Luxury: Is it the car or the brand on the car?(Hyundai Equus related)
04-18-10, 12:55 PM
#46
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Great job acting indigant. 
I believe that is your m.o. whenever you get called on things, no? Now how about instead of avoiding the issue, you prove that you didn't just make it up. If it was on various sites, show links to ANY of them.
This "rumor" makes NO SENSE and sounds completely made up.
1. Filming stopped in mid-2008. The final version LF-A was introduced in October 2009. It's unlikely there was even a car ready to film.
2. Ford had a three movie product placement deal. That's why only Aston Martins were heavily featured in the Bond films starting with Die Another Day since Ford owned AM at the time. Obviously the film studio would never negotiate with Lexus when there was already an exclusive contract in place with Ford for several years (since 2001) already for the movie. Since the LF-A concept premiered in 2005 which was four years after Ford's contract was already signed, why would anyone at the time try to start such a lame rumor?
I believe that is your m.o. whenever you get called on things, no? Now how about instead of avoiding the issue, you prove that you didn't just make it up. If it was on various sites, show links to ANY of them. This "rumor" makes NO SENSE and sounds completely made up.
1. Filming stopped in mid-2008. The final version LF-A was introduced in October 2009. It's unlikely there was even a car ready to film.
2. Ford had a three movie product placement deal. That's why only Aston Martins were heavily featured in the Bond films starting with Die Another Day since Ford owned AM at the time. Obviously the film studio would never negotiate with Lexus when there was already an exclusive contract in place with Ford for several years (since 2001) already for the movie. Since the LF-A concept premiered in 2005 which was four years after Ford's contract was already signed, why would anyone at the time try to start such a lame rumor?
.As for proof, doing a web search is your friend:
http://www.autoblog.com/2006/11/19/f...d-involvement/
CLEARLY, if Toyota had actually gotten a deal, it would have been the concept LF-A appearing in the bond movie, just like the concept Camaro and concept Volt have appeared in the Transformers movies.
I love the look of this car.
04-18-10, 09:37 PM
#48
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The Equus looks better w/ the horizontal-slatted grill (and yeah, the S Class looks real dull).
Hyundai did a pretty good job w/ the rear cabin, but the front, esp. the center console could use a better design and materials.
Luxury is both.
Not only do you get a good product, but you have an image to go along with it.
The Equus, as great of a car that it is, does not offer a the prestige of a luxury brand. It will fail in that respect. It may be more reliable and cheaper than most luxury cars and exotics. It will not exceed them in any way as far as performance or originality.
Not only do you get a good product, but you have an image to go along with it.
The Equus, as great of a car that it is, does not offer a the prestige of a luxury brand. It will fail in that respect. It may be more reliable and cheaper than most luxury cars and exotics. It will not exceed them in any way as far as performance or originality.
Or what about the Toyota Century?
And remember, for the first 5-6 years, Lexus didn't exactly have the image that it does today - so does that mean the early Lexus vehicles weren't luxury?
I'm a creative director and I work with many brands, and IMO, it's all about the brand. Hyundai is not a luxury brand therefore Equus is not a luxury car. it's a luxurious car, but not a luxury car IMO. even though it looks very substantial and it really has a great presence, it still lacks the 'wannability'. I'm a big cycling snob, and just thinkin about owning Colnago gives me goosebumps. i would not feel the same way about Mongoose or any other mainstream cycling brand.
Many people think Ralph Lauren or Calvin Klein apparel as "luxury" despite a good no. of RL and CK products being inferior licensed stuff.
Take men's suits for instance.
Most Americans have never heard of Vestimenta, an Italian clothier w/ its own factories for making men's suits (before they were taken over by a conglomerate).
Vestimenta used to make suits for CK and Armani; they also produced suits under their own house brand.
Their suits which were priced similarly to say, Armani Collezioni, would actually be of better quality, more luxurious and on par w/ the better Armani Black Label suits.
I think Hyundai has what it takes to build a luxury brand someday and do very well just like Toyota did 20 years ago. I'm glad they are not launching the luxury brand yet because I believe they aren't ready. I would give them 5-6 more years. They will be ready and we will have another asian luxury brand that will stand toe to toe to European brands.
Well, with the Equus, you can tell that Hyundai itself doesn't want the car to be associated with Hyundai. Similar to the Genesis, it takes styling and design cues from various other luxury brands.
Also, I don't think I see a single Hyundai badge anywhere. On the front, rear, and even the steering wheel, they have the Equus badge, but not a Hyundai script "H."
Also, I don't think I see a single Hyundai badge anywhere. On the front, rear, and even the steering wheel, they have the Equus badge, but not a Hyundai script "H."
The Nissan Cima and President have their own special badging, as do the the Toyota Century and Crown Royal.
For the USDM version, the Equus does have the Hyundai nameplate at the back.
As for Omega, it's still a fairly prestigious watch brand (closer to Rolex than branda like Tag Heuer); a no. of decades ago, the Omega Sea Master was pretty close to the price of a Rolex Sub - but better marketing enabled Rolex to raise the price of their watches by quite a bit.
