The Hyundai Equus, much like the Toyota Crown, is one of those cars you would only know about if you've been to those countries or if you obsessively follow the import car scene. Equus is Hyundai's luxurious flagship model, but it's only available in Korea and it's been that way since 1999. But now, with Hyundai's global ambitions, the next generation Equus is likely headed to the North American market. Whether it will retain the Hyundai nameplate or be sold under a Hyundai luxury brand name remains to be seen.

Recently, the guys over at Autobild snapped some photos of the 2008 Equus being tested on public roads. The heavily wrapped-up Equus looks to be slightly bigger than the current model while its overall design is still fairly conservative in the typical Korean/Japanese fashion. The new Equus will be RWD with a 270 bhp 3.8L V6 and a 5-speed manual/automatic as the sole transmission option. With the head wave Hyundai's been making lately, we are certainly excited to see the next Equus on this side of the Pacific soon.