Hyundai has built its name on cars of increasing quality that undercut the competition on price. With its Sonata sedan now largely seen as a competent alternative to the Accord or Camry and its Elantra named the best small car in its class by Consumer Reports, the Korean automaker has turned its attention to luxury marques. The new 2009 Genesis sedan is Hyundai's attempt to undercut the competition in large luxury sedans, and the automotive press has just begun to get its hands on the Genesis this week.
Edmunds is very impressed. "Your socks had better be firmly affixed or the Genesis will blow them clean off," they write, because "there isn't a better rear-wheel-drive sport sedan for the money." Edmunds says the Genesis "is a car that's the size of the first-generation Infiniti Q45 with the performance of an M45 and at the price of a G35."
"Under the hood you get your choice of a 4.6-liter V8 or 3.8-liter V6," AutoCrave says. "The bigger lump corrals 375 horses when sipping premium, and 368 with regular gas." That's competitive, the say, "in the mix of luxury offerings from Infiniti, BMW, and Mercedes, the Lexus GS460, along with the Chrysler 300C, and Pontiac G8, with slightly more horsepower than all but the E550, and slightly less torque than any of them."
Car and Driver says the passenger cabin of the Genesis "is good enough to be judged against established luxury marques. High-gloss wood accents are plentiful, and every version except the base V-6-equipped car comes with a leather-wrapped dash. Standard items include keyless entry and ignition, heated seats, XM satellite radio, iPod and USB audio integration, and Bluetooth phone connectivity."
Popular Mechanics concludes the Genesis has ultimately fallen just short of its goals of competing with the best from BMW and Lexus. "The Genesis is a good car that gets nearly to 'luxury' levels," they write, "But it's lacking the fit, finish and quality control one expects from the leaders in the segment. ... We suspect Hyundai will reach those same levels in due time." Still, they ask, "Why should someone buy a Buick when they can get twice the luxury at the same price?"
Check out the competition for the Genesis with U.S. News' car rankings and reviews.
