Will I expect the same ride from a Lexus ES350, Mercedes C-class or BMW 3-series?

[montreal]

Hi to all Genesis board members,


I'm from Montreal and I'll give you my Canadian perspective to the Hyundai Genesis.

I test drove one recently at my local Hyundai dealership. First of all canadian Genesises are priced different and more expensive than the US version(even considering the current exchange rate). The base one starts at $37,995+delivery and destination=$39,605. We also have slightly different packages. Only 3 package are available: the 3.8L (base) ($CA 39,605) , the Premium Package ($CA 41,605) and the Tech Package ($CA 46,605). The 4.6L will only be available in December here in Canada.

The real difference in the canadian packages (apart from the price ) is the fact that the Lexicon7 is not available in the Premium here in Canada. It's fitted only with the standard Hyundai stereo. However, we do get the Lexicon14 in the Tech package just like in the USA.

I test drove at my dealership the Premium package 3.8L. First impression, it does look like a real luxury car. Nothing to envy in fit and finish and material quality with the competition. The only thing I don't like is the steering wheel. Has a bulky and cheap feel to it. Lots of room inside. Would qualify as real large luxury vehicle.

The exterior is beautiful and the paint job is good. Beautiful rims and love the looks of 18 inch tires.

Now for the driving impression. Good acceleration. Initial ride is smooth and quiet. However as soon as I hit some of our typical bad patches of Montreal road. I felt all the bumps. As soon as I hit a deep manhole, I felt it throughout the car and the steering wheel. Not impressed at all. Same thing for my dad who came along for the ride in the back seat. The ride is not smooth and my father qualified the ride as rough (I know some people talked of it as being not as smooth on the board, I'm sorry it's rough).

The ride is okay when the roads are well paved but as soon as you hit bad patches of road, you feel everything. This is very dissapointing for a luxury car with a sticker price of $46,605.

Hyundai missed the mark on it's suspension settings. They wanted to please the likes of Road and Track but missed the mark on pleasing the regular folks who will be using this car as everyday driving.

Another thing, my father near the end of the test drive complained that it was hot in the back. And yes, there was hot air blowing from the back vents even though the A/C was working. The sales rep and I could not figure it out. I thought it might have been the fact that we did not how to regulate the settings on the A/C. Later when I read about this problem on the boards, I agree with some of the posters, I think there's something wrong in the Genesis back vents.

I was really looking forward to buying the Genesis and also becoming the first prould owner here in Montreal. I beleive that there has not been one sold here in Quebec as of yet. I really like the Genesis (the looks, the genuine-rarety factor because I have a feeling very few Genesis will be sold here in Montreal) but I have second doubts because of the stiff suspension settings. Remember I'm driving on Montreal roads, not on beautifully paved Sun Belt roads. At some point I felt I was still driving my 2002 Honda Civic. By the way, I took my 2007 Grand Caravan over the same patch of bad roads that I took the Genesis on and the minivan soaked up the bumps much better.

I haven't test driven any other luxury cars yet. Question to all Genesis board members: Will I expect the same from the Lexus ES350, the Mercedes C-class and the BMW 3 series (same price ranges)?

 

[Duaine]

All right everyone what gives with this suspension thing? It's sure funny that some people are claiming very smooth rides and then some very rough rides. You would think after Hyundai selected the suspension settings that every Genesis would behave in the same way.

Of course the types of roads come in to play and how many passengers you have. But I wonder if everyone's opinions are based on comparing the Genesis to whatever vehicle that they replaced with the Genesis?

Also I have said this before but after reading consumer reviews on Edmunds and Yahoo
I haven't saw one bad comment on ride quality, although I haven't checked in the last few days.

I'm not doubting anyone who says their test drives are rough. I'm just trying to figure out why some say that its rough but most are not complaining about it?

I will say that most dealers in my area do not lower the shipping tire pressure until the car is actually sold. They told me they don't know how long the car might sit so they just leave the tire pressue alone.

When I was getting my car serviced one day I over heard a salesman say that he had someone test driving a Genesis and that they had complained about the ride. The assistant service manager checked the tire pressure basically right after they had pulled up so I assume the tires had a chance to warm up a bit. I don't know what he got for a reading in the front two tires because I had paid my bill and was leaving but the rear two tires was clear up to 50 psi. This could have made a big difference possibly.

