Hyundai Motor Group is serious about its Genesis brand. The luxury marque is about to launch its new Magma performance branding, it’s about to go racing at the highest levels, and it is getting ready to launch a brand-new platform specifically for its new generation of vehicles that will succeed the G80 and G90 sedans in the future. The brand’s recently-appointed head in Europe, Peter Kronschnabl, explains.
“Genesis is a brand of the Hyundai Motor Group, and within that has certain specifics as a brand, be it on the drivetrain, the chassis set-up, interior packaging, or other core attributes,” he told Autocar.
Luxury car buyers expect a certain level of driving dynamics, and Genesis knows it needs to meet that. “In order to fulfill the requirements of the brand’s driving dynamics, Genesis needs its own platform for the future models,” Kronschnabl told the site.
What are the requirements? Direct steering and a chassis that’s not too soft, he said. “When you look into the successful players in the premium segment, they all have similar aspects,” Kronschnabl said.
The new platform will be designed with luxury vehicles in mind. AutoExpress reports that it will be a rear-drive-focused platform that will also support AWD models. It is designed to accommodate electric motors, but also hybrid drivelines. Genesis is planning multiple drive systems for its next generation of vehicles. A 2.5-liter turbo-four hybrid, as well as range-extender EVs are in the works for the US, and Kronschnabl said there’s space for both in Europe, along with EVs.
Genesis hasn’t really used its own platforms before. Its current gas and diesel-powered cars and SUVs use a platform that isn’t used by any Hyundai or Kia models today, but is an evolution of a design from the pre-Genesis Genesis sedan and the Kia K9. Its GV60 EV uses the Hyundai Group’s E-GMP bones, shared with the Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Kia EV6.
The Genesis X Skorpio is the brand’s first extreme off-road vehicle, and potentially not its last.
This one will be Genesis from the ground up. Letting Genesis take the route of BMW and Mercedes-Benz rather than a brand like Lexus or Audi.
A bespoke chassis shows the success of the Genesis brand. In the interviews, both sites focus on low sales – around 2,500 – in Europe, but with more than 82,000 sales in the US last year and 220,000 worldwide, Europe is only part of the story.
Before taking the job last year, Kronschnabl asked about the company’s commitment to Europe. “I asked [Hyundai global CEO Jose Munoz] very direct questions about the commitment to Genesis in Europe. Because when you’re 30 years in the business, you know other brands who tried and left. Because I’m not a person who comes to leave – I want to stay and be successful.” Since he took the job, we presume Munoz showed Genesis was committed.
Genesis also teased a sportier GV60 called the Magma.
Hyundai Europe CEO Xavier Martinet spoke with Autocar about the decision. “The means of our ambitions, the vertical integration in the group, and the size and depth of the group are really key benefits, key competitive advantages, that we have versus the others, which enable us to make some – I’m not saying bets but – decisions that might seem bold, but are actually extremely reasonable,” he said.
Neither executive let slip which model would be the first on the platform. The Gran Equator X and the Neolun SUVs are both possibilities. They did confirm that whatever the first model is, we’ll see it on sale next year.
Sources: Autocar, AutoExpress
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