Hot Metal: The 2027 Genesis GV60 Magma DrivenGenesisIf you find yourself wandering Seoul's Gwangjang Market in search of a meal, it's hard not to be in awe. There's an uncountable number of restaurants, stands, and curio shops to peruse. Custom children's dresses and Pokémon claw games are mixed in among the corn dogs, dumplings, fried chicken, soup, and kimchi—enough to make a cabbage farmer blush. Not a single commercial sign is recognizable to this American, except for what's on the beer bottles. But there are some familiar faces: If you were to believe that all the kitchens with a photo of a celebrity chef eating the spot's specialty are lights-out good, then this market is a food mecca worth the travel. Anthony Bourdain and Gordon Ramsay were the most common I clocked. Wait, what's that? A tank full of baby octopuses? Yup, they cut up the little mollusk and serve it while it's still moving. I'll try anything once.I'm in Korea to drive Genesis's new GV60 Magma. If Magma as a proper noun feels new, that's because it is. In the vein of Volkswagen's R, BMW's M, and Hyundai's N, Magma is this luxury-car maker's performance subbrand, only it's a word, not a letter. This is the first offering; the G80 and GV80 should get the hot-lava treatment soon. There's also a mid-engine GT supercar expected next year. Plus, there's the Genesis Magma Racing effort that just campaigned a prototype at Le Mans and recently showed a GT3 racer.GenesisGenesis calls all its GV60s SUVs, but in Magma guise, this car presents more like a hot hatch, complete with dive planes on the front bumper and a rear spoiler that doesn't infringe on visibility. While the GV60 is the first Magma, calling it a completely new car isn't entirely truthful. All GV60s share a platform and most of their important components with the Hyundai Ioniq 5 and the Kia EV6. So naturally, the GV60 Magma and the Ioniq 5 N have a lot in common.AdvertisementAdvertisementThey both have two motors and an 84-kWh battery that combine to make a maximum of 641 horsepower, electronically controlled adaptive dampers, similar Pirelli P Zero Elect 275/35ZR-21 tires (GOE-spec, the N gets HN branding), 15.7-inch front brakes with four-piston calipers, and 14.2-inch rear brakes with single-piston floating calipers. Chassis electronics are also similar, with an electronically controlled limited-slip diff in the rear, brake-based torque vectoring, and a drift mode.Despite all of these similarities, the cars are still quite different. The Magma has a nearly four-inch-shorter wheelbase than the N (114.2 inches to the Hyundai's 118.1). And while both feature a novel soundtrack and motor programming that mimics the physical and audible experience of an internal-combustion engine, the Magma's is based on a 9000-rpm V-6, whereas the N mimics a 7750-rpm inline-four.Their shared 641-hp spec has a couple of caveats. First, the peak represents a time-limited Boost mode that bumps output by 40 horsepower. In the Hyundai, 641 is available in 10-second bursts, but the Genesis gets 15 seconds of peak power at a time. To call up the boost, all you have to do is put the accelerator to the floor, and a countdown timer activates. What does this mean for straight-line performance? Not much. The Magma's 60-mph time will likely be the same 3.0 seconds as the N's, but the Genesis could shave a tenth off the Hyundai's 11.1-second quarter-mile time because it will have a second or so of higher output.GenesisOur drive was rather short and rife with speed cameras, but we did get a chance to put the GV60 Magma through a couple of switchbacks, where it proved to be composed in corners and when coming out of them with the accelerator pinned. Genesis reps said there is a chance the U.S. chassis tune will be a bit firmer than what we experienced, in terms of both ride and steering effort. But we'd tell the people who determine "market preferences" to stuff it. The Magma we drove felt like an Ioniq 5 N that went to finishing school. You can dial up the steering effort in My mode if the default weight isn't enough. There's a lot of mass, like 4900 pounds of it, but the Magma hustles and hugs the road the way a luxury car should. Despite its meaty tires, there isn't an overwhelming drone filling the cabin.AdvertisementAdvertisementShould you want a serenade, fire up the Virtual Gear Shift (VGS) option in one of the three Magma-specific modes: Sprint, GT, and the aforementioned custom My mode. Activating it changes the instrument cluster to a conventional speedometer and tachometer, the latter indicating a lumpy idle not unfamiliar to anyone who spent time in a cammed 1960s muscle car. The system's smoke and mirrors does an amazing job of re-creating all the experiences of an engine: the good sounds, the torque-interrupting gearshifts, and also the hesitation for a wide-open-throttle kick-down when you go to pass. The volume of sound is adjustable for interior and exterior. When the GV60 Magma isn't in VGS, there's some motor noise pumped through the 17-speaker Bang & Olufsen sound system. The U.S. models might be able to deactivate that, but it still isn't determined.GenesisAs with all Genesis EVs (as of the 2026 model year), the 2027 Magma gets a NACS charging port to make easier use of the Tesla Supercharger network. You'll want to find chargers delivering 250 kilowatts or more in order to take advantage of the 800-volt capability for wickedly quick fast-charging. We've tested a bunch of Hyundai, Kia, and Genesis models, and they all charge as advertised—here, that's 18 minutes from 10 to 80 percent. Plugged in to a home charger, the Magma will go from 10 percent to full in about seven hours.Genesis has yet to announce pricing and the exact on-sale date, but we expect the first Magmas to hit dealers in the late fall, costing about $80,000. They come pretty much one way: loaded. The interiors feature comfortable suede-lined buckets with orange stitching and orange seatbelts. Exterior options are limited to black, white, orange, and matte blue. The flat paint will be an upcharge.If you're still unsure about an EV, do what I did with the wiggling-on-the-plate octopus: try it. There's a strong chance you might like it, and it'll stick to you like the tentacles stuck to my teeth.➡️ Skip the lot. Let Car and Driver help you find your next car.Shop New Cars Shop Used CarsYou Might Also LikeGift Guide: Best Ride-On Electric Cars for KidsFuture Cars Worth Waiting For: 2025–2029