Review update: 2022 Genesis GV70 presents chic design in composed package

Now the establishment should be concerned. Genesis has arrived at the meat of the market: small luxury crossover SUVs, and the upstart brand has brought its A game.

With the 2022 Genesis GV70, the luxury division of Hyundai has a bullseye circled around the Audi Q5, BMW X3, Mercede-Benz GLC-Class, and even the Acura RDX. Genesis did its homework and has created affordable luxury, a new class all its own that is absolutely an oxymoron. That’s one of many reasons why it won our Best Luxury Car To Buy 2022 award.

With a TCC Rating of 7.6 out of 10, the 2022 GV70 delivers a value with a gorgeous package, attractive and comfortable interior, comfortable ride, and strong powertrain. But it’s missing some features for this class, has disappointing headlight performance, and a weird feature decision leaves me scratching my head after a week of testing.

2022 Genesis GV70 AWD 3.5T Sport Prestige

2022 Genesis GV70 AWD 3.5T Sport Prestige

2022 Genesis GV70 AWD 3.5T Sport Prestige

2022 Genesis GV70 AWD 3.5T Sport Prestige

Hit: Sweating the details

In a timeline where every white luxury crossover SUV is starting to look the same, the GV70 stands out for all the right reasons. The now familiar crest-shaped grille is flanked by quad LED headlights bisected by daytime running lights leading to flowing body lines.. The fast roofline leads back to quad LED brake lights and large exhaust finishers. My Sport Prestige model’s 21-inch turbine-like wheels filled the wells. Inside the design leans on elliptical patterns shaped like aircraft wings. It’s a different look that pleases the eye and unlike everything else on the market, it actually looks different in a good way. But Genesis went a step further and sweated the small details with a pattern on each wheel spoke, knurled knobs inside the cabin, and even lit the headlight status indicator on the end of the stalk. My tester’s 12.3-inch digital gauge cluster featured neat 3D visualization technology that made the needles appear to float off the screen like something straight out of Tron.

2022 Genesis GV70 AWD 3.5T Sport Prestige

2022 Genesis GV70 AWD 3.5T Sport Prestige

2022 Genesis GV70 AWD 3.5T Sport Prestige

2022 Genesis GV70 AWD 3.5T Sport Prestige

Miss: Missing luxury features

Every GV70, including the base $42,045 model, comes standard with a 14.5-inch touchscreen infotainment system, but lacks wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. There’s a wireless smartphone charging pad on the center console, but a cord is still required to use Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, which is counterintuitive. At $65,045 as tested, my loaded Sport Prestige AWD 3.5 model also lacked touch-activated rear door locks. This feature is typically found in luxury models, but has started to come downmarket to models such as the Nissan Pathfinder and Jeep Grand Cherokee L.

 

2022 Genesis GV70 AWD 3.5T Sport Prestige

Hit: Strong turbo-6

The base 2.5-liter turbo-4 might provide a luxury bargain at $42,045, but my tester’s 3.5-liter twin-turbo V-6 with 375 hp and 391 lb-ft of torque was potent. Genesis hasn’t provided a 0-60 mph time, but the mid-four second range seems pretty accurate. The turbo-6 is a bit coarser than the inline-6s found in the BMW X3 and Mercedes-Benz GLC-Class, and more inline with the turbocharged V-6 in the Audi Q5. The exhaust note is a dead ringer for the X3 in the best possible way, and the ZF-sourced 8-speed automatic transmission snaps off quick, clean shifts.

2022 Genesis GV70 AWD 3.5T Sport Prestige

Miss: Lighting lacks focus

The quad strips of LED lights on the front end look terrific when staring at the GV70, but from behind the wheel in the darkness of night they disappoint despite their top Good rating by the IIHS (which helped earn the GV70 a Top Safety Pick+ rating). In the pitch black on Midwest roads the lightning elements lack any focus or distinct cutoff, and the light seems to just scatter everywhere leaving you straining to see. It’s worse when the asphalt is wet. There are no fog or driving lights to augment the seemingly mediocre headlights.

2022 Genesis GV70 AWD 3.5T Sport Prestige

Hit: Composed ride

Despite riding on 21-inch wheels, the GV70’s taut ride is composed over broken Midwest pavement. The adaptive dampers on my Sport Prestige trim were firm, but there was still body roll while hustling around a clover leaf. The GV70’s ride is inline with what one might find in the Audi SQ5 or BMW X3 M40i rather than a Porsche Macan. Hitting an expansion joint does little to upset the Genesis, and pot holes don’t make you wince as if you just bent a control arm.

2022 Genesis GV70 AWD 3.5T Sport Prestige

2022 Genesis GV70 AWD 3.5T Sport Prestige

2022 Genesis GV70 AWD 3.5T Sport Prestige

Miss: My custom what?

There’s a hard button on the left side of the GV70’s steering wheel that’s a star. It’s called the Custom button, and it’s mapped to a function of the driver’s choice. The issue with this hard button that is forever on the steering wheel is all the function options are nearly useless. The choices include reject/end call (but there’s already a phone button on the steering wheel to pickup and hangup a call), change handsfree calling device, privacy mode, voice memo, reroute, cancel route, or none. I chose none for my week with the GV70 as those are all reasonably useless unless relying on the built-in navigation system on a day-to-day basis. The ability to switch to Apple CarPlay or myriad other options would be infinitely more useful, except that’s not possible.

The 2022 Genesis GV70 presents a strong value with a design that punches above its competitors and price class, composed ride, and strong turbo-6 powertrain option. The question becomes: Are you willing to live without wireless Apple CarPlay in your luxury crossover SUV?

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
2022 Genesis GV70 AWD 3.5T Prestige

Base price: $42,045, including destination
Price as tested: $64,045
Powertrain: 375-hp, 3.5-liter twin-turbo V-6, 8-speed automatic transmission
EPA fuel economy: 19/25/21 mpg
The hits: Detailed design, strong value, punchy turbo-6, composed ride
The misses: Missing wireless smartphone compatibility, lackluster headlights, weird custom button on steering wheel

Source: Read Full Article