Genesis has finally launched its first-ever SUV, the GV80 in its home market of South Korea, after releasing a series of teaser images earlier this month. The GV80’s styling is the result of collaboration between Genesis’ design studios in South Korea, the United States and Germany, the firm said. Two seating configurations will be available; a five-seat layout, and a three-row setup.
The GV80 structure is made of hot-stamped, high-strength steel, with aluminium used for its doors, bonnet and tailgate for a ‘competitive kerb weight’, says Genesis. The company’s rear-wheel-drive platform underpins the GV80, and all-wheel-drive is optional. United States market versions equipped with all-wheel-drive will also feature an electronically-controlled limited-slip differential on its rear axle.
In terms of powertrain, the Genesis GV80 is available with a 278 PS/600 Nm 3.0 litre six-cylinder diesel engine, while the United States market gets a choice of two turbo petrol engines. The petrol engines haven’t been described by Genesis at this stage, though one of them could be the 3.3 litre twin-turbo V6 which produces 365 hp and 510 Nm of torque in the Kia Stinger and in the Genesis range of sedans, which is paired with an eight-speed automatic.
Suspension for the GV80 is an electronically-controlled setup with road preview, appearing for the first time in a Genesis. This draws information from the forward-facing camera that scans the road ahead, and the suspension then adapts accordingly for providing optimal ride comfort, says Genesis.
A number of world-first technologies are also present in the GV80, the firm says. These include smart cruise control with machine learning (SCC-ML), which employs artificial intelligence-based navigation technology to learn the inputs of its human drivers and the independently learn them in order to implement autonomous driving with characteristics similar to its human drivers.
This is joined by Highway Driving Assist II (HDA II) which assists the driver in a wider range of situations compared to before, including instances where it helps execute a lane change when the turn signal is used, as well as helping to merge with traffic in congested situations, says Genesis.
Forward Collision Avoidance Assist (FCA) aims to avoid collisions at intersections with approaching vehicles from either side of the intersection. This also detects potential collisions with pedestrians if any are in close proximity to the vehicle while in motion, the firm noted.
Joining the suite of advanced driver assistance systems is Blind Spot Collision Assist, which the company says is ‘essentially a blind spot monitor with active capabilities’. The system helps reduce the chance of potential collisions with moving vehicles, for instance when leaving from a parallel parking space.
Also present are the rear cross-traffic collision avoidance assist and the driver attention alert warning systems, the latter monitoring steering angle, steering torque and the vehicle’s position within the lane, while a forward-looking camera monitors the driver, and the system will generate pop-up messages and warning tones if fatigue or forward-looking neglect is detected.
Inside, the GV80 dashboard majors on digital displays, with a 14.5-inch split-screen infotainment display located atop the dashboard. Air-conditioning vents span the width of the dashboard, while touch-based climate controls and the rotary gear selector channel some Jaguar Land Rover design cues.
The GV80 cabin also benefits from road noise active cancellation (RANC) technology, says Genesis, which emits opposite phase sound waves to cancel out road noise. Also contributing to comfort is an active motion driver’s seat, which contains seven air cells that works to reduce fatigue from long hours spent at the wheel of the vehicle.
In certain markets, the GV80 can be equipped with augmented reality navigation which overlays driving guides on top of actual images to help drivers recognise roads in real life. A video feed from the forward-facing camera will be displayed on the infotainment screen, and a virtual graphic shows the optimal driving path in order for the driver to follow the route accurately.
Unique for the South Korean market is Genesis CarPay, which aims to simplify out-of-vehicle payments such as for refueling. Genesis CarPay is an in-car payment service which allows driver to pay for purchases through the navigation screen without the separate involvement of cash or credit cards, says Genesis.
Additionally, smartphone connectivity enables drivers of the GV80 to remotely check on the vehicle and its surroundings, the company says. The 2020 Genesis GV80 goes on sale in South Korea later this month, with the US and other markets internationally to follow suit in due course.
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Macam Merc R class lama. Lebih kurang la. That’s what i thought of when i saw the pictures
Obviously it is Korean Copycat culture. All their designs are copied elements from elsewhere and bashed together. When given some freedom they come out with the face ugly Elantra.
Unashamedly korean
And all the better for it
Tastefully designed inside and outside
Will go head to head with the lexus RXL
Desirable indeed…
Unshamely Korean.
Shamefully the design is bad.
Aduiii… PHEV will make it more relevant.
not very pretty
To my eyes it looks pretty decent
Nice design! Unfortunately, I have to buy it secondhand or third or fourth hand because of a much cheaper price to cater to the spare parts price.