The Hyundai Azera is comfortable and offers near-elegant transport. The seat-upholstery, the dash covering, the carpet, are all top notch. Even the fabric headliner is a cut above the standard mouse fur. Gaps between the bits and pieces of plastic and other materials are impressively tight, earning high marks for fit and finish. The glove box and storage cubbies are of good quality. All hinged fixtures, from glove box door to roof-mounted grab handles, are damped for smooth, quiet operation.

The dash sweeps gracefully across the car, beginning and ending in sectioned caps molded into the front door panels, and beneath an odd, table-edge-like flat rim that circles the entire interior from the outboard edges of the rear seats. Vent registers are symmetrically positioned near the doors and on each side of the audio and climate control panels centered above a large storage bin. Intuitively proportioned tachometer, speedometer, fuel level and engine coolant gauges peer out from a hooded pod through the top half of the steering wheel. Large, friendly knobs, buttons and switches return a pleasant tactile feel.

An AM/FM/XM/CD/MP3 audio system with a four-channel, 172-watt amplifier and six speakers comes standard in the Azera GLS. Limited models upgrade to an Infinity audio system that includes a 7-channel, 315-watt amplifier, in-dash six-disc CD changer and 10 speakers.

The center console is trimmed in natural-looking woodgrain and brushed aluminum. Up front, almost tucked up underneath the dash overhang, is a covered ashtray with lighter. Aft of this is a small cubby, with controls for the seat heaters. Driver and front passenger have access to a pair of cup holders that hide beneath a hinged cover at the forward end of the console. The top of the bi-level console and storage bin is padded.

Map pockets in each door are provided, part of which flip out to expand. The backsides of the front seats wear magazine pouches. Back seat passengers get a fold-down center armrest with two cup holders and, overhead, reading lights.

The seats, front and rear, are comfortable and supportive. Front seat bases are fully enclosed so hardware isn't exposed. The driver's seat power lumbar covers an impressive range. Front seats give more and better thigh support than the rears, but the copious rear seat leg room more than compensates, helped by the rear doors' remarkably wide openings.

Visibility is good all around, with special credit to the view out the back. The adjustable rear head restraints are the shingle type, which are formed to fit down over the top of the seatback when retracted. The electro-chromatic rearview mirror comes with an off switch, for the compass, too, and when that's turned off, the window in which it appears fades into the mirror. And shift into reverse with the Limited's rear sunshade deployed, and it automatically retracts.

The Hyundai Azera is roomy. Dimension-for-dimension against the competition, Hyundai Azera generally prevails, besting the , and in nearly all measures (Maxima has a quarter-inch more leg room in front). In fact, Azera's interior dimensions are more comparable to those of the larger and . offers more rear-seat hip and legroom than Azera; but then Azera surpasses the Avalon in front-seat legroom and in front and rear headroom.

In trunk space, the Hyundai Azera is near the head of this class. Only the Buick Lucerne and Mercury Sable have more trunk space. The Azera beats the Avalon by two cubic feet. The Azera's trunk is fully finished, and enclosed gooseneck hinges and a hydraulic strut lift the lid.