 

[JOwest]

Montreal,
I think the info you get from your dealer is incorrect. I am in Vancouver, BC area. My dealer sold 4 Genesis the first day and he has two more on the lot.
I pre-order my 4.6 black/black with Tech pkg last week. The dealer told me it will arrive mid October.
Also, the Tech pkg come with the Lexicon 17 speakers with the IPod cable included. There are 5 version of Genesis in Canada, 3.8 base, 3.8 Premium, 3.8 Premiun/Tech, 4.6 base and 4.6/Tech.
All version come with black interior regardless of exterior colour.
As far as the ride quality is concerned it is softer than my Audi A6 with the S-Line option. Driving at the same speed over the same stretch of road, My Audi will bounce my rear passengers up and down but the suspension won't hit the stop. In the Genesis, it hit the stop but the passenger didn't get throw up and down as much.
So, ride quality is a subjective thing. Different cars behave differently over different road conditions. A car offer smooth rides over dips may give you bad rides over broken patches. It is not possible to tune the suspension to satisfy every customer over all road conditions unless you want to install custom after market suspension bits.
BTW, the Lexus ES350 rides smoothly until you make a turn while the Genesis can attack the turn with authority.

 

[montreal]

I'm giving it another shot. I will be going to another dealer here to give it a test drive and I'll make sure with the sales rep that the PSI ratings on the tires are proper. I really like the Genesis but so far the ride really concerns me. By the way, I thought the Genesis had tire pressure monitors. Can someone confirm? If it does have tire pressure monitors, will I be able to see the psi readings on the dashboard/console.

Just a little correction to JOwest reply, you can get other interior colours than black. The dark blue Genesis I test drove came in Cashmere coloured leather. Very nice between us.

To Duaine's reply, regarding the review, well there was one in Car and Driver (Test drive, october issue), quote: "On smooth freeway stretches, the ride is creamy and quiet. But on those back roads, contoured and crinkled by Michigan winters, it was not difficult to use up all of the suspension travel, yielding hard bumps and episodes of head toss." Well that's exactly how we felt on our test drive minus the using up all the suspension travel (I didn't push the car in tight corners).

By the way, Car and Driver were not sold on the idea that there was anything sporty about the Genesis. Luxury they said yes but not sporty. That's fine with me because I am looking more for a smooth ride. I'm more of a city slicker than a Formula 1 driver.

Also is Hyundai going to do something about the hot air issue in the back. I really hope it just a question of properly setting the A/C.

I'll keep you posted on my test drive at another dealership... Really hope I'm proven wrong.

 

[thomaspf]

I had a chance to test drive the 4.6 in Seattle this weekend and it was not a rough drive. I had my wife drive the car while I was sitting in the rear seat asking the salesman to direct us to the worst patch of street he knew in the neighbourhood. The posts about a rough ride particularly in the rear seat had me worried. We are currently driving a Toyota Avalon which is very soft but floats and swings over any bumps and around corners.

My wife liked the ride and declared it to be more sporty but comfortable. There is clearly more feedback from the road surface than with the Avalon but it is still very much a luxury ride. I'd would say it is similar to a Mercedes E-class and a lot softer than a BMW 5 series.

I am not sure what you guys did to use up all suspension travel but we had 4 people in the car and even over the roughest patches I don't think there was any danger to hit the stops. However, we did not push it.

Just my experience from the weekend. They are transferring a V8 in the color I wanted from out of state and I can pick it up on Thursday.

Cheers

Thomas

 

[YEH]

Question to all Genesis board members: Will I expect the same from the Lexus ES350, the Mercedes C-class and the BMW 3 series (same price ranges)?

The ES, C-class and 3 Series all have quite different rides.

ES - soft and floaty (definitely not for enthusiasts)

3 Series - firm and taut, but may be rough for some

C-class - somewhere in bwtn

Keep in mind that these 3 are all smaller vehicles than the Genesis.

 

[Sal Collaziano]

I was worried that Hyundai stiffened the suspension to please the magazines - but left a soft ride to be desired by non-enthusiasts. It's strange to see so many differences in opinion. At this point in time - I cannot figure out whether the ride is too stiff, too soft or if it differs on a vehicle per vehicle basis..

 

[Wilbur_the_goose]

I'm a 3-series guy, and I'd like the Genesis to be stiffer.

 

[jcs]

I agree with your comment. I think what we are seeing here is some people saying the car is too soft and some saying it is too stiff (the same car). To me this shows that Hyundai has done a good job finding the middle ground between a firm (BMW) ride and a soft (Lexus) ride.

