Luxury, prestige and desirability seem to be harder to pull off---at least in North America---the smaller a vehicle gets. Ask BMW, Mercedes, Audi---all of whom have had their struggles over the years convincing loyal customers that their smaller cars are the equal of their larger machines (partly because, in some cases, they just weren't).
It should be at least that tough, if not tougher, for an auto brand that didn't exist on its own until five years ago, and that prior to that was a single model from a Korean automaker known for economy cars.
But it's not. This is Genesis, the luxury division of Hyundai. And it is on the kind of product roll that Lexus probably wishes it had thirty years ago when it was fresh on the scene. Luxury sedans--- G90. G80. Sport sedan---G70. Luxury SUV---GV80. And now, a smaller luxury SUV--the GV70.
True story: I had just pulled into my driveway with some takeout when two women out for a walk stopped to talk about the GV80. They liked it. One said the rear end reminded her of a Porsche Macan. Turns out she owned a Porsche Macan. When the lease was up, she got an Audi Q5. I won't at all be surprised in two years to see her in the neighborhood in a GV70.
Under the hood is a 3.5-liter twin-turbocharged V6 that actually makes more horsepower than the G70 3.3T Sport Prestige I reviewed in July. 375 horsepower, 391 pounds per foot of torque---sent to all four wheels through an eight-speed automatic transmission with paddle shifters and drive mode select. All of this is good for zero to 60 times of 4.9 seconds...just a few tenths behind the G70 3.3T. The EPA fuel economy estimate is 19 miles per gallon city/25 highway.
The base price of the 2022 Genesis GV70 AWD 3.5T Sport Prestige is $52,600 (other trim levels start at $41,000). The window sticker is at the end of this review so you can see for yourself, but among the standard equipment highlights at that price are a full suite of active safety features, 19-inch sport alloy wheels, a panoramic roof, leather seating surfaces with mesh inserts, a 16-way power driver's seat, a 12-way power front passenger's seat, navigation and a nine-speaker audio system.
Our test vehicle had three extra cost options. One was the Adriatic Blue paint ($500). But two were feature-filled option packages---the $5,000 Sport Advanced Package and the $4,900 Sport Prestige Package. Consult the window sticker below for details on each. Suffice it to say the eye-popping interior does not come standard, nor does the astonishingly good 16-speaker Lexicon premium audio system.
With those, and $1,045 inland freight and handling, the as-tested price of the 2022 Genesis GV70 3.5T AWD Sport Prestige is $64,045. Not bad. Most people during the week I had it guessed $75K or above. It just looks that good.
Bottom line---Genesis has done it again. The remarkable product cadence is paying off with an expanding lineup of vehicles---each of which is every bit as good as the one that came before.
