Hyundai Grandeur

1986–1989 Grandeur, rear view

Before the 1988 Seoul Olympics, most of the luxury car market of South Korea was held by Daewoo Motors and its Royale Series. From October 1978, Hyundai's top offering in South Korea was a locally built Ford Granada Mark II. The Daewoo Royale, however, was dominating the Granada in the market place, and Hyundai tried to enter the luxury car market with its own design. In the face of tough competition from Daewoo Motors' powerful brand, Hyundai abandoned this attempt and instead borrowed the platform, technology, and internal configuration from Mitsubishi Motors to create the first Hyundai Grandeur.

In the early eighties, Mitsubishi Motors also wanted to renew its aging Debonair model, which had not been substantially updated since its market launch in 1964. Given the existing relationship of sharing technologies and innovations, Mitsubishi accepted Hyundai's request to share a platform, internal configuration, and most importantly, an engine. As Hyundai was an official sponsor of 1988 Seoul Olympics, it used this opportunity to notify all the executives and important people about their new car, the Grandeur. Because of its Mitsubishi basis and good quality, it became very popular in Korea.

1990–1992 Grandeur, rear view

Also called "Gak (angle)-Grandeur", it succeeded the Hyunda-built Granada. Official Olympic sponsor Hyundai Motor co-developed the Grandeur with Mitsubishi Motors of Japan, and launched it in July 1986, well in advance of the 1988 Summer Olympics. The design was done by Hyundai Motors, but the internal configuration was done by Mitsubishi. It was the second FF layout model in Korea after Hyundai Excel. Originally, only a four-cylinder 2,000 cc engine and manual transmission were offered, but later a 2,400 cc engine, a 3,000 cc V6 engine, and automatic transmission became available. The Grandeur became Korea's bestselling large car by a considerable margin.[2] It was also sold in Japan as the Mitsubishi Debonair V, but the demanding class was already absorbed by the Toyota Crown, Nissan Cedric/Gloria, Mazda Luce, and Honda Legend, and the Debonair was not competitive in its home market.

The Grandeur's taillight design was changed in 1989, and ABS first became available in 1991. It had 4-speed automatic transmission or 5-speed manual transmission. It was discontinued in September 1992, after 122,074 had been built.[2]

2003–2005 Hyundai Grandeur XG250 (Malaysia)

The XG250 was debuted in 1999 with a 2.5 L Delta V6. It was also called the XG25 in some markets. It was produced until 2005. There was also a two-liter model called the XG20 for some markets, including the domestic South Korean one.

• Performance
  • Acceleration: 0–60 mph in 10.6 seconds
  • Top speed: 204 km/h (127 mph)
  • Power: 165 bhp (123 kW)

The XG300 debuted in 1999 with a 3.0 L Sigma V6.

It was called the XG30 in Europe and in Asian countries. It was produced from 2001 to 2003. A 2.5-liter model, called XG25, was also sold in some countries such as France. The XG30 boasted many options available to only high-end luxury models at the time such as the Mercedes E-class and BMW 5 Series. The XG30 is also longer and wider than most of its rivals, and it is just a fraction smaller than the Audi A6.

In the United States, the XG300 equipped with the 3.0-liter V6 engine was available for the 2001 model year only. The "L" model included heated front seats, rear seat reading lamps, two-position driver's side memory seat and outside mirrors, power moonroof, 6-speaker Infinity AM/FM/CD/cassette stereo system, wood-tone accented steering wheel, electrochromic rearview mirror with a built-in three-channel HomeLink-compatible garage door opener, and a parking aid feature that automatically tilted the dual exterior mirrors downward when the transmission is in reverse. A slight discount was available on XG300 models that deleted the automatic electronic climate control in favor for a manual three-dial system. Other options included a power moonroof on the base model, and a trunk-mounted eight-disc CD changer for the L model.

• Performance
  • Acceleration: 0–60 mph in 9.8 seconds
  • Top speed: 214 km/h (133 mph)
  • Power: 181 bhp (135 kW)

2004–2005 Hyundai XG350L (US)

The 2002 XG350 models were equipped with a larger 3.5-liter V6 Sigma 194 hp (145 kW) engine. While only providing 2 hp (1.5 kW) more horsepower than the previous engine, it offered an additional 38 lb⋅ft (52 N⋅m) of torque, now rated at 216 lb⋅ft (293 N⋅m). New 16-inch bright 10-spoke alloy wheels were an inch larger than for the 2001 model year. In the United States, the power moonroof was no longer an option on base models. 2003 brought a new instrument cluster, and updated graphics for the console trip computer.

