Genesis debuts GV80 Coupe Concept
Heard the one about the Genesis with four bucket seats and a giant carbon strut brace? Read on...
Credit where it’s due to Genesis, it can make an arresting concept car. The X Convertible, for example, was one of the best looking show cars in years, following on from similarly suave coupe and saloon counterparts. While it seems unlikely that any of those Speedium models will become a production reality (we can live in hope), their design cues have made it to a concept far more likely to reach showrooms. Or spaces. Or whatever dealerships are called now: here’s the GV80 Coupe Concept.
Yes, it’s another vaguely swoopy SUV, the appetite for which shows no signs of abating. The fact that this car looks almost ready to be sold, complete with familiar Genesis light signatures, wheels that aren’t totally ridiculous and even actual wing mirrors, would indicate this sort of car is rather more a priority than a big, lovely GT. Which is perhaps not the most exciting news. But there is a little more to the GV80 Coupe Concept when you look inside, because surely nobody was expecting four exquisitely trimmed buckets seats that look like they’ve come from a Porsche GT car, plus a rear strut brace seemingly pinched straight from under the bonnet of a BMW M4. There’s even a suede steering wheel, like all good fast cars.
It's an incredible interior, and while this sort of arrangement - including a colour coded helmet - seems very unlikely for a real GV80 Coupe, it does point to what Genesis is trying to achieve with future models. While some - the EVs in particular - have been very luxurious, ideal for the ‘Elegance’ part of the brand mantra, there really hasn’t been much on the ‘Athletic’ side. Hence showing what might be possible with this car. Again, a chunky SUV coupe seems a strange place to start, but miracles have happened before - something like a Porsche Cayenne Turbo GT is as engaging as it is incongruous. No reason why a Genesis coupe couldn’t be good, especially as part of the wider Hyundai-Kia empire and its recent great run of performance models.
Naturally, Genesis is being pretty vague about exact conclusions to draw from this concept, suggesting that it is a ‘visual statement that shares aspirations for a more emotional, performance-oriented model and a preview of Genesis’ future programs’. Which we're going to read as a fast SUV. Maybe an electric one, in fact, given they’ve been by far the best Genesis cars so far. Perhaps it’ll be here in time for that 600hp Porsche Macan EV…
king arse
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