As I understand it, all over Europe A4s and C and E class Benzes are used in very pedestrian roles (cop cars, taxis, etc.). An A-class Benz or (as pointed out above), a base model A3 has a so-called luxury brand, but is nowhere near the luxury car a base model Genesis is. An SLS or SLR is sold in the same dealership as a B-class here, imagine the humiliation those buyers must feel having to share the same sales floor space with those plebeians.
Those who are deriding Hyundai -- have you been in a dealership lately? I haven't in almost a year -- but when I was, the sales experience was refreshing. The salesperson I had the pleasure of dealing with was enthusiastic, professional, knowledgeable and helpful. I wish I could say the same for the experiences I've had in Honda, Mazda and Nissan (Infiniti too!) dealers in the past year which seem to have picked up the slimeball sales forces who lost their jobs when AMC went under.
The difference in cost (and presumably the 'snack bracket' ) between an IS250 and an LS600h is far, far greater than the difference between an Accent and a Genesis. Do LS buyers hang their heads in shame because they have to be served in a dealership that also sells lowly IS250s to the masses? Is Infiniti considered a luxury brand? The three different Infiniti dealerships I've been in have all had shared showrooms with Nissan. Eww... Sentra owners.... how low brow!
Worst of all though... when I take my BMW into the local dealership, I have to drive into the same service bay as those urban hippies driving MINIs! The horror! What would my peers say if they saw me slumming like that?!
When Lexus was introduced, it didn't have any cachet with the valets either. When people started realizing the product was world class, the reputation followed suit in short order. The respect for Hyundai's brand may not be there yet, but there's definite truth in the the "Smart is in" slogan Hyundai is touting and more and more people are going to buy into it.