#2019 Cadillac ATS V Quarter Mile Time

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2018 Cadillac ATS V Price, Specs, Review

2018 Cadillac ATS V Price, Specs, Review

2018 Cadillac ATS V Price, Specs, Review – The Cadillac ATS V maintains its very own from your world’s finest physical activities sedans as well as coupes. Rivals to the new ATS V are the BMW 3 Series, Mercedes-Benz C-College, Audi A4, along with Infiniti G37. Brand new Cadillac ATS is available together with four entrance doors or even two. The 2-door coupe is somewhat tiny when compared to the…

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Genesis G70 is the 2019 MotorTrend Car of the Year

Wind your mental clocks back just over three decades. The year is 1985, Ronald Reagan just began his second term in the White House, and a new Korean car company was selling a Giugiaro-designed hatchback for the low, low price of $4,995.

Americans couldn’t pronounce the name of the brand (Hun-dee? Hi-yun-day? Hoon-dye?). And its little Excel did anything but. The wheezy econobox’s most notable performance credential was the LAPD’s dubious—later retracted—claim that Rodney King was driving one at speeds of 110 to 115 mph.

Fast-forward to the present. How beyond belief is it that that same cheap and cheerful automaker—Hyundai—not only has launched a luxury brand but has also built a better BMW 3 Series fighter right out the gate than the Japanese luxury brands have in numerous attempts?

That car is the Genesis G70, and we have voted it the 2019 MotorTrend Car of the Year. That’s all pretty unthinkable, right? Unthinkable, that is, unless you’ve been paying attention.

Hyundai launched Genesis Motors two years ago with the impressive G90, a full-size luxury machine that humbles cars such as the BMW 7 Series and Lexus LS. However, the G90 doesn’t really do much against the 4,700-pound German silverback in the room—the mighty Mercedes-Benz S-Class. And although the quite-fine Genesis G80 is a capable midsizer, it doesn’t exactly send shivers down the backs of engineers in Stuttgart or Nagoya. It isn’t, as we like to say, a needle mover.

The G70, however, is. The segment the G70 competes in—entry-level compact luxury sport sedans—has long been defined by the BMW 3 Series. However, for the past decade or so, the Bavarian’s claim of supremacy has been in doubt. That has opened the door for a plethora of stellar sedans from half a dozen countries, ranging from Audi to Cadillac to Jaguar to last year’s COTY, the Alfa Romeo Giulia. Despite comparison tests showing BMW is no longer in ascendency, when creating segment benchmarks, automaker product planners still circle back to, “We want to create a 3 Series fighter.”

Of course, it helps to have a bunch of ringers on your development team to help bring those Eurocentric touches to your first effort—folks like BMW dynamics veterans Albert Biermann and Fayez Rahman, Bentley design talents Luc Donckerwolke and SangYup Lee, Mercedes color/trim specialist Bozhena Lalova, and Bugatti Chiron designer Sasha Selipanov. Coordinating this dream team is former Lamborghini brand czar Manfred Fitzgerald, who has created a Genesis “brand book” to keep his troops focused.

The result of all this hard work is a stunning, value-packed sport sedan that should shake up any shopper’s consideration list.

“What’s remarkable about the Genesis is the Koreans have done what Toyota, Nissan, Honda, and GM have all failed to do: build a legitimate BMW 3 Series competitor,” international bureau chief Angus MacKenzie said.

Over many beers, you and I could sit and pick apart that statement. Yes, the original Infiniti G35 caught BMW flat-footed. Agreed, dynamically speaking, the Cadillac ATS and aforementioned Giulia are superior to the F30 3 Series. However, Angus’ point is that there is no asterisk required for the G70. We don’t have to say the car is better in this way but not that. No excuses are necessary. Am I saying the G70 is perfect? Of course not. No car is. But I am saying that the G70 is exceptional, and when stacked up against our six key criteria, it clearly emerges as our 2019 Car of the Year.

Before delving into said criteria (and in particular Engineering Excellence), I’d be remiss to go one step further without mentioning the G70’s platform cousin, the Kia Stinger. A finalist at last year’s Car of the Year competition, two negatives held the Stinger back from top honors: Its interior design is too blandly similar to every other Kia extant, and its suspension does not befit its sporty-car pretentions. More impressively, we brought a 3.3-liter RWD Stinger GT with us to our 2018 Best Driver’s Car party. There the Kia finished an honorable ninth place out of twelve. That may not sound like much—until you take into account that several bona fide six-figure supercars were ahead of it, and one (Corvette ZR1) finished behind it. Still, the Stinger has felt a bit … unfinished.

