Hyundai Genesis 2016 new car review
Genesis - the company’s 2008 entry into the global rear-drive premium market - put it toe-to-toe with Lexus brand.
The name Hyundai isn’t exactly synonymous with feature-dripping luxury motoring - but it is in Korea. Genesis - the company’s 2008 entry into the global rear-drive premium market - put it toe-to-toe with Lexus brand.
The 2016 Hyundai Genesis isn’t just a Korean response to Toyota’s flashy brand - the reality is that in South Korea, large luxury cars the norm for executives, and many of these image-conscious big car buyers are chauffeur-driven. Hyundai, being the local automotive hero that it is, has a long history of providing such vehicles domestically.
Astute-thinking males?
So who would buy such a car locally? According to Hyundai New Zealand, here buyers will be astute-thinking traditional rear-wheel-drive buyers, predominantly males over 50, and who believe a car’s content and capability outrank brand snobbery.
That's Hyundai-speak meaning farmers, rurally-based executives, and SME business owners who want a large luxury car but don’t want to be seen driving an Audi, BMW, Lexus or Mercedes-Benz lest they be perceived unfavourably.
The Genesis’ interior is tastefully restrained, with some wood veneer trim adorning the dashboard. The rest of the cabin is beautifully-executed in leather, chrome, and high-quality plastic.
Genesis does not lack for creature comforts, the spec list is huge and includes heated and ventilated seats front and rear, a panoramic glass sunroof and self-levelling xenon headlamps - even a heated, leather-bound steering wheel to defrost cold hands on a wintery morning.
Tech tour de force
At its New Zealand launch in January last year, the DH-series Genesis was at that point the safest five car tested by the Australasian New Car Assessment Programme (ANCAP).
As expected in a near-six-figure vehicle, the Genesis is packs a solid suite of both active and passive safety features including active cruise control that will bring the car to a stop and accelerate back to the preset speed, autonomous emergency braking when the car’s sensors determine a crash is imminent.
The Genesis has one of the best head-up displays we've come across. It will give a visual warning of vehicles coming into your rear blind spot from both sides, and it will also display turn by turn navigation instructions.
Smooth operator
Formula 1 world champion Sir Jackie Stewart once told the late New Zealand motorsport writer Eoin Young that “smoothness was all” when it came to driving fast - and it started from the moment you put on your seatbelt.
Every feature in the Genesis is designed for smooth operation, from the 232kW, 3.8-litre V6, serving up a healthy 397Nm, through the Hyundai-built eight-speed automatic transmission.
It gives a good blend of ride comfort and responsive steering and neutral handling, thanks to an Australasian-designed spec and suspension tune that took a whole year to complete.
Despite sitting on 19-inch alloys with low-profile tyres, road noise is quite muted and makes the Genesis a genuinely pleasant companion for a long-distance road trip.
We took the car on a day trip to Hamilton, using the active cruise control with stop-and-go function and furnishing average consumption of 10.2L/100km, certainly a vast improvement on the official figure of 11.2L/100km.
Rumble-free
Acoustically-insulated glass might sound like a huge gimmick, but the reality is that it works incredibly well providing a quiet ambiance whether at a standstill or steaming down a motorway.
They say the proof is in the pudding, and we discovered just how effective the acoustic properties are when driving into a local car wash to give the Genesis a quick once over before returning it.
We opened the doors to a full-on eardrum assault from the local heavy metal radio station blaring loudly over the venue’s outdoor speakers, shutting the doors of the Genesis returned us to instant peace and tranquillity.
Both front seats have ventilated cooling and heating, and offer a good spot to watch the clouds drift by through the panoramic sunroof. The electronically-adjustable driver’s seat is easily personalised, the benefits of this show after spending several hours at the wheel fighting National Fieldays traffic - although the heating function was engaged a few times.
But it was the huge boot that sealed the deal for us - four large golf bags will comfortably fit inside, making it ideal for a boys day out. But more importantly, they will enjoy all the creature comforts of this car for a lot less money - $99,990 - than similarly-sized luxury cars from Europe, America, and Japan.
The Genesis may not have the snob value of an Audi, BMW, Cadillac, Lexus, or Mercedes-Benz - but nor does it have the inflated price tags and servicing costs.
Those astute 50-something blokes just might have the last laugh.
Note: This was reviewed as a new vehicle.
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