The Hyundai Equus is a full-size luxury four-door sedan that tries to offer a really luxurious experience without costing as much as most full-size luxury cars. The Equus was sacked for the 2017 model year as Genesis joined the game and began making higher-end luxury Hyundai/Genesis products. This means that the Equus is one of, if not the most luxurious Hyundai models ever.
With such a high task, came a high price tag as many top-of-the-line models sold for upwards of $70,000. Yes, you hear that right, a Hyundai for more than $70k. However, it may seem ridiculous to pay such money for a car with a Hyundai badge, but those who did say that the car was well worth it as it gets stuff you can’t even get on a Rolls Royce.
Even though it is extremely interesting to ponder around all the luxury features you get with the Equus, in this article we are focusing on reliability. As such, the Equus is not as reliable as lower-end Hyundai models, but it is much more reliable and cheaper to run than virtually all large German sedans.
The most common issues are related to soy-made wiring, the infotainment system, various electrical issues, suspension issues, and brakes. All in all, the Equus really is a cool car these days, especially because it can be had for an amazingly low price these days.
Hyundai Equus – Soy-made wiring problems
One of the weirdest, and most frustrating issues you can encounter with many Hyundai models from this era is due to the wiring system being made from soy-based materials. The problem here is that rodents tend to find their way underneath your hood and start eating away at the wires. This can cause issues with numerous systems.
However, this isn’t the biggest problem either as when these fail, Hyundai replaces them with soy-made wires again. This benefits Hyundai as some of these repairs can cost hundreds, if not thousands of dollars, and of course, the rodents. All of this eventually led to a class-action lawsuit against Hyundai and some other automakers.
Hyundai Equus – Infotainment system problems
The Hyundai Equus gets a well-known and fairly frustrating Blue Link infotainment system that is known to annoy a bunch of owners. The problem here is that Hyundai will limit your access to certain functions if you don’t pay them their annual subscription fee. Moreover, you will have to pay $500 for a reinstall and even require certain hardware replacement parts.
All of this frustrated a bunch of Hyundai owners who also decided to sue Hyundai. The problem here is that Hyundai didn’t disclose to its customers that the resubscription is going to cost as much money as it does. To make matters worse, owners complained about paying that kind of money, but the system didn’t function even then.
Hyundai Equus – Electrical issues
It’s common knowledge these days that full-size luxury sedans come with features you really can’t see on cheaper cars. The Hyundai Equus is one of those cars because it gets a ton of luxury, comfort, safety, and convenience features, but some of those features are known to break.
The speaker system in the Equus can fail completely and stop emitting any sounds. The infotainment system can glitch or even turn itself off. The rearview camera can fail, the lights can fail and the phone connectivity suite can also fail. Power seats are sometimes known to fail while power locks can do too.
Hyundai Equus – Suspension issues
The Hyundai Equus is a really comfortable car, as it should be given its market segment. However, it seems like the suspension system on the Equus is also sometimes prone to various issues. Probably the worst issue is associated with the front end of the car dropping to the ground due to problems with the air suspension system.
To make matter worse, some owners replaced these components up to three times, but the issue still remained. Others reported knocking sounds while some reported issues with broken struts.
Hyundai Equus – Brakes issues
To top this list off, we also need to mention that Equus is known to suffer from brake system-related issues. The hydraulic electronic control unit that monitors your brake pedal can fail which will require you to stomp on the brakes to stop the car. Hyundai even recalled the Equus and some other cars due to similar brake system issues.
FAQ Section
Should I buy a Hyundai Equus?
If you are interested in buying a full-size luxury car that does not cost a ton of money to buy or maintain, the Hyundai Equus is the perfect car for you. Yes, it is a Hyundai and most people don’t expect a Hyundai to be called “luxurious” and to cost upwards of $70k, but the Equus was a great car when it came out.
The good news is that these can now be had for just $15,000 to $20,000, and at that price, the Equus is a certified luxury car bargain.
Why did Hyundai stop making the Equus?
Hyundai stopped making the Equus because Hyundai stopped making higher-end cars. They left that to Genesis who introduced the Genesis G90, a spiritual successor to the Equus. This means that the Equus name isn’t going to come back anytime soon as it probably is going to be retired for good.
This makes it a really interesting used car at the moment, and it seems like many people are liking the idea as the Equus is not only cheap but also pretty rare while being reliable.
Are full-size sedans on a decline?
The US market has seen a steady decline in full-size sedan sales for decades which prompted the big three (Ford, GM, and Chrysler) to completely discontinue their full-size sedan offerings. The only brands these days that continuously sell full-size sedans are Mercedes, Audi, BMW, Bentley, and Rolls Royce.
However, not all brands are sure about the demise of full-size sedans, some of them, like Lincoln with their new Continental, want to bring back the full-size sedan. All in all, they are declining, but they are not going anywhere anytime soon.