Hyundai

Hyundai Overview:

No automaker has enjoyed the past few years quite as much as Hyundai, which on the strength of new designs and better cars has taken leaps foward. For 2013, they look to continue their success with a redesign for the Genesis Coupe, and new variants of several other models including the Veloster Turbo, Santa Fe Sport, and the Elantra Coupe and GT.

(The Elantra Touring and Veracruz have been discontinued.)

The subcompact Accent was redesigned last year to fall more in step with the rest of Hyundai’s lineup. Offered as a sedan or five-door hatchback, it features plenty of standard features, a pair of six-speed transmissions, and excellent fuel economy at 30/40 mpg city/highway.

Unique in every way, the three-door Veloster has one door on the driver’s side but two on the passenger’s side for easier backseat entry. The Veloster seats four passengers and in addition to offering a sporty drive will get you up to 40 mpg on the highway.

New for 2013 is the Veloster Turbo which gets an engine to match its sporty design. Limited details are available at this time and this section will be updated as they become available.

Hyundai’s other 40 mpg car, the compact Elantra, adds two variants for 2013: a coupe and the Elantra GT, which replaces the Elantra Touring. The coupe looks sportier than the sedan, but still has plenty of interior space (enough to be officially classified as a midsize car) along with the same standard features as the sedan. For those who want more flexibility, the Elantra GT offers plenty of cargo room and attractive options like a dual-pane panoramic moonroof.

Emerging as a viable alternative to the other more established midsize sedans over the past couple years, the Sonata and its pair of four-cylinder engines marches on. There is also the Sonata Hybrid, which improves fuel economy to the tune of 35/40 mpg city/highway.

Also looking very fresh thanks to a 2012 makeover is the Azera, which slots in above the Sonata. The Azera offers more legroom and interior comfort, while also pouring in the standard features like heated front and rear seats and a navigation system with backup camera.

Two variants of the Genesis are also available: a sedan version and the sporty Genesis Coupe. The Genesis Coupe gets a complete makeover for 2013, including a brand new twin-scroll turbo four-cylinder that bumps power output from 210-hp to 274-hp. The V-6 also gets more horses, jumping up to 348-hp. Any way you slice it, the Genesis Coupe is now leaner and meaner.

The Genesis sedan is more of a luxury cruiser than its more spastic junior. It still sits atop a proper rear-wheel drive platform and gets unique Genesis-brand badging.

The ultra-luxurious Equus sedan returns in both regular and long wheelbase versions. The Equus was designed to compete with the flagship luxury sedans from marquee makes like BMW and Mercedes-Benz.

A trio of crossover SUVs rounds out Hyundai’s lineup. First up is the compact Tucson which comes with seating for five and optional all-wheel drive. The Tucson gets great fuel economy for a compact SUV at up to 23/32 mpg city/highway and is also rather stylish.

For 2013, Hyundai split the Santa Fe into two models: the five-seat Santa Fe Sport and the larger seven-seat midsize Santa Fe which replaces the Veracruz as the biggest SUV/crossover Hyundai offers.

The Santa Fe Sport, as its name would suggest, is the smaller and more nimble of the two. It weights 266 pounds less than its larger counterpart, which improves both driving dynamics and fuel economy. Outside, it also features sharp design execution with a look similar to the Genesis Coupe.