Driving the Hyundai Azera is more fun and rewarding than driving most of the competition, save maybe for the Mercury Milan, which is a bit smaller and quite a bit lighter. This is despite the Azera tipping the scales at around 140 pounds heavier than the mid-size cars mentioned above, and weighing in closer to the full-size Montego and Lucerne. Power-wise, it gives up only a few horsepower to the competition and equals or beats them in torque. In overall dimensions and stance on the road, there's little difference. What differentiates the Azera is the way it feels from the driver's seat, and the signals the various mechanicals send to the driver through the car's touch points.

Response to the gas pedal is smooth, immediate and linear; Hyundai says the Azera can accelerate from 0 to 60 miles per hour in less than 7 seconds, which puts it smack in the heart of its competitors' numbers.

Azera's one shortcoming in raw performance data is its fuel economy, as the EPA estimates it trails the others by as much as two or three miles per gallon.

Transmission shifts may not be seamless, but only slightly less so than in the pricier Avalon and on a par with the Milan. The Sportronic manual-shift feature selects gears by moving the shifter forward to shift up, rearward to shift down. On the down side, while it holds a higher gear, it will shift up when the engine approaches redline.

The brake pedal feels solid, and the four-wheel discs haul the Azera down from extra-legal speeds with confidence and no noticeable fade in everyday driving. Steering assist is nominal, with just about the proper amount of resistance to wheel movements; unlike the Avalon, for instance, which is over-assisted for our tastes, and the Milan, which could use a bit more assist.

Response to steering inputs, while not razor sharp, is sure and precise. Handling is nicely balanced. Put another way, while the Azera doesn't beg to be driven rapidly along two-lane, winding country roads; if so called upon, neither will it embarrass a reasonably rambunctious driver. Not even in the pricier Avalon Touring were we as comfortable on such roads; in the Milan and Maxima, yes, but the former's overall quality level fell a bit short and the latter is priced up there with the Avalon.

As with its front-wheel-drive counterparts, push the Azera past the cornering limits of its tires and it understeers (where the car wants to go straight when the driver wants it to turn). However, the electronic stability control should keep all but the most irrationally exuberant driver out of trouble. Directional stability on freeways is above reproach, and there is zero hint of float over pavement heaves.

Little wind or road noise intrudes into the cabin, although we noticed more of the latter in the rear seat than in the front. No buzzes, squeaks or rattles surfaced in our couple hundred miles over virtually every type of pavement in the test car.