Given one additional year of development time, what we assume is a different sort of customer to chase, and perhaps even a different mandate, the G70 does not suffer from the same shortcomings. “The G70 is smooth, quiet, fast, upscale, nimble, good-looking, and a great value,” guest judge (and AMC, Chrysler, and Ford engineering guru) Chris Theodore said. “It’s very good at almost everything.”

The G70 makes a terrific all-arounder, but certain triumphal notes do stand out. If you want a seat at the 3 Series table, true sporting ability trumps a perfectly damped ride and NVH-free cabin. Some version of the word “balance” appears seven times in the notes from seven judges; any suspension complaints had to do with ride quality, not with handling.

“Holy moly, such ferocity and control,” road test editor Chris Walton said. “My attention was rapt. My heart raced. Held to the standard-bearer, a BMW 3 Series, this car out of the gate is better. It’s more evolved and more luxurious than the original Infiniti G35 was, has an edge to it that a Mercedes-Benz C-Class lacks, and feels more alert than an Audi A4.”

We should mention performance under the hood. The optional 3.3-liter twin-turbo G70 is a ferocious animal. The RWD car hit 60 mph in 4.7 seconds, whereas the heavier AWD car did so in 4.8. The rear-driver did the quarter-mile run in 13.2 seconds, whereas the all-wheeler was just a tenth behind. That’s quicker than the BMW 340i, a touch slower than the Mercedes-AMG C 43, and right on the nose of the 340-hp version of the Jaguar XE. “Your basic rocket ship,” Theodore said. “The engine pulls to infinity and beyond.”

Curiously, few of the 5,595 words we collectively wrote as notes about the G70 mention anything about the base 2.0-liter version feeling slow or underpowered. Yet the numbers tell a different story. The manual 2.0-liter takes 7.2 seconds to hit 60 mph, and the automatic requires 7.4 seconds. By contrast, the BMW 330i needs just 5.5 seconds to hit 60 mph, the Mercedes C 300 sedan takes 6.0 seconds, and the Alfa Romeo Giulia Q2 requires 5.2 seconds. The G70 similarly trails in the quarter—more than a second off its nearest rivals. “The 2.0-liter makes most of its power above 3,000 rpm, and the transmission is geared a bit too long to let the G70 make the most of that meat,” features editor Christian Seabaugh said.

Our fully loaded 2.0-liter Dynamic and the decently contented, power-packed 3.3T Advanced both came in under 45 grand. That’s thousands of dollars if not tens of thousands less than Genesis’ competitors. “I’m blinking hard, looking at the Monroney,” executive editor Mark Rechtin said. “I’m trying to figure out how this is possible. I’m not sure if there’s another vehicle in the segment that drives this way at this price point.”

Like all Car of the Year winners, there’s an X-factor at work, some secret spicy sauce that makes the eventual victor jump up off the page, out of the various spreadsheets, and down from the minds into the hearts of the judges. Last year’s champ, the Alfa Romeo Giulia, had it in spades. So does this year’s Genesis. “Somehow,” technical editor Frank Markus said, “this one, with rear-wheel drive, put it all together for me.”

For others, too. Check out this praise from senior production editor Zach Gale: “What an incredible first effort from a new brand.” Seabaugh professed love for the upgraded engine: “What a great way to wake up. This 3.3-liter TT V-6 is just a monster. I absolutely adore this engine. This was my favorite G70 on the proving ground, and it continues to be in the real world.” Then there’s editor-in-chief Ed Loh: “The pull of the 3.3T makes this one easy to love. BMW, Audi, Lexus, Acura, and Infiniti have a real problem on their hands.”

Advancement in design is what you would expect from a car company that has poached talent from Europe’s finest. The G70 is not derivative, but anyone who’s hung around premium German cars will notice a certain resemblance. Genesis didn’t crib its classmates’ homework, but it is working from similar notes. Said guest judge (and former Chrysler design boss) Tom Gale: “A lot of credit is due regarding package execution and combination of design elements for this segment.”

