Hyundai’s Genesis (not the Hyundai Genesis) luxury sub-brand are soon to launch their smaller premium exec sedan, the G70, which will be competing in the same space as the BMW 3 Series and Audi A4, on September 15th in South Korea’s capital, Seoul. However, it’s been spotted free of disguise during a video shoot, ruining what was quite a well kept secret.
With the imminent launch of G70, the Genesis brand would have their first real tit-for-tat offensive on the established automakers it plans to tackle, specifically a three-pronged spear at the luxury sedan market, analogous to the Mercedes-Benz C-Class - another G70 would-be competitor - and the larger E-Class and S-Class.
Genesis already has the large G90 at the top of their line-up and more recently reworked the original Hyundai Genesis into the smaller G80. And it’s no secret that the G70 is the car that’s expected to really take the fledging brand to the next level, hopefully converting some previous owners from those aforementioned German brands along the way.
More than that, though, would-be buyers of the less established marques such as Infiniti and Lexus show the most potential for Genesis to poach, along with perhaps those considering Jaguar XE, still a relative newcomer to the segment.
The G70 is also set to be the sportiest car in the stable, sharing many of its under-the-skin components and mechanicals with the Kia Stinger, including its rear-wheel drive layout and twin-turbocharged 3.3-litre V6 engine. A 2.0-litre turbo four-pot is expected fill in the lower tiers, but the athletic six-cylinder, perhaps in a higher tune, could endow the G70 with enough performance to properly worry the Audi S4 and Mercedes-AMG C 43 as well.
In other aspects, the G70 should come very generously specified with convenience, safety, and entertainment tech relative to the competition. Additionally, all-wheel drive is also likely to be an option on certain variants. This is where the leaked photograph of the car’s barely masked interior becomes especially revealing.
The left-hand drive unit spied here, with its futile attempt at anonymity via some sticky tape covering up the logo on the steering wheel, does bare some resemblance to that of Stinger, at least in terms of its rough placement, such as that of the gear lever and dual cupholders along the centre tunnel.
Supposedly Genesis will also shed more light on how quickly they will be rolling the final production version, and if so, which markets it will be hitting and at what kind of price, so keep an ear out for that.
