2009 Hyundai Genesis 4.6 V8. Click image to enlarge

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2009 Hyundai Genesis

Oshawa, Ontario – It’s been very interesting to follow the evolution of Hyundai’s sedan offerings in Canada. In 2001, it launched the XG300, followed a year later by a larger engine that bumped it up to the XG350. A completely redesigned and far plusher Sonata hit the market for 2006, the same year that the Azera luxury sedan proved a considerable improvement on the XG350 it replaced.

And now, for 2009, Hyundai has unwrapped the Genesis. It’s a fitting name, given that it’s the company’s first rear-wheel drive car on this continent (aside from the Pony). And for an initial showing, it’s a home run: quite simply, this car rocks. I made a game out of putting friends in the back seat, driving them around, and asking them to name the brand. Guesses ran to Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Infiniti and Lexus, with no one figuring it out correctly. It’s not going to wipe those competitors out by any means, but this newest Hyundai means that even more companies need to look over their shoulders, especially when the two-door coupe version arrives shortly.

The Genesis with 3.8-litre V6 starts at $37,995, which can be optioned with a Premium Package for $39,995, and an additional Technology Package for $44,995. My tester used the 4.6-litre V8, which starts at $43,995; the only option is the Technology Package, which adds a number of features and brought my vehicle to $48,995. That’s a lot of money for a Hyundai, but it’s not a lot for the segment.

2009 Hyundai Genesis 4.6 V8. Click image to enlarge

When you look at vehicles with similar dimensions and engine size, the Lexus GS 460 starts at $63,300 (and it’s $65,850 with navigation, as my tester had), while a rear-wheel drive Infiniti M45 Sport starts at $69,150; the front-wheel drive Lincoln MKS, with V6 engine, starts at $44,599. And the Hyundai’s lower price doesn’t come with any compromises.

The list of standard equipment is a long one: eight airbags including rear seat-side ones, three-stage heated leather seats, power tilt and telescopic wheel, proximity key with pushbutton start, rain-sensing windshield wipers (alas), memory seats, front and rear park assist, auto-levelling xenon headlamps, sunroof, auto-dimming mirrors, illuminated scuff plates, and leather-wrapped dash. The Technology Package adds aluminum interior trim, Bluetooth, driver information centre, cooled driver’s seat, navigation system, backup camera, adaptive xenon lamps, power rear sunshade, and a six-CD/DVD Lexicon surround sound system that will play movies when the vehicle is in Park. Hyundai makes a big deal out of the fact that the only other automaker to use a Lexicon system is Rolls-Royce, and so it should play it up: it’s simply an awesome system, with crystal-clear sound and no distortion at any volume level. I have a few songs that were transferred from albums to CD to computer to iPod; for the first time ever – and I’ve listened to them in a lot of test vehicles – I realized there were crackles and pops from the vinyl in them.

This new sedan is elegantly styled, but I’ve always been surprised that no one has ever taken Hyundai – or Kia, for that matter – to court over its designs. The Korean automaker steals shamelessly, and in Genesis’ case, it hits all the big players. The dash and instrument cluster are the Mercedes-Benz S-Class; the console controller is BMW’s iDrive; the profile and tail are Infiniti’s M45; and the grille is Mr. Worf’s Klingon forehead from Star Trek: The Next Generation.

2009 Hyundai Genesis 4.6 V8. Click image to enlarge

To that end, while it’s a handsome car, I would have liked to have seen Hyundai make more of a statement with its own original design. Looking at the dash, the centre stack and the instrument cluster, it feels exactly like a Mercedes S-Class, which almost seems to cheapen the experience. But on the other hand, my astute husband made a good point: an S-Class starts at $108,000, which means that very few people have ever been in the original that the Genesis is copying. To almost all drivers looking in this price range, the design will simply be one that’s new, well-executed and attractive. (I hate it when he’s right.)

