Inside, the 2006 Azera Limited we tested was loaded with more luxury than we’d ever seen, or expected to see, in a Hyundai. Indeed, the Azera Limited offered much of what we’d expect in an entry-luxury car, with a few exceptions. But, our tester was approaching $30,000, and at that price it gets harder to pass muster.

On the plus side is the padded dash cap that continues onto the upper door sills, underlined by silver plastic and real wood trim. That wood is also found on the Limited’s steering wheel, door handles, and shift knob. Textured metallic trim accents the area around the gear selector. The door panels are trimmed with leatherette inserts and soft plastics, with nicely padded armrests on the doors and the center console. The seats in the Limited are wrapped in soft leather, and the pillars are covered in the same mesh material that is used for the woven cloth headliner.

Radio and climate control buttons are simple and easy to understand and reach, and storage is plentiful, consisting of pop-out front door pockets, a lined pocket on the center dash, two center armrest pockets, and a total of four cupholders. All passengers are coddled with well-cushioned seats, though the center of the front seatbacks is hard, meaning that back seat riders might get banged up knees. Thankfully, the rear seat is spacious, so knee/seatback confrontations are likely to be rare. Behind that rear seat is one of the most impressive trunks we’ve ever seen. Every inch of the cargo area is lined, from the floor and sides to the lid and even the roof of the trunk – finding bare metal is a challenge back there. Even the hinges are covered in plastic sheaths. If you’re into trunks, you owe it to yourself to check this one out, and don’t miss the lockable rear seatbacks and multiple tie-down points.

Nothing’s perfect, including the interior of the 2006 Hyundai Azera. Our main complaints focused on a few signs of obvious budget-cutting. Silver door handles mirror the silver trim on the dashboard – not chrome or metallic door handles, just cheap silver plastic ones with visible casting flash. For a part that gets touched so often, a better part is in order here. Next is the hard plastic surrounding the main controls in the center of the dashboard, which looks and feels cheap in stark contrast to the soft and plush material used directly in front of the driver and front passenger. Hyundai, if you’re intent on using that cheap stuff, at least try to hide it. That leaves the rear seat. We appreciate the functionality of the split folding rear seat, but each section of seatback in our test car felt rickety when folded down, as if it was moving on one working and one broken hinge. Repeated use would likely only exacerbate the problem.

Finally, that brings us to the topic of the Azera’s build quality, both inside and out. Admittedly, we were driving early production models, but Hyundai reps told us they’d been gone through with a fine-toothed comb, so they should be up to snuff. Aside from that questionable folding rear seat, we noticed minor misalignments in the trunk lid and hood, headlights and taillights that didn’t sit equally flush on the right and left sides, and a larger gap on the right side of the dash versus the left. None of these were alarming, but as noted earlier, the critiquing pen uses more ink as the price increases, and even without that extra level of attention, the 2006 Hyundai Accent, also showcased at the same event, exhibited fewer build quality issues.