Once inside, the interior fitments are clearly worthy of the compact luxury segment. Genesis had four models on hand for us to sample. “Very upscale interior—almost Mercedes-like,” Theodore said. Detroit editor Alisa Priddle followed with more detailed notes: “Gorgeous quilted black-and-white seats with the diamond pattern in the white stitching.” Associate online editor Michael Cantu said the G70 “has the fit and finish some automakers would dream of.”

As is the case with many compact luxury sedans equipped with leather-clad power front seats, the G70 has a rather tight back-seat area. I’m 5-foot-10, and I fit fine behind a like-sized driver. But 6-footers felt pinched. It’s not big back there. Your friends will fit, just not comfortably for lengthy road trips unless front-seat occupants slide forward a bit.

So yes, there are shortcomings. The 2.0-liter version needs to undergo a kale cleanse, as it’s among the heavier sedans of its class. Rechtin called out its lane keep assist function as wandering. Loh and Markus noticed detectable amounts of road NVH creeping into the cabin on rough aggregate paving. MacKenzie felt the engine note needs refining. And Seabaugh was dismayed that the infotainment interface makes no bones that it’s shared with down-market Hyundai and Kia models.

Genesis shows how a new model from a new brand must enter a crowded segment, one where both heritage and perception count. Not in the middle, not as merely a value proposition or even as a funky alternative, but at or so very close to the top that everybody is forced to take notice. If there are sins, they’re easily forgiven. Alfa Romeo did it last year with the Giulia. Genesis does so this year with the G70. If we can once again journey back to the 1980s, Lexus did exactly this (and then some) with the release of the initial LS 400. The entire industry was put on notice. Some brands (hello, Lincoln) have yet to fully recover because the parent companies refused to recognize the threat and invest the funds necessary to fight back against the hard-hitting, hungry, hustling newcomer. The other brands, chiefly the Germans, evolved. Sure beats extinction.

If Genesis can extend its product line with SUVs similar to the excellent new G70, it stands poised to take over the world of ma from PerformanceJunk WP Feed 3 http://bit.ly/2Sbqb6I via IFTTT

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2018 Jaguar XE SVR Redesign and Price

2018 Jaguar XE SVR Redesign and Price – Verification that Jaguar wishes us to appreciate its sedans. They might be offering the tiny earlier introduced XE to the new SVO adjusting left arm with testimonials to change more than out a suitable efficiency derivative is called SVR, for So Definitely Randy.

2018 Jaguar XE SVR Redesign

For that 2018 Jaguar XE SVR, precisely the same mostly light aluminum complexes that underpin both the XE and XF, also on the bank account of F-Pace crossover. We entirely happen to be encouraged that a majority of SVR derivatives might be numerous-wheel touring and much lighter in comparison with autos they get from, so foresee lightweight aluminum full body particular person individual panels and most likely also a fractional co2-diet fiber content material rooftop.

The 2018 Jaguar XE SVR just is not merely the one distinct over the class. Extremely a few other individual’s carmakers’ options on the same ranges are Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio, BMW M3, Cadillac ATS-V, Mercedes-AMG C63. Jaguar’s power to as obtaining the Brits spot it-football soccer tennis ball parameters up may resurface. Before R-S and R-S GT many types are also severe and high-listed, sacrificing the brand’s maker refinement for performance. The XE SVR is one of the two affordable and effectively-healthy constructive to end the work. Bragging permitted appropriate privileges. That old XJ is additionally older and stayed to possess a priapic SVR model, regardless that XE and even the diligently appropriate XF are amazing guys and women, notably considering the connect-and-perform in the open air of Jaguar Land Rover’s powertrain aspects. We notice the XE SVR ought to appear initially.

