Establishing a luxury vehicle brand alongside a mainstream one is no easy task.
Just ask Lexus which is 34 years into its journey and still sits in fourth place behind the German premium car triumvirate it set out to disrupt.
So, when Hyundai announced it would enter the fray with its luxury Genesis brand in 2014, many wondered if it would have the patience, or the pockets to stay in the grind for the decades it might take to put a dent in the market share of these rivals.
Fast forward 10 years and we still don’t know the answer to that question, but what we do know is that at a local level Genesis Australia has been getting on with the business of building its brand and broadening its model range to ensure it has competitive vehicles in key categories.
One of those is the premium large SUV segment which is led by the likes of the Land Rover Defender and BMW X5, into which Genesis sells its GV80 wagon and more recently its GV80 Coupe SUV.
The GV80 wagon has been around long enough to have already undergone a facelift in May of this year, which coincided with the launch of a new body style, the GV80 Coupe.
It’s the coupe we’re concerned with here, most notably because it incorporates all the changes introduced to the MY25 wagon and an identical mechanical package, in a better-looking (but less practical) body style.
Both variants feature the now familiar bright chrome Genesis crest grille, flanked by LED headlamps and, in the case of the Coupe, expanded front air intakes that deliver a more purposeful and aggressive look.
At the rear, a double-hump rear spoiler and drainpipe size dual-sports-exhausts add a bit of muscle.
But it’s in the side profile that the Coupe really departs from its wagon stablemate, with its low, sloping roofline creating a more dynamic silhouette.
Flush roof rails help create a smoothly flowing roofline and sitting up as it does on big 22-inch alloy wheels it cuts a handsome, sporty figure. Both body styles come fully loaded with a dazzling array of standard features – as they should, given the SUV’s $130,000 starting price, which rises to $136,000 for the Coupe.
Power comes from a 3.5-litre twin turbocharged V6 boasting outputs of 279kW/530Nm. The engine is a ripper, with a meaty mid-range and a powerful top end that delivers the sort of muscular performance once the domain of V8s.
It’s the coupe we’re concerned with here, most notably because it incorporates all the changes introduced to the MY25 wagon and an identical mechanical package, in a better-looking (but less practical) body style.
Both variants feature the now familiar bright chrome Genesis crest grille, flanked by LED headlamps and, in the case of the Coupe, expanded front air intakes that deliver a more purposeful and aggressive look.
At the rear, a double-hump rear spoiler and drainpipe size dual-sports-exhausts add a bit of muscle.
But it’s in the side profile that the Coupe really departs from its wagon stablemate, with its low, sloping roofline creating a more dynamic silhouette.
Flush roof rails help create a smoothly flowing roofline and sitting up as it does on big 22-inch alloy wheels it cuts a handsome, sporty figure. Both body styles come fully loaded with a dazzling array of standard features – as they should, given the SUV’s $130,000 starting price, which rises to $136,000 for the Coupe.
Power comes from a 3.5-litre twin turbocharged V6 boasting outputs of 279kW/530Nm. The engine is a ripper, with a meaty mid-range and a powerful top end that delivers the sort of muscular performance once the domain of V8s.
Driving all four wheels through an eight-speed automatic and multi-mode AWD, it’s potent enough to power the hefty 2,345kg SUV from 0-100km/h in a brisk 5.7 seconds.
Ironically, that’s one-tenth of a second slower than the wagon, despite the coupe’s overtly sporty positioning.
The AWD system incorporates an electronic variable torque split clutch and active torque control between the front and rear axles, ensuring high traction levels in all conditions, along with the rear-biased weighting favoured by enthusiast drivers.
Adding to the Coupe’s dynamic handling are big 22-inch alloy wheels clad with Michelin Pilot Sport 4 tyres.
The combination looks terrific, but the wide footprint finds potholes and other road irregularities easily, sending uncouth thumps through the body on occasion.
The drivetrain is smooth and effortless at low speeds, the twin-turbo V6 using its generous reserves of torque, requiring only the lightest touch of the throttle to maintain pace with traffic.
But switch to Sports and it reveals a harder edge, with an audio-enhanced version of the high-performance exhaust note piped into the cabin.
For drivers looking for an alternative to big coupe-like SUVs such as the BMW X6, the Genesis GV80 presents a compelling alternative.
It’s thousands of dollars cheaper than its nearest rivals but lacks for little in the way of wow factor, technology, driving refinement or performance.
The fact it's available exclusively as a five-seater may, however, steer some buyers back towards its more practical six- or seven-seat wagon stablemate.
Key stats
Price (MRLP): $136,000 (plus on-road costs)
Warranty: Five years, unlimited kilometres
Engine: 3.5-litre twin-turbocharged V6 petrol (279kW/530Nm)
ANCAP safety rating: Not rated
Fuel consuption (tailpipe CO2 g/km): 11.7L/100km (271g/km)
For: Good looks, premium quality finishes, hi-tech interior, superbly refined, powerful performance.
Against: Fixed price, limited rear-seat headroom, five seats only, less luggage space than seven-seat stablemate, no smartphone mirroring, fuel consumption, no spare tyre (mobility kit).
Price (MRLP): $136,000 (plus on-road costs)
Warranty: Five years, unlimited kilometres
Engine: 3.5-litre twin-turbocharged V6 petrol (279kW/530Nm)
ANCAP safety rating: Not rated
Fuel consuption (tailpipe CO2 g/km): 11.7L/100km (271g/km)
For: Good looks, premium quality finishes, hi-tech interior, superbly refined, powerful performance.
Against: Fixed price, limited rear-seat headroom, five seats only, less luggage space than seven-seat stablemate, no smartphone mirroring, fuel consumption, no spare tyre (mobility kit).
