Hyundai Has Something Luxurious up its Sleeve
by Luke Vandezande
For its second generation, the South Korean luxury sedan born to be a rule breaker is completely new and at it again.
Smashing the Glass Ceiling
America builds trucks. Italians craft supercars. The Japanese create transportation appliances carefully masked to look like cars and until several years ago, South Koreans seemed content to complete their part of the picture with inexpensive automobiles. At least that was the case in North America until
Hyundai grabbed on with both hands and shook things up with a rear-wheel drive, V8-powered sedan ostensibly capable of applying a value-first philosophy to the luxury world.
The Genesis never sold in high volume, but it wasn’t supposed to. Like hiring the spin-doctors in AMC’s “Mad Men,” it served as a halo car capable of elevating its brand’s public image; but it wasn’t perfect.
Hampered by a front-engine, rear-wheel drive powertrain, the Genesis didn’t appeal to people besieged by snow through several months of the year. Especially at lower trim levels, it also suffered from underwhelming interior materials. The latter is a cardinal sin among luxury car customers.