quote:

ORIGINAL: mulboy

Hey everyone, "new" Azera owner here.  Had it about 3 weeks now, 2007 Limited ( not Ultimate [?], boo) w/22k miles for $18k.  Pretty happy with it--I think most everyone buys a Hyundai for its overall value, and with that in mind, I got a great deal--you get a lot of the car for the money.  I wanted to post my thoughts for anyone else who's considering purchasing, and this seems like a good thread.


The things that fall short follow.  Some of these are nit-picky, some less so.  
In a refined Azera, you notice even a small suspension clunk):
- The engine often idles just a little roughly for about the first 20 seconds when cold.  Again, I only notice because it's otherwise so quiet and smooth.  But it is noticable.
- The transmission is a bit slow to downshift from 5th to 4th or 4th to 3rd; 1st gear is a little too short unless you're really into the throttle  I suspect all this is in pursuit of fuel economy.
- The suspension is pretty good, firm & solid without being "sporty."  However, when you hit a small pothole or a non-flush manhole cover or other mild imperfection, you feel and hear the jolt more than I would like.  In this case, the Azera doesn't smooth the rough spot much more than my Crown Vic did, and isn't as comfortable as the '00 Maxima.  But the Maxima transmitted more of the small imperfections too.  Again, the Azera's otherwise quiet and smoothness makes you notice this imperfection more.  But overall, I think I prefer the Maxima suspension.

Interior:
- Related to the above, the electoluminiscent dash looks nice and is functional.  However, it's difficult to tell when your headlights are on--the only indicator is if you always leave your foglight switch on--and then that indicator lights up on the dash when your headlights come on.  At night, when you get in the car the electrolum dash lights up like it does day or night, so you can't use a dark dash as a visual reminder to flip the headlights on.  I found myself driving lights-off at night (in a lighted parking lot) because of this.
- The stereo and HVAC display is LCD.  I wear polarized sunglasses, and LCDs can be difficult to read with polarized lenses.  So for me, it's a nuisance to have to tilt my head to the side in order to be able to read what station or track number is on.  Is it a huge deal?  No, but it's annoying.
- Driving position: this is a big car, and they emphasize the interior space.  Why, then, do I not have quite enough legroom in the driver's seat?  I'm over 6'4", and I could use another inch of room--even if they simply moved the pedals closer to the firewall, that would be enough.  Related, it's great to have a tilt/telescoping wheel, but the wheel needs just a little more 'scope. 
- The wood grain on the steering wheel looks great and is a touch of Lexus.  But I'd rather have leather all around, for better control/feel.  Also, Nissan puts a steering wheel heater in one of their Maxima option packages.  I test drove an '05 Maxima on a cold day--and that is a fantastic feature to have.  A heated leather wheel beats a cold polished wheel any day, and especially on cold mornings.
- HVAC: the "auto" function really isn't that helpful.  When the car is cold, if you press Auto it starts blowing out cold air.  That's not helpful, and just about any other modern car with an Auto fan control waits until warm coolant starts flowing through the heater core before incrasing the fan speed.  Also, I feel like I have to play with the temp setting a lot to make it comfortable.  If it's cold out and I set it to 70, it should pump out very warm air until the cabin temp rises to 70.  I have to bump up the temp setting to get that warm air.  The Auto HVAC

(in reply to mulboy)