Hyundai Motor has yet another excellent EV in the form of the Genesis GV60. This Performance model might be a bit too expensive, though.
The Genesis GV60 will chirp its tires. The experience is incongruous, as this is very much a luxury car, with few visual clues to any sporting intentions. Inside, it’s all quilted leather and other similarly plush materials… and a greenish-yellow button on the steering wheel that reads “Boost.” Exclusive to the $68,985 Performance trim, the boost button ups output from 429 to 483 horsepower for 10 seconds. For a moment, after you get rolling, the GV60’s efficiency-minded Michelins don’t quite know what to do. It’s amusing.
This is the first electric car from Hyundai Motor’s luxury brand, a half-hatchback, half-crossover-type thing that shares underpinnings with the Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Kia EV6. Expectations for the GV60 are high; its siblings are thoroughly excellent and the Genesis brand is on a roll with its new products. While it didn’t disappoint, it is slightly odd. The GV60 is the smallest crossover from Genesis, though its $59,985 base price—which is before the $7500 Federal EV tax credit and any local incentives—is higher than that of the GV70 and GV80. Chalk that up to the fact that even the base GV60 is well equipped, and that EVs are still expensive. Stepping up to the Performance trim brings output from 314 hp and 446 lb-ft of torque to 429 hp and 516 lb-ft. It also adds 21-inch wheels, bigger brakes, adaptive dampers, an electronic limited-slip rear differential, and some nicer interior trimmings.
Despite the name, the GV60 Performance is still primarily a luxury car; extremely comfortable, exceedingly quiet, and built to a high standard. Sure, acceleration up to around 80 mph is rapid, and putting the car into its sportier drive settings brings some fun, but this isn’t really a handling machine. Interestingly, Eco and Comfort drive modes deploy more power at the rear wheels, while switching into Sport evens things out between the axles, so paradoxically, the balance feels more rear-wheel drive in its everyday drive modes.
Hyundai Motor really got its EV platform right, and the GV60 has the ideal set of ingredients for a great, luxurious driving experience—a stiff structure, and a suspension that actually suspends. It’s perhaps not the most engaging car to drive quickly, but the GV60 is very capable, with excellent body control and damping, and accurate steering. Its Michelins maintain good mid-corner grip and you can carry a lot of speed on a country road. I would like to think the guy who tried to tail me in a BMW was surprised by the pace of this blue-green hatchback-y thing. Especially once you get it pointed straight and press the Boost button.
Like in so many fast EVs, the absurd straight-line speed is enthralling, but only to a point. It’s really a party trick, something to scare your friends and family with when you buy the car, and to play with every so often, when the opportunity presents itself.
I don’t know if the Performance trim justifies its near-$10,000 premium. The extra features and speed are great, but nearly $70,000 for such a small car is a tough sell. Plus, going for the Performance trim reduces range from 248 miles to 235 miles. The fact that the GV60 can accept a charge up to 350 kW, like its Hyundai and Kia siblings, does a lot to compensate for what may seem like a low range, though its siblings both go further on a charge.
The GV60 also exposes a problem with offering performance EV variants in general. It’s not like the difference between a four- and six-cylinder car, where springing for the bigger engine brings extra speed and a different character—a more powerful EV is the same thing, only quicker.
Where the GV60 excels is in normal daily driving. It’s so refined and easy, smoothing out any road imperfections and cocooning the driver in absolute comfort. On the highway, it’s nearly silent and the standard driver-assist systems work flawlessly. Especially if you live in a city, you’ll never want a car without Hyundai Motor’s blind-spot cameras that pop up in the gauge cluster as soon as you hit the turn signal.
The interior is, as expected from Genesis, a knockout, perhaps the nicest automotive cabin under $100,000. If you hopped out of a brand-new Range Rover and into a GV60 you wouldn’t be at all disappointed. Nothing, and I mean nothing, in here feels cheap, and all the user interfaces are slick and easy to use. The infotainment system is a step above what’s used in the EV6 and Ioniq 5, and the rotary controller ahead of the shifter makes it easy to use while driving. Plus, the seats are so, so plush, with the Performance trim bringing a massage function as well, because nothing says “Performance” like a relaxing lumbar massage.
This is the sort of car you could fall in love with just sitting inside for a few minutes, before ever shifting it to drive. Genesis has a tough job on its hands convincing customers out of well-established luxury brands, and it needs to pull out all the stops to do so. With this interior, it’s done exactly that.
Genesis is winning with design, too. While the GV60 doesn’t have the classic rear-drive proportions of its other internal-combustion cars—which makes sense, as this isn’t one—it’s a striking thing, especially in this color, Hanauma Mint. The rear three-quarter view is especially great for the way that the rear fender tapers gracefully up to the roof. It doesn’t look like anything else out there, and it’s all the better for it.
By pure coincidence, my time with the GV60 came not long before driving the Cadillac Lyriq. The comparison of the two cars is an interesting one, as the Cadillac is quite literally more car for the money—it’s around 20 inches longer—and is similarly well executed. When it arrives for 2024, the all-wheel drive Lyriq will cost around $64,000 and should offer better performance and range than the GV60. (It’s worth noting that Cadillac may have priced the Lyriq relatively low in part because GM cars no longer qualify for the federal tax credit.) The interior of the Genesis is nicer, and I personally think there’s a strong appeal in a smaller vehicle. But for a lot of people, the Cadillac is going to be hard to argue against.
I would like to drive the base GV60 before coming to a final conclusion about the car. Great as it is, the GV60 Performance is probably too expensive—the extra muscle doesn’t add any real character. On paper at least, the base car seems to make a lot more sense. A natural step up from the Ioniq 5 and EV6.
All that aside, the GV60 is thoroughly excellent, further proof that the best cars in the world are coming from Korea.
Keyword: The 2023 Genesis GV60 Performance Is Ultra-Quick and Extremely Luxurious