Hyundai Genesis: Made for luxury

Last month, Hyundai invited a select few Indian automotive journos to Korea to showcase their latest car, the Genesis, along with other advanced technologies.

As soon as we landed at the airport, we headed straight to Rolling Hills where Hyundai’s R&D centre and test tracks are located. The next morning, before the presentation of the new car, we were given a tour of the state-of-the-art facility that has a modern and well-equipped lab as well as a wind tunnel (that even some of the F1 teams don’t). There are various kinds of test tracks with different surfaces and terrains, plus they also have an oval for high performance testing.

Hyundai are taking their automobile business very seriously and aim to surpass the Japanese, Europeans and Americans. The way the Koreans are going they will also be a major force to reckon with in the luxury car segment very soon.

We took the new Genesis, being launched in US, Europe and Russia, for a spin at the test track that had a slalom course laid out and a lane change course as well. The 4.6-litre V8 engined Genesis is quiet a potent package. The mill pumps out 375bhp at 6500rpm and 451 Nm of torque at 3500rpm.

As soon as you open the car door you can see that Hyundai had one thing on their mind and that was luxury and comfort. The huge expanse of leg room, shoulder room and the leather and wood paneling gives the car a feeling of lavishness and high quality. The high-tech music system is upmarket and provides excellent sound quality.

The minute you press the ignition the V8 motor bursts to life. Shifting the auto box into drive and stepping on the gas, I could feel the surge of the 375 horses pulling me forward at a phenomenal rate. Doing the lane change in excess of 100km/h, the car did not loose its composure. Even hurling this car around the slalom course was good fun as even if you pushed the car beyond its capability, the ESP system would take care of things and make sure that the car did not get out of control.

To give us a driving experience on public roads, Hyundai took us to Jeju Island, a resort for the Koreans to take a break from their hectic lifestyle. Cruising on public roads was good fun but we had to stick to the speed limit, as we were told that the local police are very strict on speeding and the fines are pretty hefty. The Genesis is quiet an easy car to maneuver through city traffic as well as on the highway. This just goes to show how far Hyundai have come in manufacturing cars. Small cars are definitely their forte but very soon even their bigger cars will be a force to reckon with.

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