Entourage is pricey but has nice touches

Minivans aren't the hot-selling family vehicles that they were in the 1980s. But Hyundai officials still chose to add a first minivan to showrooms this year.

The seven-passenger, 2007 Hyundai Entourage is nicely done, with pleasant styling inside and out, six standard air bags and top government safety rating, plentiful amenities, an easy-to-live-with interior and a strong, 250-horspeower V-6 engine.

But with a starting manufacturer's suggested retail price, including destination charge, of $24,495, the new Entourage also ranks as the second-highest-priced vehicle at Hyundai, after the luxury-oriented Azera sedan.

Indeed, the Entourage is $600 more than the 2006 Kia Sedona on which it is based. Hyundai and Kia are owned by the same South Korean-based car company, and the Sedona minivan was revamped for the 2006 model year.

The Entourage also starts at a higher price than the $23,995 base price for a 2007 Dodge Grand Caravan. Dodge's Caravan/Grand Caravan are No. 1 in minivan sales in the United States.

To be sure, the Entourage includes a generous amount of standard features, which is a characteristic of Hyundai vehicles.

For example, even the base Entourage comes with a five-speed automatic transmission with Shiftronic, which allows a driver to manually shift gears sans a clutch pedal for a sportier experience. This feature is in the Sedona, too, but it isn't found on many other minivans, including the Grand Caravan and Honda Odyssey.

Every Entourage, which is dimensionally about the size of an Odyssey, also comes standard with traction control and keyless entry system.

But traction control isn't offered on the base Grand Caravan, and keyless entry is optional.

Best of all, Hyundai officials appear to have cherry-picked the best minivan features pioneered in earlier years by competitors.

For instance, third-row seats in the Entourage flip and fold into a cavity in the floor with ease, leaving a flat, spacious cargo floor at the back of the vehicle. This feature was first used in Honda's Odyssey years ago.

Thoughtful touches

The Entourage comes with a standard "conversation mirror" -- a convex mirror above the rear-view mirror that helps the driver see what rear passengers are doing without having to turn around. This was first introduced in Ford's Windstar minivan years ago.

Other thoughtful touches pioneered by others: All Entourages have two separate seats for the second row, avoiding the more plebian-looking second-row bench seat.

And windows on the two second-row sliding doors open up to 75 percent of the way to allow pets and children to get fresh air.

The savvy mix of features is joined by a single, strong powertrain.

Developing 250 horses and 253 foot-pounds of torque at 3,500 rpm, the 3.8-liter V-6 moves the rather heavy Entourage in responsive fashion. Indeed, the Entourage didn't hesitate in passing other vehicles, even on hilly roads at highway speeds.

The engine sounds good, sort of sporty, at startup as well as during acceleration.

Shifts from the transmission in the test Entourage were so smooth, I didn't notice them.

The government fuel economy rating -- 18 miles per gallon in city driving and 25 mpg on the highway -- is in the top third of the minivan class.

But the test model, a top-of-the-line Limited that was priced at an eye-popping $33,670, only got 17.8 mpg in majority highway driving.

The ride in the test Entourage kept most bumps away from passengers. Riders didn't feel the bumps, but at times, they heard them coming from underneath the vehicle.

There also were some bobbing and diving body motions of the Entourage in curves and stopping maneuvers.

The interior was quite quiet, save for some minor wind noise that developed at highway speeds.

The leather-trimmed seats in the uplevel Entourage Limited were comfortable. But the leather itself didn't have the soft feel of upscale leather and could have been mistaken for vinyl.

On and off, the tester developed a squeak in one of the rear seats after the van had been on rough road surfaces.

And window buttons for the second-row doors were a big reach for passengers, because the buttons were on the metal pillar by the driver seatback.

But I appreciated that the Entourage floor is flat, everyone has a height-adjustable, lockable head restraint, and there are two glove boxes in front of the front-seat passenger.

I also had easy entry into any of the seats of the Entourage and a good view out and a bit above the cars. I never did see the end of the hood, though, so I had to estimate it as I parked.