04-18-10, 11:15 PM
#50
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It's not so black and white.
Many people think Ralph Lauren or Calvin Klein apparel as "luxury" despite a good no. of RL and CK products being inferior licensed stuff.
Take men's suits for instance.
Most Americans have never heard of Vestimenta, an Italian clothier w/ its own factories for making men's suits (before they were taken over by a conglomerate).
Vestimenta used to make suits for CK and Armani; they also produced suits under their own house brand.
Their suits which were priced similarly to say, Armani Collezioni, would actually be of better quality, more luxurious and on par w/ the better Armani Black Label suits.
it's very hard to change their perception. Hyundai can get away with not launching the separate brand in Korea, but it will be a tough task in any other part of the world. only time will tell, but I don't see that many people buying Equus simply because 55k Hyundai is a tough tough sell.
04-19-10, 05:45 AM
#51
Mazda did the same thing with the 929 & Millenia with the Millenia being the better vehicle.. Mazda decided not to create a luxury name plate & sold the cars under the Mazda name plate.. The Millenia was the car I desired back in 1996 over all luxury sedans including the 5 series, E-class & GS.. Hyundai needs to continue with the product onslaught..
04-19-10, 05:59 AM
#52
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The LS was heralded as THE luxury car to have when it debuted and it turned the luxury market upside down.
By trying to infer its a Celsior rebadge is 100% inaccurate and only to stir the pot. Over 1 billion was spent in developing the LS from the ground up in 1980s money.
Lexus dominated early and established itself as a luxury marque from the start. There is no comparing what Lexus has done to what Hyundai is doing, its not close.
Mazda did the same thing with the 929 & Millenia with the Millenia being the better vehicle.. Mazda decided not to create a luxury name plate & sold the cars under the Mazda name plate.. The Millenia was the car I desired back in 1996 over all luxury sedans including the 5 series, E-class & GS.. Hyundai needs to continue with the product onslaught..
The Millenia was developed for "Amanti" the luxury lineup that Mazda was to debut. The 929 was just as expensive but not as well built. The 929 got discontinued and the Millenia became the flagship. (They were sold side by side for one year). Mazda ditched the idea as the yen was taking a pounding and outside Lexus, having a luxury Japanese brand wasn't exactly instant success. They just didn't have the money. (I also think it would have failed anyway)
I loved the Millenia and almost got one over my ES 300. Glad I didn't. The Miller Cycle V-6 was much bet
The vehicle sold poorly after the first year and got discontinued. No one wanted a 30-38k Mazda.
04-19-10, 06:02 AM
#53
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Read herehttp://www.qv500.com/bondtoyota.php
Producer, Albert 'Cubby' Broccoli, had seen Toyota's 2000 GT make its sensational debut at the Tokyo Motor Show in October 1965. Broccoli thought a special equipment version would make an ideal machine for Bond's accomplice, Aki (played by Akiko Wakabayashi).
Last edited by LexFather; 04-19-10 at 06:36 AM.
04-20-10, 12:00 PM
#55
I agree with everyone's definition of luxury.
Was it acura that used the term "value luxury" or something along that line?
It fits hyundai right now very well.
We'll wait on the final pricing, but if it's just a mere $10k away from an LS, then it's nowhere a value anymore.
I find myself staring at the equus when I see one on the road, I guess b/c all of the flagships are getting a little boring/common I guess.
The combination of the MKZ front grill, old RL taillights and LS exhaust- I like it alot
Was it acura that used the term "value luxury" or something along that line?
It fits hyundai right now very well.
We'll wait on the final pricing, but if it's just a mere $10k away from an LS, then it's nowhere a value anymore.
I find myself staring at the equus when I see one on the road, I guess b/c all of the flagships are getting a little boring/common I guess.
The combination of the MKZ front grill, old RL taillights and LS exhaust- I like it alot
04-21-10, 01:03 PM
#56
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but on a bright side, it no longer takes years to build a brand thanks to the crazy world we live in. HTC Evo 4G, a latest Iphone Killer, is making one of the biggest noise in the gadget market. did any of you heard of HTC 3-4 years ago? do you know it's a Taiwanese brand? HTC, much like Hyundai, was a no name brand with no name value. 4-5 years later, it's became one of the industry leader. HTC's rise to stardom is a good indication that it no longer takes 20-25 years to build a legit brand.
I think Hyundai has what it takes to build a luxury brand someday and do very well just like Toyota did 20 years ago. I'm glad they are not launching the luxury brand yet because I believe they aren't ready. I would give them 5-6 more years. They will be ready and we will have another asian luxury brand that will stand toe to toe to European brands.
I think Hyundai has what it takes to build a luxury brand someday and do very well just like Toyota did 20 years ago. I'm glad they are not launching the luxury brand yet because I believe they aren't ready. I would give them 5-6 more years. They will be ready and we will have another asian luxury brand that will stand toe to toe to European brands.
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