) sits right at or below the industry average on initial quality.
In terms of dependability (the only metrics measure it at the 3 year mark) Hyundai is essentially tied with Ford, Chevy and Honda. Toyota continues to beat all of them by a decent margin. The questions start to come up when we look beyond the three year mark. Most studies indicate that Hyundai had a major turn around in quality around the 2006 model year, so those cars are now pushing 7 years old. There is little composite data, but let's just say most would still consider long term ownership of a Hyundai a gamble, which is part of the reason their resale values stay low. However, based on trending from the data we do have, it is safe to say that the average Hyundai from 2006 and newer is about as reliable long term as the average Ford, Chevy or current Honda product.
Interestingly enough Kia has routinely been a very poor perfomer in all of these measures despite being nearly identical to the Hyundai versions. It is obvious, that the cost differential came from somewhere in the cars. So, I would not personally recommend Kia and they are still viewed as a sub mainstream brand.
I own a '11 Kia Optima and love it. Hard to find other cars that offer the same features, styling and MPG for the money. Nothing comes close to it on warranty if you keep your car 5+ years.
The new Azera is a looker. I hope they eventually put the new 350HP V6 into all of their cars, not just the Genesis Coupe.
The market segment between the Sonata and Genesis seems awfully small and they don't seem to move many Azeras. The new one looks pretty nice but I haven't seen any type of marketing effort for it at all.
I have a 2007 Elantra which I purchased for $4,600 below sticker here in LA in May of that year, and it's a wonderful car with exceptional best-in-class interior room.
We've owned hyundais for the better part of 20 years. We now are driving an 07 kia amanti. One of the things about hyundai is the content of features that come without extra packages. In the last few years, a few cars were bought by family members. Items like side airbags and traction control should come standard. Their cars didn't have it. Maybe we're luckier than most - we rarely have repairs with them. Probably the weakest area for hyundai is the suspension. They tend to ride softly (which we love) but become somewhat uncomposed over bumps/ potholes. Hth-M
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