2018 Jaguar XE SV R Specs

The pricey is very readily available engine selection for that 2018 Jaguar XE SVR, in the minimum, first of all, will inevitably come to be a 5. liter turbocharged V-8 inline-4 diesel from Jaguar’s new type of Ingenium engines. This is qualified at 480hp, which might be not as nicely incredible for almost any vehicle around this specific price label period, a 280 lb-ft of torque that’s a little additional adequate. As opposed to the usual 50 percent a dozen rate manual, an 8-10-price programmed has become going to be supplied as frequent. This may more than likely possibly allow the car presumably to 60 Miles per hour in 8.2 secs and come to a most excellent very best speed of 132 Miles per hour, which is remarkable. However, by considerably a necessary purpose of this engine could be the gasoline use. This will most likely be qualified at supplying a fantastic bargain more than 55 Mpg on the freeway, and that is far better even in comparison with new Prius. Jaguar is probably to perform all of that and preserve quicker and price very competitively that it’s. No matter what exact, some marketplaces however usually generally don’t like diesel engines, so Jaguar may be a lot more prone to offer a solitary in their new 2-liter fuel engines. This may use the same 8-rate automated ever since the diesel, nonetheless, it must make through 220hp and 250 lb-feet of torque, all no matter the fact that providing near 45 MPG on the road which can be extraordinary due to its class.

2018 Jaguar XE SVR Release Date and Price

There is no established media on when could be the precise the right time to release the forthcoming Jaguar XE SVR. Also, from the reliable resource indicates the 2018 Jaguar XE SVR is likely to be using the total market area towards the final quarter of 2017. The 2018 Jaguar XE SVR is responsible for visiting be costed near to $65,000 within the US which might be just $1,000 more than the bottom car or vehicle. All around this price tag degree, it could include a slightly “dirty” diesel engine, and that is probably not each element adored from your US marketplace area. Nonetheless, it will likely be efficient, increased satisfactorily and incredibly affordable to help keep. As a result, it needs to be an incredible use specifically car or vehicle fleets.

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2019 Jaguar XE 20d Rumor, Review And Price

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2019 Jaguar XE 20d Rumor, Review And Price

2019 Jaguar XE 20d Rumor, Review And Price – Ever because BMW lost its laser focus on traveling-dynamics brilliance in the event it released its 2012 (F30) 3-series redesign, we’ve been searching for a suitably satisfying substitute as the most popular all-around, everyday car that best combines practicality with traveling style. Between newcomers, the Cadillac ATS amazed dynamically but was missing out on virtually anything else, and the Lexus IS engaging only in particular clip amounts. With aluminum-rigorous construction plus an appealing price, could Jaguar’s new XE turn out to be The A single?

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2019 Jaguar XE 20d Future

Given the lack of area inside, we are especially worried by indicators of squandering, this kind of as the big rectangular prevent of glossy black plastic material encircling the rounded move button that will serve accurately no function. In a comparable location, the Audi A4 offers his first MMI button, all of the ancillary faster way switches and changes, and eight pre-programmed buttons.

2019 Jaguar XE 20d Exterior And Interior

Hearing about the most famous winding, two-lane streets, the Jaguar XE 20d certainly seems significantly less remote than the 3-series-a first begin. Even though this particular car wore, 18-inch all-period tires-R-Sport V-6 models are available with 20-inch performance rubber-lateral grasp was a still amazing .88 g, which is a lot more stay than the Jaguar XE 20d minimally bolstered seating can handle. Nonetheless, despite more than ample grip, taut wheel and body manage, and fast directing, linking sides in the XE doesn’t come as naturally as inside our transcendent faves. Honestly, and somewhat amazingly, it’s bigger and heavier sibling, the XF, possesses a lot more of this corner-carving effortlessness. We do not like this the XE’s brake pedal has a tad of gentleness at the start of its cerebrovascular accident before the system starts to react a lot more linearly with a lot more pedal pressure.

We’ve observed this undesirable top quality in an amount of new Jaguars, making us question if it’s a (misguided) component of Jaguar’s adjusting approach.Even though it looks compact, the XE has much more length, thickness, and wheelbase than the 3-series. Remarkably, however, the Jaguar XE 20d interior quantity is nearer to that of BMW’s 2-series coupe than the 3-series sedan with which it is meant to be competitive. And whether you phone the XE’s exterior tastefully restrained or only basic-it’s also derivative to the stage of frustration featuring its big-brother XF-it’s by no means a great indication if not a solitary bystander notices a vehicle that’s about as new as they come. At best, it is a skipped possibility. And, on an execution level, we remained dismayed at the large space among the rear fascia and the twin exhaust tips.

