Fountain Valley, Calif. — J.D. Power and Associates recently announced that Hyundai Azera has again topped the large car segment in the annual 2007 Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout Study (APEAL), which measures owner satisfaction with the design, content, layout and performance of their new vehicles.

The award represents the second consecutive year that Azera has topped the large car segment in the study. Outperforming several popular sedans, Azera received high marks for its interior, audio systems, seats, heating and air conditioning (HVAC), visibility and driving safety.

"Azera owners are impressed with the elegance and luxury of their car," said Dave Zuchowski, Hyundai’s vice-president of national sales. "This award further reinforces our brand philosophy about how smart consumers think about premium sedans. Clearly, the Azera raises the bar by combining safety, luxury and value like no other vehicle in its segment."

In addition, the all-new Hyundai Entourage placed third in the van segment and the re-designed Hyundai Santa Fe mid-sized SUV increased its APEAL ranking well above the segment average, with a 56-point improvement over last year.

The Azera also recently captured "Best in Class" for the sedans in the $25,000 to $30,000 category in Kiplinger’s Personal Finance "Best of 2007 Cars" awards and achieved the top slot in the large car segment in the Strategic Vision, Total Quality IndexTM (TQI) study, which measures the total vehicle satisfaction among new car owners. In addition, the Azera was named Edmunds.com "Editor's Most Wanted Sedan Under $30,000," and was named a Consumer's Digest "Best Buy." The 2006 Azera earned the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s (IIHS) top crash test ratings for frontal offset impacts, aided by unsurpassed standard safety equipment like Electronic Stability Control (ESC), Anti-lock Brakes (ABS) and eight airbags.