Verdict
The Hyundai Genesis
Coupe handles well, is comfortable, has impressive performance, is
reasonably practical and comes with lots of equipment as standard. And when you
consider it costs the same in the States as we pay here for a diesel hatchback,
it would be one of the bargains of the decade if it made it to the UK at that
price.
While
most of its range may be ‘Global’ cars, the Hyundai Genesis Coupe is one
model the Korean firm hasn’t brought to the UK. But should it? To find out we
took one on 1,000-mile road trip across California testing it on the six-lane
highways out of LA, the sweeping routes through Yosemite National Park and the
tight and twisty coastal passes of Big Sur.
Now in
it’s fifth year, the Hyundai
Genesis
Coupe has received an overhaul to keep it competitive against the Nissan 370Z
and Toyota GT 86 (known as the Scion FR-S in the US).
The Hyundai Genesis Coupe
starts from just under $27,000 - after converting to Sterling and adding VAT,
this is around £20,000. That's about the same you will pay here for a Hyundai i30 1.6 CRDi Sport, but
instead of a diesel hatchback you get a well-equipped rear-drive sports coupe
with a 3.8-litre V6.
Despite
the large capacity you do need to rev the V6 to get the best out of it –
thankfully it’s much smoother than the rough old V6 in the Nissan 370Z. You can
forgive the lack of low down shove like that from a turbo engine – a Volkswagen
Golf GTI feels more punchy – but being naturally aspirated means there’s a nice
crisp throttle response and sound isn’t muted. The Hyundai Genesis Coupe can nice and
quiet when cruising, but bury the throttle and a sound box amplifies the noise
from the engine and pipes it into the cabin.
Really
the only thing that lets the powertrain down is the gearbox. It’s not terrible,
but the longish throw and heavy clutch means stirring the gears isn't as fun as
it could be. There is an eight speed automatic gearbox available as an option,
though you can’t specify it with the mid-level R-Spec model we tested.
That’s
because that car is aimed at the enthusiast, and for an extra £2,000 over the
entry model it adds comfy yet supportive body hugging sports seats, tuned
suspension, Brembo brakes, 19-inch alloy wheels and a limited-slip differential
which really helps traction on exiting a corner - or makes it easier to
maintain a slide, should you dare to turn the stability control off.
It’s a
two-stage system, allowing you to disengage the traction control but with a
backup ESP system to prevent a full spin. This setting is a happy medium: in
the normal setting, the traction control cuts the power for too long should the
rear wheels break traction, which is easily done with 348bhp. This can leave
you unnervingly floundering when pulling out at a busy junction.
One thing
that’s really a revelation on the Genesis Coupe is the
steering – it’s easily the best of any Hyundai we've ever driven.
Its's a good old-fashioned hydraulic system rather than an electric one, and as
long as you aren’t expecting the precision and finesse of a Porsche Cayman most
people will find the Hyundai
Genesis Coupe to be a
fine handling car that’s fun to hustle along tight and twisty roads. It’s also
surprisingly comfy when you're just cruising - the obtrusive tyre roar on
certain surfaces being the only detraction.
Another
minor issue is the limited visibility. This makes parking particularly
troublesome and a lack of sensors or a camera as standard means you’ll only
attempt to stop in the largest of spaces – although there are plenty of those
in the US.
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