2019 Jaguar XE 20d Engine

The 2.-liter Ingenium diesel’s headline number is its 318 lb-ft of torque, with 180 peak horsepower; that is the same power but 38 new lb-feet versus its main competitor, the BMW 328d. It fires swiftly, even on a chilly morning; at idle it delivers a little vibrator tickle using the seat and controls. Stop-start features are quite smart, especially for a gallon of diesel. There’s just a little shudder as the engine pace drops to absolutely no and a fast and clean restart. Some in comparison it with stop-start techniques on fuel-engine rivals, which is higher compliments. Nonetheless, when it restarts by itself just before the driver’s foot comes away from the brake pedal, it’s far more jarring. It’s a workhorse engine, having a flush, constant draw through the rev range making a mainly reasonable grumble. The several-tube never boosts its voice-our interior soundstage dimension with the throttle pegged was 73 decibels, a few greater than when sailing at a steady 70 mph (evaluate by investing in a seven-decibel variation on a V-6-powered XE)-but it’s not invigorating. Never goading the motorist to dance with it making use of the shift paddles spontaneously. (That’s just as strong, as the paddles are performed in inexpensive-feeling plastic.) In the course of maximum velocity, it changes approximately 300 rpm quick of the 4800-rpm redline, and the effects were under unbelievable: zero to 60 mph in 8.4 secs and 16.4 secs at 85 miles per hour using the quarter-mile. That’s more than a second reduced to 60 mph than the very last all-wheel-drive 328d sedan we examined (7.2 secs). In the daily grind, the XE’s power can feel sufficient-specifically the swell of midrange torque, and the 20d seems receptive adequate off the series when traveling gently. But hammer it from relaxation, as inside our going-begin check, and you can matter “one-one particular-thousand” before the Ingenium awakes. Certainly, the XE’s 5-to-60-mph time is 1.1 mere seconds reduced than its nothing-to-60 time as well as 1.5 secs powering the BMW in this particular calculate.

2019 Jaguar XE 20d Price And Release Date

The Jaguar XE 20d is a single of the couple of remaining diesel products in the class, starting at $37,395, a $1500 premium more than the fuel-powered 2.-liter turbo. Our examination car scaled the alternatives ladder almost to the leading at a spectacular $56,345. That go up started out with the inclusion of all-time drive ($2500) and skipped past the Top quality, and Prestige trims to the top, R-Sport model, a $10,100 add-on that adds a host of comfort and ease, convenience, and driver help things. In addition to a more intense look from a modified entrance fender and the add-on of side sills and a trunk lid spoiler. On top of that, our car got the $2100 Comfort And Comfort Package (heated and ventilated front seating and heated rears, a power trunk lid, and rear window ton). The $2700 Technologies package (which includes Jaguar’s most recent InControl Touch Pro infotainment and menu system running on a 10.2-inch touchscreen, a 17-loudspeaker Meridian sound system, and Wi-Fi online connectivity). The $1000 adaptive shocks, and $550 Glacier White Metallic color.

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2018 Cadillac ATS V Price, Specs, Review

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2018 Cadillac ATS V Price, Specs, Review

2018 Cadillac ATS V Price, Specs, Review – The Cadillac ATS V maintains its very own from your world’s finest physical activities sedans as well as coupes. Rivals to the new ATS V are the BMW 3 Series, Mercedes-Benz C-College, Audi A4, along with Infiniti G37. Brand new Cadillac ATS is available together with four entrance doors or even two. The 2-door coupe is somewhat tiny when compared to the four-entry way sedan, by using a bigger keep an eye on for much better cornering, and also its appearance the identical has different page metallic.

There are many engines: a 2.5-liter several-hose (sedan only); a 272-horse energy turbocharged 2.-liter 4-tube; in addition to a 333-horse potential 3.6-liter V6 re-designed for 2016 for significantly better gasoline kilometers. It is accessible to other select from a 6-tempo manual gearbox or 8-velocity car, and rear tire travel or all-time trips. The ATS sedan by way of each of the 2.5-liter engine will get an EPA-ranked 26 miles per gallon Put together city and highway, the 2. turbo gets 26 miles per gallon Merged, along with the V6 is ranked 24 mpg Mixed.

The ATS V is another wildlife entirely. Accessible as being a coupe or sedan, its 3.6-liter V6 is turbocharged to make 464 hp and 445 lb-ft . of torque, which blasts it to 60 miles per hour in 3.8 sheer seconds and beyond to 189 mph. It probably has a look declaring modern day muscle tissue auto, with full flared type of fenders and also aggressive aerodynamics in order to find the renowned wedge-developed Cadillac grille. The interior contains Recaro seating, readily accessible replica co2 reduce, and details of darkish suede. The rigid chassis is lightweight aluminum and metallic, the suspensions employ magnetic dampers, and it involves the high-Performance Grasp Supervision (PTM) strategy. The effect is a hugely very efficient car that is quite simple to push probably out round the keep an eye on nearby the restrict. ATS V competes with BMW M3, Audi S4.

