6 Things You Need to Know About the Fresh Genesis Luxury Brand
G enesis has hired a German engineer to lead chassis development
Albert Biermann promises to establish «a clear, distinct, dynamic character that`s all our own.» All Genesis models will be on a «rock-solid rear-wheel-drive platform,» he says, which presumably means even the three crossovers planned will suggest RWD and all-wheel-drive. The brand launches with the two thousand seventeen Genesis G90, which is a meticulously updated Hyundai Equus, and the two thousand seventeen G80, a facelifted Genesis sedan, both of which go on sale in the U.S. this summer. Those sedans take on the Mercedes-Benz S-Class and E-Class and their competitors, respectively. A «sport sedan» named G70 comes afterward to take on the C-Class and its other competitors, notably the BMW three Series, with the three SUVs coming within the next four years. The Genesis G80 facelift will feature sportier dynamic characteristics, Biermann says.
Biermann`s group will tune these cars for specific markets
This is significant because as Hyundai design and quality improved exponentially in the last decade, rail and treating remained the company`s Achilles heel. South Korea is covered by straight, mostly slick roads with lots of speed bumps, and the cars are tuned for convenience there. When engineers in markets like the U.S. attempted to retune them, the cars were still compromised, often combining stiff rails with flabby treating. The basis of the fresh Genesis models is a multi-link suspension «with extensive use of aluminum,» Biermann says, «with precisely managed kinematics. It`s the tuning of these components that bring this vehicle (the G90) to life.» Biermann says the Genesis line will be tuned differently for its various markets. Tuning for North America will concentrate on good high-speed (freeway/highway) dynamics.
Genesis «N» will be the brand`s M/AMG/V-Series, etc.
Biermann`s total title is a long one: Head of Vehicle Spectacle Development and High Spectacle Vehicle Development for Genesis. That 2nd title refers to the brand`s fresh spectacle model moniker, N. Tho’ Genesis didn`t give any details about N at the Detroit showcase, it does come right after BMW M, and will also take on Mercedes-Benz`s AMG, Cadillac`s V-Series and all the others. The basics for the hot-rodded luxury cars, in addition to the aluminum-intensive multilink suspensions, are the twin-turbo Trio.3-liter V-6, rated three hundred sixty five horsepower and three hundred seventy six pound-feet, and the updated Five.0-liter Tau V-8, rated four hundred twenty horsepower and three hundred eighty three pound-feet. Those are the numbers for the quotidian G80/G90 engines; it will be interesting to see what N can do with them.
The G90 ties trim level to engine size
As part of its value proposition, the Genesis G90 launches with two trim levels and one stand-alone option. The trim levels are tied to the two engine choices: the G90 V-8 comes with 14-way driver`s side/16-way passenger`s side power-reclining rear seats, for example; the twin-turbo V-6 model does not. An all-wheel-drive option is available with either engine, however. While this sort of simplified option sheet might work for a front-wheel-drive midsize sedan, it`s not what the rest of the luxury automotive world is doing, especially the Germans. The competition typically suggest a broad array of options, accessories, and interior trim choices in order to let luxury customers «personalize» their cars – it`s a step brief of the bespoke treatment that Rolls-Royce, Bentley and other ultra-luxury brands suggest, and it boosts the mainstream luxury brands` profit margins, as well. What`s more, due in part to European CO2 and U.S. Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards, Mercedes and BMW, especially, aren`t limiting their top-equipment offerings to models tooled only with the thickest, most powerful engines. I suspect Genesis will have to alter this strategy as it rolls out four more models by 2020.
Buy your Genesis from a Hyundai dealer
Speaking of rolling out more models, Hyundai Motor is not requiring its selected Genesis dealerships to open a separate facility, or to even suggest a showroom within a showroom. This is because it`s launching with two fairly low-volume models that can`t justify such expenditure. Hyundai instead is expanding its Your Drive, Your Place service for Genesis customers. Since Acura, Infiniti and especially, Lexus, launched here with standalone showrooms in the late 1980s, private service has been key to the «luxury practice.» Those customers don`t want to mix with the hoi polloi buying common Hondas, Nissans and Toyotas. Or Hyundais. Your Time, Your Place means Hyundai will pick up and produce the Genesis to you, dear busy luxury customer, at your home or office, whether for a test-drive, or for maintenance and service. Hyundai says it has no other distribution plans for the time being, but you can bet that will switch once it has a utter selection of models by the end of the decade.
Genesis has hired an Audi, Lamborghini, Bentley designer
Hyundai Motor announced back in November that Luc Donckerwolke, of Bentley, Lamborghini and Audi fame, is now chief of its fresh Prestige Design Group. «We have assembled a dream-team of designers totally dedicated to Genesis,» Hyundai Motor Group design chief Peter Schreyer – known for his work on the original Audi TT, among other Audis and the Volkswagen Fresh Beetle – told the Detroit display crowd. Genesis design will be distinguished by their RWD platforms` «long dash-to-axle lengths, brief overhangs and healthy stance,» Schreyer said. We got a hint of Genesis` signature look with the unveiling of the Hyundai Vision G coupe last August at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.