Joseph
Right after folks got off the Genesis of the 2021 G80 down my driveway for a test drive, I took it in a quick lap of some groceries. On my way out of the store, a guy stops me and says, “Hey, that’s a nice car, man!” When the cart entered the booth, he pointed to his Lexus ES and said, ‘This is mine. But this is really cool.
On the way home, the G80 turned some heads. A pair of yoga stroller-pushing mothers and pants in suburban New Jersey looked at the car as it approached, and with one glance in the mirror I could still see their faces while I was flying down the road.
This happened again and again during my week behind the wheel. I watched people in oncoming cars, sidewalks, and parking lots looking up and down at the G80 when I passed by, and it wasn’t the kind of attention I would have expected to get a Savile Silver sedan.
It’s definitely a stunning car on the outside: the curved lines, chrome fishnet, and branching headlights definitely make it eye-catching, although it may be a bit polarizing. The next morning, my neighbor who saw me jumped up my driveway to see the car. He said he found the front end somewhat flashy and reminded us a lot of a Bentley, despite admitting that the previous G80 was on his short list before he bought his powerful American car.
Beauty, of course, is in the eye of the beholder – and I personally fully appreciate that in this era of automotive harmonization, the G80 looks like few other cars on the road today.
Love or hate the look, the G80 is undoubtedly a fun engine. Although at its core this sedan is more of a Lux car than a sports car, the G80 3.5T has enough power to swap it out when the time comes. The 3.5-liter twin-turbo V6 engine mated to an 8-speed automatic transmission generates 375 hp and 391 ft-lbs. Of torque. This is 10 hp more than the previous generation, making it slightly faster when you press the pedal to the ground.
Look for a winding path for spirited driving, put it to work in Sports Mode and use the gearshift switches to hug Lewis Hamilton in you. The G80 could be more compact, there is some under steering and a little bit of roll, but for a car over 4,200 it is still a good idea to play with through the turns and turns.
In quieter conditions, such as a ride on a small road to the beach in Garden State Parkway, the ride is smooth enough to put three passengers to sleep, while a group of driving aids – head-up display, adaptive cruise control, lane-keeping, and blind-spot monitoring Reduces any stress for those behind the wheel.
Inside, Genesis created an oasis. The 2021 model offers an elegantly designed interior with more space than the previous generation and features a significantly simplified driver interface. In our tested Prestige package, the G80 gets a 3D digital kit, which is so smart in half that you need to see it to be believed.
The 14.5-inch touchscreen serves as a command center for the infotainment navigation system, which comes standard with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. There is also a circular control unit in the center console that the driver or passenger can use to make navigation changes or music selections. Of course, the driver also gets some of these functions through the buttons on the wheel, although I was a bit confused because the console unexpectedly required pressing down to advance the lane; Unlike other cars. Not necessarily a criticism, but the immense navigation screen integration gives the impression that it can be retreated to the dashboard, but it doesn’t.
Although the G80 already has a couple under the seats, Lexicon’s 21-speaker audio system has enough power to turn your chest cavity into an additional subwoofer, when you’re actually popping up the bends.
The car shares a platform with its recently launched midsize SUV Genesis, the GV80, and is actually about two inches longer. Therefore, the rear bench seat has ample room for full-size adults and the trunk is bulky enough for two sets of golf clubs, plus luggage.
Price on test, $ 68,000; genesis.com
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