The 2014 Hyundai Equus Ultimate is a four door luxury sedan for those who appreciate living large while saving a few bucks at the same time. Full of the same standard features as many of its competitors, the Equus is the car for the Scrooge McDuck in all of us.
The Equus comes with a 5.0L V8 engine, good for 429 hp and 376 lb-ft of torque. Power goes to the rear wheels via a shiftable 8-speed automatic transmission. 60 mph comes in the mid 5-second range, and EPA fuel estimates are 15 mpg in the city, 23 out on the highway, and 18 mpg combined. My week of city driving with a single 100 mile round trip campaign out to the country averaged 17 mpg.
| STATS | Starting Retail Price | As Tested Price | HP / Lb-Ft |
| 2014 Hyundai Equus Ultimate | $61,000 | $68,000 | 429/376 |
| EPA Rating MPG | As Tested MPG | ||
| Rating: LEASE IT! | 15/23 Combined 18 | Combined 17 |
The 2014 Hyundai Equus comes with a whole slew of standard features, including 19″ premium alloy wheels, HID headlights, adaptive front lighting system with auto-cornering and leveling, keyless entry and ignition, backup camera with front and rear parking assist, leather interior with wood trim, heated and cooled front seats, heated rear seats, navigation with a 9.2″ color screen, rain sensing wipers, BlueLink, sunroof, and Sirius/XM satellite radio with the all important slamming stereo system.
For $7000 you can get the Ultimate package which adds on a 12.3″ LCD instrument cluster display, heads-up display, multi-view camera system, forward view cornering camera, rear seat entertainment package with dual 9.2″ monitors, cooled rear seats, and a few other minor features.
That is quite a list, isn’t it? The features all work well and live up to expectations. It’s easy to input addresses into the navigation and the infotainment system is fairly intuitive. The heads-up display gives you not only speed but also turn by turn navigation directions, which is quite handy. The seats are comfortable and lord knows there is plenty of room. The rear seat is practically presidential and the rear entertainment system gives you the option of changing the radio station and the seating position of the front passenger. My advice is to put your practical joker pal in the front.
The 2014 Hyundai Equus gives you three driving modes: normal, sport, and snow. While I had no snow in which to test that driving mode, I did have a pretty good time in sport mode. Folks who will probably buy this car will be satisfied driving in normal mode, but if you’re looking for quick upshifts, sport mode is where it’s at. The engine is silent and compliant while tootling around town, but wakes up rather quickly when a heavy right foot is applied. Suspension is tuned toward the luxury end of the spectrum, so expect a soft and easy ride. Sport mode tightens it up somewhat, but the Equus is still far from agile.
The Equus Ultimate is a decent handling car loaded with standard features. At $68,000, it’s a screaming deal for a luxury sedan, but there’s something missing. Unlike competitors such as the Cadillac XTS or the Audi A8, it’s just not that fun to drive. If driving pleasure is low on your list of car requirements, then you’ll be happy with the Equus. It looks good, it’s luxurious, and it comes with a 10-year, 100,000 mile warranty. However, I require a little fun with my flash.
On the TFLcar scale of:
- Buy it!
- Lease it!
- Rent it!
- … or Forget it!
The 2014 Hyundai Equus Unlimited gets a Lease it!
Sure, you’ll be satisfied, but life is too short to drive something that doesn’t put a smile on your face.
Check out this review of another Hyundai model, the 2014 Santa Fe.
Emme is a driver, reviewer, and rabble rouser. She is the principle driver and trophy winner for the Mega Monkey Motorsports™ 2 seat 1600 desert racer, powered by an air-cooled VW engine and has also been on the podium in a stock bug, a trophy bug, and an ultra-4. She is one of only 17 American women to have participated in the Rallye Aicha des Gazelles, a 9 day all female off road rally in Morocco with no GPS. You can check her out online on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and either one of her blogs
