Hyundai has hit the luxury field with a bang, and everybody's taking notice.

The car in question is the all-new 2009 Hyundai Genesis Sedan, designed to have every luxury item in the book at a price that's barely more than what you would pay for a well-equipped family sedan.

On paper -- and also in test drives, some say -- Genesis bests respected brands such as BMW and Mercedes, but is priced more like Pontiac G8 and Chrysler 300 -- the two brands it is targeted toward most with its $33,000 price tag for its base model.

The base model Hyundai Genesis 3.8 is powered by a 3.8-liter, 290-horsepower V-6 and gets 19/27 mileage, while the top of the line Genesis 4.6 is powered by the larger 375-horsepower, 4.6-liter V-8 (17/25).

As much as I love high-performance cars, I have to admit that the bigger engine is almost not necessary, given how responsive and quick the V-6 model was during a test drive.

Inside, the Genesis cabin is plenty spacious, with room to stretch out in front and cavernous space in the back. That's not surprising, given that the Genesis is several inches longer than the Lexus GS models and Infiniti M series, and about the same size as the Pontiac G8 and Chrysler 300.

Standard equipment is generous, including full-power equipment, soft-touch instrument panel with wood grain accents, a multimedia controller for the navigation system, a rain-sensing wiper system, electronic stability- and traction-control systems, roof-mounted side curtain air bags, alloy wheels, cruise control, dual front fully automatic air conditioning and heating system, Bluetooth and other items.