Crossovers have become like belly buttons in that it looks like everyone — just about — has one.
Probably because everyone sells one. And because so many of them look (and drive) so much alike.
The Genesis G70 is less like them.
How so?
Well, for one thing, it's available with a six-cylinder engine. Ten years ago, that would have been as unremarkable as standard air conditioning because it was common to find six-cylinder engines as standard equipment in crossovers — especially those with luxury badges and asking prices over $50,000.
It no longer is — which is one reason why the GV70 isn't like most of the others.
What It Is
The GV70 is a compact-sized, two-row luxury-sport crossover sold by Genesis. Its shape belies the fact that it's very much like the six-cylinder luxury sport sedans you used to be able to get — and not just because it's available with a six-cylinder engine. It's actually based on a rear-wheel-drive sport sedan.
The GV70 is closely related to the Genesis G70, the main difference being it has much more room behind its rear seats than the G70 has in its trunk. And that you can take a G70 down a dirt or washed-out gravel road without banging up the floor pans.
Prices start at $45,150 for the 2.5T trim, which comes standard with a 2.0-liter, turbocharged four-cylinder engine, 19-inch wheels, a nine-speaker stereo and a 14.5-inch LCD display.
The $57,750 3.5T trim comes standard with a 3.5-liter, twin-turbo V6, a 16-speaker Lexicon premium audio system, leather seats and trim, 21-inch wheels with low-profile (short sidewall) tires, a 12.3-inch digital main gauge cluster and a digital key that enables the use of a smartphone to unlock/lock the vehicle and start the engine remotely via an app on the phone.
Both versions of the GV70 come standard with all-wheel drive.
What's New For 2024
Some features that were previously optional are now standard, such as 19-inch (vs. last year's 18-inch) wheels for the base 2.5T trim.
What's Good
— Six cylinders are still available.
— Sport sedan performance/crossover utility.
— Twin-turbo V6 uses only a little more gas than the turbo four.
What's Not So Good
— It's a nearly $13,000 bump to get the V6.
— Center console's storage compartment has room for a wallet and not much more.
— "Driver assistance" features you may not want are standard in all trims, meaning you don't have the option to skip them.
Under the Hood
The 2.5T trim comes standard with a 2.5-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine that makes 300 horsepower at 5,800 rpm — output that's comparable to that produced by the sixes that were once standard in luxury-sport vehicles at this price point. This engine is powerful enough to haul the 4,167-pound 2.5T to 60 in about 5.6 seconds, and return 22 mpg in city driving and 28 mpg on the highway.
The 3.5T comes standard with a much more powerful (375 horsepower) twin-turbo V6, which is powerful enough to haul the 4,453-pound 3.5T to 60 about one second sooner. Interestingly, there is very little mpg difference between the 2.5T and the 3.5T — which claims 18 mpg city, 24 mpg highway.
The main difference is the $12,600 difference in price between the 2.5T and the 3.5T.
On the Road
While the GV70's standard turbo four has the power of a six, it's the six that makes the GV70 something you'll want to drive. Because it takes you down memory lane — to five years ago — when a six was what you got as a matter-of-course when you spent what the base GV70 (with the turbo four) costs today.
Power isn't everything.
Put another way, intangibles are something.
When you start up the GV 3.5T's engine, it sounds like a six. This makes you feel good about what you spent to hear it. When you push down on the accelerator pedal, you hear the sound appropriate to what ought to be under the hood of a luxury-sport vehicle like this; what used to be a given in a vehicle like this — booming with authority through the twin oversized exhaust pipes. These are real — as in functional — as opposed to for-looks-only in four-cylinder-powered rigs, which don't generally have dual exhaust tips because four-cylinder engines generally breathe through single exhaust.
At the Curb
Compact-sized sport sedans are great fun to drive; the problem is they're not very practical cars to own, chiefly because they don't have much room in their trunks.
The G70 — the compact-sized sport sedan upon which the GV70 is based — has just 10.5 cubic feet of storage space available in its trunk. The GV70, which has essentially the same overall footprint (it's 185.6 inches long versus 184.4 inches for the G70), has about five times as much total space for cargo — 56.9 cubic feet with its second row folded forward. And even with the second row up, it has almost three times as much space for cargo (28.9 cubic feet), and that accounts for the waxing popularity of sport-crossovers versus sport sedans.
The Rest
Almost all new vehicles have fobs that transmit a signal identifying the vehicle's owner to the vehicle, which helpfully unlocks itself as the owner approaches. Most also have a button the owner pushes to start the engine.
The GV comes with that — and something else. You can use your fingerprint to unlock the car and start the engine. There's what looks like a little peephole, which is actually where you put your finger; if it's you, the car unlocks — and starts.
It works a lot like the smartphone app that unlocks your phone by touch as opposed to typing in a password.
The Bottom Line
There's a reason why the GV70 is outselling the luxury-sport crossovers that used to be the go-to vehicles in this segment.
If you take a look — and take it for a drive — you'll understand why.
Eric's latest book, "Doomed: Good Cars Gone Wrong!" will be available soon. To find out more about Eric and read his past columns, please visit the Creators Syndicate webpage at www.creators.com.
View the Genesis GV70 this week.
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