Genesis GV 60 in the test: what can the electric car from the Hyundai luxury brand do?

Enlarge image

The Genesis GV 60 is based on the Hyundai Group's 800-volt electronic platform and thus benefits from an extremely fast charging time.

The battery charges with up to 350 kW at a fast charging station with a direct current connection.

Photo: Florian Quandt / Genesis

The first impression:

Refreshing!

This is not only due to the lemon yellow paintwork of the prototype.

The whole car looks bold and almost futuristic.

Sure: the camouflage film on the spoilers and sills will come down until the market launch.

That's what the manufacturer says:

Genesis wants to compete with big names.

The Hyundai Group brand, launched in 2015, sees itself in a league with Japanese companies such as Lexus or Infiniti, as well as with Audi, BMW and Mercedes.

It has been represented in Europe for a year.

"Our mission will be to offer much more than just excellent vehicles," says Genesis Europe boss Dominique Boesch.

He wants to score with service.

»We know that discerning customers long for that little something extra.«

In fact, the pick-up and delivery service or the personal assistant for each customer were also sorely needed.

Because the models with which Genesis debuted had nothing special.

The G 70 and G 80 sedans and the GV 70 and GV 80 SUV variants look elegant but dusty.

But now the brand is bringing out a compact electric SUV that makes competitors like the Audi Q4, the Mercedes EQX or the BMW iX3 look stuffy.

Genesis brand boss Jaehoon Chang calls the car "modern, unobtrusive and personal".

The advantage is that he doesn't carry any traditional baggage with him: If you don't have any existing customers, you don't have to be considerate.

And so the GV 60 already stands for the change of the young brand: The first electric car in the Genesis portfolio is to be followed by electric versions in every series by 2025.

Genesis wants to sell only electric cars by 2030 and be completely CO2-neutral five years later.

We noticed that

outside of Europe, the e-SUV is the world's first mass-produced car with a camera that allows access to the car via facial recognition.

The seat, mirrors, air conditioning and other comfort functions are then adjusted to the recognized driver.

This also works with the personal key or the fingerprint sensor on the center console - and thus also for customers in Europe, where the camera was not approved.

As a compact SUV, the GV 60 is just one of many, and there is also a large selection among the electric models.

That's why details like personalization matter.

The space offered by the Korean is neither positive nor negative - but, as with all electric cars, it is better than with combustion engines because no space is required for diesel or petrol engines.

Large screens characterize the unspectacular ambience, a high center console dominates the luxurious emptiness.

After all, in addition to the 432 liter trunk, the GV 60 also has a "frunk" in the front that can hold up to 50 liters.

The car has plenty of power and at up to 235 km/h it is also a bit faster than the competitors from Audi, BMW or Mercedes.

But as in most electric cars, you feel quite decoupled from the road behind the steering wheel and immerse yourself in comfortable sedateness.

On the other hand, pressing the yellow boost button on the steering wheel helps.

Then the GV 60 unlocks 40 kW more power for ten seconds, like a sports car.

This also helps when overtaking or when entering the freeway.

If you want to get even more out of the car, you might want to use the “drift mode” hidden in the submenus.

Specifications Genesis GV 60

Some technical innovations are convincing - including cameras that look into the blind spot and flash their image into the cockpit.

But in a few places Genesis overshot the mark.

So with the digital exterior mirrors, they are of little use in everyday life.

The camera feet on the outside of the door are so large that the air resistance should hardly shrink.

And the monitors inside are crude and look like they were screwed on afterwards.

At least the left screen is also covered by the hand on the handlebars.

What you need to know:

The GV 60 will start before the summer holidays at prices from 56,370 euros.

There is the 4.52 meter long five-door with a 160 kW engine on the rear axle and a 74 kW engine on the front axle.

For 71,010 euros, the manufacturer also installs the more powerful engine in the front.

The GV 60 then accelerates to 100 km/h in 4.0 seconds.

The battery always has a capacity of 77.4 kWh and should last for a good 450 kilometers.

The Genesis is also faster than the competition at the socket.

Unlike the electric SUVs from Germany, it charges with up to 350 kW and thus increases the battery level from ten to 80 percent in 18 minutes at best.

The system voltage of 800 volts and the high charging capacity make the GV 60 stand out from the flood of compact electric SUVs.

So far, only the Porsche Taycan and Audi e-tron GT offer this.

It is noticeable that Genesis is related to Hyundai and Kia.

The GV 60 uses the same platform as the Ioniq 5 and EV6.

We will not forget that:

the complicated look back.

It's not just the digital exterior mirrors that disappoint.

The view through the rear window is modest - the part is simply too flat.