It took Toyota decades to crack the European market with Lexus but look at it now: from the low thousands year in year out to what should be around 75,000 sales 2024. Hyundai knows it needs to be patient with Genesis in this region, with volumes remaining modest. The same applies in China.
Detailed full-year data are yet to be publicised but looking at local trends as at the end of November, the number three brand in South Korea should have delivered some 130,000 cars and SUVs. As for the US, volume there looks set to be 70,000-plus. Europe will be around the 3,000 units mark, with the UK – one of only three markets – making up about one third of that. China? It’s a hard slog but Hyundai seems determined to persist, even with 2024 registrations likely being only around 1,000 vehicles.
What stops volume rising faster?
Aside from having no MHEV, HEV or PHEV powertrains, the other thing holding back Genesis in the UK, Switzerland and Germany is brand awareness. Again, the Lexus comparison holds true: when people see one of the cars they want to know what it is. I’ve driven every model but only recently did I get to spend more than a few hours with the Electrified GV70. As expected, conversations start thus: “nice car, what’s a Genesis?”.
This electric SUV looks almost the same as the petrol one save for the obvious lack of a fuel filler. Instead, the charging ports are ingeniously located on the edge of the grille under a diamond-shaped cover. You really would never know it’s there until pressing a finger upon said corner and…click…the sockets are revealed.
Almost three miles/kWh
For an SUV weighing 2.3 tonnes, delivering just shy of three miles per kilowatt in winter is a pretty good result. That translated to about 225 miles but you could expect perhaps another 25 in more favourable conditions (e.g. leaving the A/C off). You also get standard four-wheel drive and great performance, zero to sixty two miles per hour coming up in only 4.2 seconds when you press a steering wheel button labeled ‘Boost’.
There is just the one battery pack, its capacity quoted as 77.4 kWh though that’s gross, net being 72.6 kWh. Power from the two motors is 360 kW (490 PS) with 700 Nm of torque. Progress is as silent as you would expect from a luxury marque there being only the tiniest hint of a whir off the mark.
The electronic all-wheel drive system handled a big dump of rain and even a bit of snow with aplomb. There wasn’t any tyre spin, cornering felt totally safe and while the steering could do with a little more feel the suspension system’s comfort default was much appreciated. As with how great every model looks, if more people knew about Genesis itself, they would surely fall for the cars.
Genuine luxury vibe
Hyundai must have made a decision to specify only high quality materials for the interiors, the Electrified GV70 being a case in point. The tester came with several option packs, pushing the OTR price to GBP77,825 from a standard GBP64,300.
Diamond-shape detailing and elegant piping on the leather-faced seats, dash-top and door cards combined with soft lighting, well-weighted controls and a minimum of I Demand Your Attention gimmicks add to the luxury aura.
Something else which Genesis is very good at (or rather its parent) is keeping the new models coming, along with updating what’s already in the range. We’ve just learned that a revised GV60 will debut in South Korea soon, though whether or not there will be a bigger battery is yet to be stated. And there is much else on the way later in 2025 and beyond. Rumour also has it that India could be a new market and there will surely be others.
Next models
Today’s line-up consists of the GV60, an electric SUV, with the launched in 2021/2022 GV70 and Electrified GV70 the next size up. Then comes the GV80 with a GV90 to be added in 2026. That one will be, like the GV60, electric-only though sources indicate both standard and extended wheelbase bodies, the latter expected to have coach doors (like a Rolls-Royce).
As well as the SUVs, the G70 and its Shooting Brake estate derivative continue, as does the G80, the brand’s middle-sized car. Above these two sits the G90 and its LWB derivative. Of the three, only the G80 can be ordered as an EV (and the LWB body is now standard for the Electrified G80). What about hybrids though?
Whereas today there are exactly zero petrol-electric Genesis models, Hyundai is working rapidly on launching a range-extender powertrain for multiple vehicles. That may include the GV70, GV80, GV80 Coupe and G90, each of which should be announced in the second half of this year, along with a facelift in all cases.
Finally, the Magma sub-brand. Not yet revealed but expected to be later this quarter, a production version of last year’s GV60 Magma should be part of the restyled model range. Expect the same striking appearance as the prototype, along with a major upgrade to power and chassis dynamics. The brand’s racing credentials will shortly be showcased too, the international debut set to take place in, of all places, Australia, in a few weeks’ time.
Reaching 250,000
Given the quality of the present line-up plus what’s to come, perhaps the magic quarter million global sales mark might finally be reached this year or next? The cars are certainly good enough to warrant that potential – surely eventual – achievement.
“How long will Genesis be the inconspicuous luxury brand?” was originally created and published by Just Auto, a GlobalData owned brand.
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