Genesis plans hybrid onslaught in ongoing quest to beat BMW and Mercedes

Genesis – the luxury arm of Hyundai – will launch a series of hybrids designed to bolster its position in the premium new-car market. It will allow the maker to launch all-new, multi-fuel models, as well as reintroduce cars that have been killed off by increasingly stringent emissions regulations.

While the maker hasn’t officially confirmed which models are in line for hybrid drive, UK brand director Jonny Miller told us the company would not retrofit petrol engines to dedicated EVs that currently sit on the E-GMP platform – “of which we have one, in our range”, he said. This rules out the GV60, but leaves the newly-facelifted GV70 SUV and G80 saloon as possible candidates for this new range of electrically-assisted combustion engines.

In April, Hyundai and Genesis quietly unveiled precious few details on its next-generation hybrid system, comprising a 2.5-litre turbocharged engine mated to an electric motor, with another integrated into the transmission. The firms said the new layout is capable of efficiency improvements of up to 45 per cent, plus a power boost of 19 per cent “compared with ICE powertrains of the same class”.

While it doesn’t explicitly confirm whether the system will be a plug-in set-up, Miller hinted that as a collective, Hyundai Motor Group was busy working on a range-extender (REx) setup, with the tech currently proving particularly popular in Asian markets. Volkswagen has recently hinted at plans to bring REx models to Europe, potentially allowing ageing ICE cars – models that would otherwise be axed due to emissions legislation – a stay of execution. 

Indeed, given Genesis’s positioning in the market and Miller’s comments about how any implementation would have to “aid performance”, a plug-in setup is likely. The UK boss refused to write anything off, however, insisting “if [Genesis has] the technology within the [Hyundai] Group” that anything is possible.

Miller also said the move could allow Genesis to “bring back models that were previously offered with a petrol engine” – cars such as the GV80, and possibly even the G70 and G70 Shooting Brake. It may also present the maker with an opportunity to finally sell the GV80 Coupe here; UK buyers have so far been denied the BMW X6 rival due to limited powertrain choice, and the manufacturer’s need to meet ZEV Mandate targets.

We could see the first hybrid-powered Genesis variants as soon as this year, alongside the first of the firm’s hot Magma cars, based on Hyundai’s N and Kia’s flagship GT models. Miller said Magma will be the “pinnacle of the range” and “only available with that top spec, top engine”.

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