It's Official: Hyundai Equus Revealed

That was fast! Following the leaked images of it's Equus , Hyundai has issued an official press release along with some new pictures of it's range topping Equus sedan.

A lot of the news here in this press release lies in the official information contained in the press release. As for visuals, Hyundai has released two new images that help to better illustrate the proportions and design.

The front images we've seen hide the car's true length. The design is clean, seemingly taking on different looks at various angles but overall making for a car that's handsomely good looking and inoffensive.

For the segment, it doesn't break new ground but most certainly it's an earth-shattering vehicle for Hyundai. They weren't going to do anything daring. They simply want to succeed playing this game by all the rules (other then badge of course).

Sumptuous! The Equus again ticks all the boxes, providing a luxurious atmosphere and limo-like rear seating area.

Wood is placed generously throughout the cabin, but take a look at that dash panel on the passenger side. Thick!

Customers will have a choice of 3 different interior colors and matching wood trim (Eucalyptus, Walnut or Burled Burch).  

Those that prefer a more modern look can opt for brushed satin aluminum accents. I'd love to see this interior in a different color, like tan. In my experience black doesn't always best show off an interior's attributes.

The V-6 and V-8 Equus models each wear different grilles, the V6 taking on a horizontal design similar to the Genesis and the V8 model pictured above employing the vertical design.

The V6 engine option is Hyundai's 3.8L Lambda, making around 286HP. Doing duty in the top model is Hyundai's award-winning 4.6L "Tau" V-8 making around 330HP.

Hyundai hasn't made it clear whether it is based on the Genesis platform, but I suspect that is most likely the case.

Hyundai has set aside any more speculation on whether or not it was even being considered for the U.S in the press release. Feasibility studies are currently being conducted for a North American and European launch around 2011 or 2012. It sounds more like a case of when (the economy improves?), not if.

Marketing is everything and I still think for Hyundai to truly compete in these upper levels, it will need an dedicated luxury brand.

Why not call the entire brand Equus? Every other automaker that intends to compete has it's own luxury brand and so should Hyundai.

The Equus was designed to be a no compromises vehicle, not built using the company's usual design-to-cost approach.

As such, they've delivered a competent vehicle with all the objective attributes to compete against the top vehicles in this segment. Will that be enough?