Genesis may be the newcomer on the automotive market, but their crossovers and sedans are already making inroads in buyer popularity. In case you don’t know, Genesis is the luxury car division of Hyundai, like Acura is to Honda and Lexus is to Toyota.
Genesis crossovers, in particular, have been top sellers and garnering numerous automotive accolades. In fact, their 2023 GV70 was our pick for SUV of the year.
But Genesis also has superb sedans as well. And in particular, their full-size luxury 2023 G90 3.5 Turbo E-Supercharged AWD sedan. It is the crème-de-la-crème of luxury sedans as it has everything, and then some. It has semi-autonomous driving and can park itself. Plus, it even has a chauffeur mode. And get this. When encountering a roundabout, the transmission has a predictive shift pattern in that it automatically downshifts a gear before entering the roundabout to assist the driver go through the roundabout smoothly. And most impressive is the automatic opening doors. By merely pressing a button on the doors they partially open for easy egress. And they have a close assist as well.
G90’s exterior is striking and slick. It cannot be confused with the competition, unless it’s a Bentley, as the G90’s grille has a close resemblance. But then the Bentley doesn’t have 24 LED shark-eye headlights and a slight spoiler that melds nicely into the trunk lid. And adding to its sportiness are Ovid shaped tailpipes that adorn the rear bumper.
The interior of the G90 is not only luxurious but spacious with gobs of leg and head room fore and aft. Nappa leather, heated/cooled, massaging front and rear seats have a quilted pattern with the fronts featuring powered bolsters to hug the torso ever so securely. Rear seats also recline. The headliner is also classy as it’s covered in microfiber suede while the dash is adorned with real wood trim. Included too are dual sunroofs.
G90’s console is clean and simple with two rotary controls. One is for the transmission with a “P” switch for park gear, and the other is for screen selections.
A 12.3-inch infotainment display serves a myriad of functions and features as does the digital gauge cluster. The infotainment display offers Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, satellite HD radio, Bang-Olufsen audio system w/3D-surround sound and climate controls the a rearview, front view and revolving view cameras. There are also three swipe pages of apps and features that require some serious in-car seat time with the owner’s manual.
The G90 includes a Mood Curator that offers themes such as Care, Comfort, and Chauffeur modes. Delight and Vitality modes combine with a fragrance system to create a living room atmosphere of sorts. This car is too comfortable as it seriously pampers occupants.
Offered as well is Genesis Digital Key 2 that among other things allows using your iPhone, Apple Watch or Samsung Pass phone to lock, unlock and start the car.
G90 offers four driving modes of Eco, Comfort and Sport. Sport of course is the most exhilarating when engaged.
Trunk space is generous with 45.5 inches of loading depth and a pass-through in the rear seat backs allow carrying long items. There is no spare tire beneath the trunk floor, but merely a tire inflator kit.
As for the powertrain, there are two but we were privileged to test the potent higher output 3.5-liter, twin-turbo mild hybrid V6 with electric supercharger that uses a 48-volt hybrid system electric supercharger to generate an impressive 409-hp and 405 lb/ft of torque for EPA mileage estimates of 17 city, 24-highway mpg. The V6 couples to the standard 8-speed automatic transmission.
With all these goodies, acceleration from a standing stop and passing maneuvers is push-you-back-in-the-seat exciting and that’s saying something for a relatively hefty luxury sedan. The combination has been independently 0-60 tested at a quick 5.1 seconds.
While it’s not a sports car, G90 handles nicely with no discernable body lean in sharp, tight turns. It rides heavenly smooth and super quiet on a height adjustable (High or Normal) air suspension system and 21-inch Michelin tires.
Standard features and safety items are extensive and include forward collision avoidance assist, lane keeping/lane following assist, blind spot collision avoidance, rear cross traffic alert, driver attention warning, safe exit assist (senses an oncoming vehicle when opening a door) and many more.
Niceties include panoramic sunroof, easy close power doors, hands-free trunk release, heated power tilt and telescoping wheel and about 15 more.
The only option was for Hallasan Green paint ($575), that took the base price of $96,700 to $100,370 (ouch!) with delivery. A lot of money for a lot of AWD ultra-luxury sedan.
Warranty wise, G90 is covered by a 5 year/60K mile new vehicle, 10/100K powertrain and 7/Unlimited perforation coverage.
If you can afford the very best, the Genesis G90 AWD sedan is the very best in its class.
