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The Hyundai-Group starts this summer with his Premium-Brand genesis in Europe. A brave decision. It remains to be seen whether only chic design will do. Because Genesis can't come up with superior technical innovations - at least not yet.
Many viewers in Germany only found out that a car brand with the name Genesis even existed when the media reported in February about the serious accident involving golf professional Tiger Woods. Woods had an accident in a Genesis GV80, the SUV flagship of the Korean luxury brand.
Currently only used in Korea and the USA
Genesis is already successful on the streets in the USA and Korea. Since its debut as an independent brand in 2015, it has won over half a million customers. However, just under 380.000 vehicles remained in the home market, with the remainder mostly going to the USA. It made more than half of all Genesis sales Luxury sedan G80 .
With both models, Genesis now wants to open the door in Europe. The strategists in Seoul should be very familiar with how difficult the market is in the Old World. Brand loyalty is particularly high in Germany and the company car regulations leave little room for maneuver for other brands. Lexus, who have been with us for over 20 years, can tell you a thing or two about it. Nissan's premium subsidiary Infiniti has already thrown in the towel after a short guest appearance and Cadillac is bobbing around with new registrations at a level in the alcohol range.
If that works?
Genesis is celebrating its debut in an extremely CO2-sensitive time and is starting the G80 and GV80 with conventional combustion engines. Even a hybrid is not on offer. A questionable strategy. A brand that no one in Europe has really been waiting for should at least arouse more desire through technical innovations. Genesis tries it through design. The key term is "athletic elegance". The “two-stripes” styling in the headlights and taillights as well as the distinctive shield-look grill are characteristic of the models.
With five really cool concept studies, Genesis has polished up its brand image over the past few years and at least conveyed a high level of competence in terms of design. The last study, presented in Los Angeles at the end of March, is the “X Concept”, a chic, two-door Gran Turismo coupé with an electric drive. Genesis does not provide any information about a possible start of series production, but that after the first electric model, the "Electrified G80" - the sedan is due to hit the market next year - two more battery-powered vehicles are to be added quickly in Europe.
There is more to come
One of them will be on the newly developed group platform e-GMP. You already use Hyundai in the Ioniq 5 and Kia in the EV6. Industry experts assume that Genesis will also be represented here with a mid-range SUV or crossover. The e-GMP architecture has 800-volt technology. The battery can be charged in half the time compared to conventional 400-volt systems. For the electric G80 sedan, Genesis also promises 800 volts and just 22 minutes to fill up from ten to 80 percent of capacity. The range should be 427 kilometers.
Middle class competition
The G70 sedan and the GV70 SUV are also conventionally powered by combustion engines. They should also go on the market in 2021. Both drive in the premium middle class, so they have the Audi A4, three-series BMW and Mercedes C-Class as well as the Audi Q5, BMW X3 and Mercedes GLC in their sights. Genesis is proud of its fifth model for Europe, which was even designed especially for the European clientele, the G70 Shooting Brake, a sporty estate car and at 4,68 meters as long as the sedan.
The sales figures will show whether the high financial expense of a combination variant is worthwhile. Genesis also wants to tread different paths than the usual in terms of sales as a whole. You can buy online - a subscription is also possible - or in one of the three Genesis Studios. The first is in Zurich and has already opened. Munich and London are to follow soon. In addition, they want to attract customers with a five-year all-round carefree package and a “Genesis Personal Assistant”, the GPA, similar to what Mercedes-Maybach tried 20 years ago. The only difference is that Genesis has hired more women than men for this. Many of the ladies come from the luxury industry and are primarily intended to introduce female customers to the new models. The GPA takes care of all service matters, comes to the customer's house for the first test drive or puts a replacement car in front of the door for the duration of the maintenance.