In the 2004 model year, the XG350 received larger front brakes (discs went from 10.9- to 12-inch), which in turn required a 16-inch spare tire as standard equipment, replacing the 'space-saver' design used since 2001. Also new this year were restyled front and rear bumpers, bodyside moldings, headlights (now with HID availability), driving lights, tail lamps, grille, and deck lid with recessed license plate holder. The high-mounted stop lamp in the rear window went to an all-new LED design. The interior wood-tone trim changed to a lighter shade, glove compartment and storage bins were now covered in charcoal gray material (formerly black), the door-mounted power window switch panels now matched the interior color (previously, they were high-gloss wood-tone), recessed seat tethers allowed for secure installation of child seats in all three rear seat positions, and the trunk hinges were now supported using hydraulic pistons. Standard equipment leather upholstery was available in solid deep charcoal or a two-tone finish featuring a tan interior with brown dashboard/center console and upper door trim. The L versions were equipped with specific 12-spoke silver-painted allow rims featuring center caps covering the lug nuts. Minor equipment changes inside included redesigned levers for the hood release and tilt steering column, an updated cruise control switch, a recessed trunk pull-down handle, and leather trim around the console armrest tray.

2005 was the last model year for the XG350, as it would be replaced at the top of the Hyundai line-up by the 2006 Azera. Both the base and L models now offered the formerly optional carpeted floor mats as standard equipment, while the L model was now equipped with a standard trunk-mounted eight-disc CD changer. The driver's door switch panel featured a restyled power door lock button; it was now designed to feel less like the adjacent power window controls, for ease of differentiation by touch.

2.0 and 2.5 Delta engines were available in South Korea.

The Azera comes standard with front airbags for driver and passenger, front and rear head curtain airbags and front and rear seat-mounted torso airbags.

According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety the Azera received a Good overall score in the frontal crash test and an Acceptable overall score in the side impact test. The driver's pelvis/leg in the side impact category was given a Poor score and the structure/safety category rated Marginal.[4][5]

NHTSA Azera[6]

Frontal Driver:

Frontal Passenger:

Side Driver:

Side Rear Passenger (earlier models):

Side Rear Passenger (later models):

Rollover:

• 2006 Canadian Car of the Year awards: named "Best New Family Car (over CAN$35,000)"
• Strategic Vision, 2007, named the "Winner Strategic Vision's 2007 Total Quality Index (TQI) for the large car segment"
• Kiplinger's Personal Finance "Best in Class" in the $25,000 to $30,000 category, 2007 Azera:
• Kiplinger's Personal Finance 2007 Car Buyer's "Best of 2007 Cars" March 2007.
• Edmunds.com Editors Most Wanted – 2007
• Edmunds.com Editor's Most Wanted Sedan Under $30,000
• Consumer's Digest, 2007, named "A Consumer's Digest Best Buy"
• J.D. Power and Associates – 2006: named "Most Appealing Large Car"
• IIHS, 2006, earned an overall "good" rating in the crash test, frontal offset impacts.
• AutoPacific, 2006, named "Best in Class Vehicle Satisfaction, Large Luxury Car
• Strategic Vision, 2006, named the "Winner Strategic Vision's 2006 Total Value Award for Best Large Car Ownership Experience"

The Grandeur HG was released by Hyundai with an all new appearance and an engine The Grandeur HG followed the "fluidic sculpture" design of modern Hyundai vehicles. This design is dubbed as the "Grand Glide" concept.[7][8]

The four-cylinder has a fuel economy of 12.8 km/L (36 mpg_‑imp; 30 mpg_‑US) (7.8 l/100 km) and the V6 is rated at 11.8 km/L (33 mpg_‑imp; 28 mpg_‑US) (8.5 l/100 km). The Premium model features adaptive cruise control and a semi-automatic parking assist system.[10]

Early Korean models of Grandeur include Theta II 2.4 GDI, Lambda II 3.0 GDI.[11] In Korea an E-VGT R2.2 Diesel engine with 202 PS (149 kW; 199 hp) is available. Korean version equipment includes auto high beam, lane departure warning, blind spot detection, and electric park brake.[12]

2014 Hyundai Grandeur Hybrid (South Korea)

It is a version of Hyundai Grandeur for South Korea market, with 2.4-liter Theta II MPi (159PS) engine, 47PS electric motor, projector beam headlights, LED taillights, a dual exhaust system, 17-inch aluminum wheels, Nappa leather seats, a leather-wrapped steering wheel and wood grain trim, dual-zone automatic climate control, heated seats, a rearview camera, a USB charging system, an infotainment system with a 6-inch display. Options include a panoramic sunroof, a premium audio system and GPS navigation.

The vehicle went on sale on December 17, 2013.[13]

Changes to US models of Hyundai Azera include lower starting price of $31,000 ($1,250 reduction from 2013), refined steering feel and precision, standard 6-inch color LCD audio display with rearview camera, standard driver blind-spot mirror, new electroluminescent gauge cluster with color LCD trip computer, new 8-inch navigation system standard on Limited, power-folding side mirrors standard on Limited, Hyundai Assurance Connected Care telematics services standard for three years.[14]

A facelifted Grandeur was launched in November 2019.

• 
  post-facelift
• 
  Rear view (Post-facelift)