My current car is a BMW 530i with the sports suspension. Clearly the Genesis has a softer ride with less responsive steering. That is not necessarily a bad thing as my car can be harsh over broken pavement. On the other hand, I recently drove a 2008 Audi A6 and the suspension is softer and the steering is much less responsive than the Genesis (much more play on center).

I have test driven the Genesis four times now and I think it rides very well - the suspension handles broken pavement very well, but not to the point of complete isolation so that the car is no fun to drive. Steering is lighter than a BMW, but offers enough response so that you feel engaged with the car.

 

[Sal Collaziano]

That's a good point, JCS.. Hyundai probably got it just right.. A little too stiff for some, a little too soft for some.. Probably easy to get used to either way. You can't please everybody. Unless you offer two separate suspension options - which I think these car companies should do...

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[Duaine]

I'm giving it another shot. I will be going to another dealer here to give it a test drive and I'll make sure with the sales rep that the PSI ratings on the tires are proper. I really like the Genesis but so far the ride really concerns me. By the way, I thought the Genesis had tire pressure monitors. Can someone confirm? If it does have tire pressure monitors, will I be able to see the psi readings on the dashboard/console.

Just a little correction to JOwest reply, you can get other interior colours than black. The dark blue Genesis I test drove came in Cashmere coloured leather. Very nice between us.

To Duaine's reply, regarding the review, well there was one in Car and Driver (Test drive, october issue), quote: "On smooth freeway stretches, the ride is creamy and quiet. But on those back roads, contoured and crinkled by Michigan winters, it was not difficult to use up all of the suspension travel, yielding hard bumps and episodes of head toss." Well that's exactly how we felt on our test drive minus the using up all the suspension travel (I didn't push the car in tight corners).

By the way, Car and Driver were not sold on the idea that there was anything sporty about the Genesis. Luxury they said yes but not sporty. That's fine with me because I am looking more for a smooth ride. I'm more of a city slicker than a Formula 1 driver.

Also is Hyundai going to do something about the hot air issue in the back. I really hope it just a question of properly setting the A/C.

I'll keep you posted on my test drive at another dealership... Really hope I'm proven wrong.

Yes I did read the Car and Driver review and would agree that it wasn't to good. It seemed like other magazines rated the Genesis much better.

What I meant though by reviews was the consumer/customer reviews of people that have actually bought the car.

I guess I kind of like it because they aren't driving pre-production cars like most of the magazine articles were. So the people that have bought the car are giving reviews of the car in true production form and using the car as most of us would in our daily driving habits.

They aren't testing the car for a brief time with pre-production models and they aren't doing slalom courses at 100+ miles per hour going into a bumpy curve that they complain makes it hard to control the car and is just to bumpy.

I am not saying the magazine is in error.........all I'm saying is that its nice to see what buyers just like you and I are saying about the car. It is those reviews that I am saying overall looks to be very good so far.

Oh yeah and then there is the old wise tale of magazines writing a review the way the competition wants the review to look based on who pumps in the most money to the magazine. I'm not saying that's true but usually where there is big money there is some kind of corruption going on.

 

[Wilbur_the_goose]

jcs,
I used to drive an Audi A6, and through a forum like this I found that you could remove this little module and the steering response was significantly improved. The Audi drove like a BMW!

Apparently, Audi put it in there to soften the ride for the US market.

Reason I mention it is because it shows the benefits formus like this can have for owners.

Want more proof - look at the '06 Honda Civic Si - the VTEC forums got Honda to fix their drive-by-wire throttle hesitation.

 

[jcs]

Wilbur, I did not know that about the A6 - neither did the dealer as I told him the reason I would not buy it is because of the numb steering feel. Oh well.

Clearly it makes sense to sell a car with suspension/steering options - a "softer" suspension and lighter steering and a "sports" suspension which tightens the springs and shocks and provides more road feel with the steering. I know that BMW, Audi and Infiniti do this and I am sure others do it as well. That way, everyone gets what they want.

As I said, I think Hyundai has done a great job at achieving a happy medium as the car is fun to drive, but not overly harsh over broken pavement. Perhaps they will consider a sports suspension option on the 2010 model.

 

[Wilbur_the_goose]

jcs - well said.

Although I really like the car, it drove too "Buick" for me. Tightening things up would make me really happy and I'd buy one (if I can survive this economy)

 

[ConceptVBS]

First, check the tire pressure. Hyundai overinflates the tires to something like 50 psi to compensate for the loss of pressure while shipping the car over to the states. Tire pressure makes a HUGE difference in suspension feel. This just doesnt apply to the genesis, but the rest of the Hyundai line up coming from Korea.