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Hyundai Genesis defies luxury

By on Dec 19, 2009 in Uncategorized



I think people have the wrong idea of luxury. Luxury isn’t heated seats, a sunroof or leather. It can’t be defined by options lists, vehicle types nor engineering feats — nor with pedigree, prestige or presence.
Worse still, luxury becomes meaningless immediately when many people have access to it. Espresso in the morning used to be a luxury. Sushi used to be a luxury. So did cottages, condos, bottled water, cell phones and designer handbags. Once you can buy it at the local mall, it’s ubiquitous.
Hyundai knows ubiquitous. From the Pony to the $9,995 Accent, for decades its electricity bills have been paid on the back of frugal and simple vehicles. Think of it as Toyota, 20 years behind schedule. Toyota launched the Lexus brand and its flagship, the L5400, exactly 20 years ago. Now? The LS is habitually the best selling prestige luxury sedan in North America.
As with its spirit guide, the LS, there’s nothing groundbreaking about the Genesis’ styling. Apart from the conspicuous absence of a Hyundai badge, of course. From some angles it looks like a Mercedes-Benz S-Class; other viewpoints bring out a little BMW 5- Series, Lexus GS, Infiniti M… All of which are easily recognized as luxury vehicles, and admittedly the Genesis also looks like it could be parked out front at the Four Seasons.
The car’s trump card is its drivetrain: either a 3.8L V6 with 306 horsepower or a 4.6L V8 with 375 horses. All that power is channeled through — yes — the rear wheels. The V8 even has a limited-slip differential. But when trying for some smoky burnout fun, a team of Korean nannies hopped into the car’s electronic stability programming and buzz-killed my heavy right foot.
So-called the Tao” V8, a Genesis so equipped can do 0-100 km/h in well under six seconds, and onto a 14.1-second quarter mile time.
Actually, during the press launch Hyundai was keen to show the car on merit. We beat ‘em to a pulp on the demanding Buttonwillow raceway, threw ‘em through a slalom, and drag raced against a BMW 750i.

I think people have the wrong idea of luxury. Luxury isn’t heated seats, a sunroof or leather. It can’t be defined by options lists, vehicle types nor engineering feats — nor with pedigree, prestige or presence.

Worse still, luxury becomes meaningless immediately when many people have access to it. Espresso in the morning used to be a luxury. Sushi used to be a luxury. So did cottages, condos, bottled water, cell phones and designer handbags. Once you can buy it at the local mall, it’s ubiquitous.

Hyundai knows ubiquitous. From the Pony to the $9,995 Accent, for decades its electricity bills have been paid on the back of frugal and simple vehicles. Think of it as Toyota, 20 years behind schedule. Toyota launched the Lexus brand and its flagship, the L5400, exactly 20 years ago. Now? The LS is habitually the best selling prestige luxury sedan in North America.

As with its spirit guide, the LS, there’s nothing groundbreaking about the Genesis’ styling. Apart from the conspicuous absence of a Hyundai badge, of course. From some angles it looks like a Mercedes-Benz S-Class; other viewpoints bring out a little BMW 5- Series, Lexus GS, Infiniti M… All of which are easily recognized as luxury vehicles, and admittedly the Genesis also looks like it could be parked out front at the Four Seasons.

The car’s trump card is its drivetrain: either a 3.8L V6 with 306 horsepower or a 4.6L V8 with 375 horses. All that power is channeled through — yes — the rear wheels. The V8 even has a limited-slip differential. But when trying for some smoky burnout fun, a team of Korean nannies hopped into the car’s electronic stability programming and buzz-killed my heavy right foot.

So-called the Tao” V8, a Genesis so equipped can do 0-100 km/h in well under six seconds, and onto a 14.1-second quarter mile time.

Actually, during the press launch Hyundai was keen to show the car on merit. We beat ‘em to a pulp on the demanding Buttonwillow raceway, threw ‘em through a slalom, and drag raced against a BMW 750i.

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