The fit and finish is exceptional, though, and most of the controls are very intuitive; overall, I’d put this interior’s build quality up against anything from North America, Germany or Japan, and in price ranges double that of the Hyundai’s. The iDrive-style controller moves in eight directions, and it’s still more complicated than I’d like it to be, but I was able to figure out almost all of its functions without delving into the owner’s manual (which is more than I can say of BMW’s original version). The voice-activation system followed my commands each time, changing the stereo or inputting a new navigation direction (I’ve had Volvo and Lexus versions that failed to hear me properly).

2009 Hyundai Genesis 4.6 V8. Click image to enlarge

The climate control’s vent mode, fan speed and temperature are accessed by buttons if the “auto” mode isn’t wanted – a nice touch, given that many systems require you to go in through the screen to change the mode. I also liked the “room” button: the dome lamp and two front map lights can all be controlled separately, but this extra switch turns them all on simultaneously when full lighting is required. ‘

Complaint-wise, I thought the buttons on the multifunction wheel looked cheap in comparison to the rest of the controls; if the driver’s getting a cooled seat, the passenger should, too; and while the blue centre stack backlighting proved very attractive, the intense colour hurt my eyes. And, of course, the rain-sensing wipers couldn’t figure out some light snow.

On the road, this new Hyundai is an exceptionally nice ride. It glides over bumps, but doesn’t feel floaty; road imperfections are soaked up long before they get to the cabin. There’s weight to the steering and it’s accurate, but there’s no road feel, and in this regard, it feels copied directly from Lexus. This is definitely a luxury liner, not a sports sedan. An immense amount of sound-deadening material in the body, along with standard acoustic laminated windshield and side glass, makes for an extremely quiet cabin. The exception is when you really step into the V8, which responds with a nicely-tuned exhaust note.

The car takes off well, with acceleration that feels more like the car is winding up than a drop-hammer drag race, which is in keeping with its luxo-limo feel; in testing by the Automobile Journalists of Canada, it took 6.4 seconds from a standing stop to 100 km/h, and 5.0 seconds to get from 80 to 120 km/h. Putting premium fuel into the filler neck will give you 375 horsepower and 333 lb-ft of torque, but if you want to economize, it will accept 87-octane, with a corresponding drop to 368 hp and 324 lb-ft of torque. Against a rated 12.6 L/100 km in the city and 8.1 on the highway, I averaged 13.5 L/100 km in combined and very cold-weather driving.

2009 Hyundai Genesis 4.6 V8. Click image to enlarge

Everything about the Genesis is spacious. The rear-seat legroom is stretch-out comfortable, the gently-bolstered front seats are just right, and the trunk is massive, offering a cargo length of 110 cm. The rear seats don’t fold, but a pass-through opens to let you carry long items up to 200 cm long.

If there’s any question about the Genesis, I would say it has to be in the marketing: did Hyundai do the right thing by leaving its name attached? I asked why it didn’t spin off a separate brand, as Toyota did with Lexus, which could easily be stocked with this model, the upcoming coupe version, and the Veracruz. The answer was that Hyundai did indeed look long and hard at it, and came to its decision based on the massive sum of money and the long period of time that it takes to establish a new brand, even if it’s a version of an already-entrenched company. Save for the stylized “H” on its trunk lid, the Genesis doesn’t carry the Hyundai name anywhere, inside or out. Still, this company is best known for its low price tags, and while $48,995 is relatively inexpensive against comparable vehicles, it’s a lot of money for a Hyundai. It’s now up to the market to determine if the company made the right decision, or if the Genesis will share the fate of Volkswagen’s doomed Phaeton, which probably would have sold out if it had worn Audi’s rings instead of the Beetle’s badge.

The press has already said its piece: the Genesis has been named 2009 Canadian Car of the Year by the Automobile Journalists of Canada; it was also the 2009 North American Car of the Year, and its engine was named one of Ward’s 10 Best Engines. And I’ll add to that by saying they were all justifiably earned. This isn’t just the best Hyundai I’ve driven. This is simply one of the better cars I’ve ever driven, period.

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