2018 Cadillac ATS V Exterior

2019 Cadillac ATS V Price

2019 Cadillac ATS V Review

2019 Cadillac ATS V Specs

Seeking the Co2 Black colored coloration sports activities package will bring you a few interior changes. For starters, clip variables inside of will now be made up of carbon fabric. Since the pictures provided by Cadillac tend not to generate any facts in regards to what clip goods have the co2 fibers therapies, I suspect it will almost certainly are the small inserts from the dash experience. The clip all over the regulates spokes, the clip inserts on the entry way lower solar panels, along with the inserts within the heart video games method and middle bunch. Also, the steering wheel and shifter manage may be covered with suede – that’s a great range between the Alcantara dash of your delayed 2000s, right? Picking out the package deal package may also get you Recaro V-series front side part chairs to make the inner sense sportier and commanding. The interior may be proficient in Jet Dim or Light-weight-weight Platinum.

Externally, shade options are restricted to just some selections. Buyers have decided on an Acceleration Red-shaded, Black color Raven, Phantom Gray Metallic, Reddish Fixation Tintcoat, or Crystal White-colored tinted Tricoat. I do not discover you, that being said I think the Velocity Reddish exterior employing a Jet Dark interior would be appearance very damn high. An additional superb option is the Phantom Greyish Metallic to choose Light-weight-body weight Platinum interior. By far the most surprising move to the exterior may come as Following Nighttime dim, complete tires. Do not allow the tag mislead you, however. These wheels are much like the offer auto tires, just embellished using a dark-colored full. Great try out, Cadillac. Further exterior enhancements include an infinitely more powerful top area splitter, most recent hood vent cut, a co2 again diffuser, composite rocket sections, as well as a body-coloured spoiler which is positioned higher than across the standard design. Included in this pack, the front part grille is substituted by using a Black colored coloration Stainless steel method.

2018 Cadillac ATS V Changes

2019 Cadillac ATS V Interior

You will find some novelties you will discover all around its bodywork. Very first is the top side spoiler, rear diffuser, large fender and component skirt that might be re-made. Also, the cabin is created using the significant regular and luxurious. You will discover Recaro seats that may be very adaptable to back up auto proprietor to greater efficiency. The external portion of the 2018 Cadillac ATS V will probably be modified to offer you a lot better aerodynamic function, and airflow is air conditioning to support the engine. With the help of fractional co2 materials, we could say the auto quickly has decreased body weight. This way is often more than adequate to produce its engine providing results in much more generation to ensure the car runs quicker than before.

New Engine

2019 Cadillac ATS V Engine

2018 Cadillac ATS V depending on some personal web sites how the vehicle is going to be created with the presence of V8 engine LS7 and 7. liter to offer the volume of productivity fantastically close to 505 horses along with the torque energy is focused on 481 lb-feet. People are granted to find the transmission alternatives that may be 8-10-speed automobile transmission and also the several speed handbook gearboxes.

The engine runs efficiently because the help of all normal air movement usage hence the motor a unit may have no problem at all. Additionally, 2018 Cadillac ATS V has detailed brake and revocation updates to maintain introducing far more generation and also the real body could be far more muscular than just before. It will likely be created by the third age group utilizing the valuable magnet shock absorbing that may consume the shock after the streets are damaged. As a result, it will offer you far more comfort and control. Within four seats, the car can boost from to 60 mph, and the above rate is about 200 mph.

2018 Cadillac ATS V Release Date And Price

If all received facts from some dependable places above are appropriate, it shows the vehicle may be unveiled in Jan at Detroit Electric Motor Display. 2018 Cadillac ATS V is readily accessible in concerning a yrs as 2018 design, and the charge tag is about 61,500 dollars. It will probably be a compact and excellent sports activities sedan.

[robertkstone]

Genesis G70 is the 2019 MotorTrend Car of the Year

Wind your mental clocks back just over three decades. The year is 1985, Ronald Reagan just began his second term in the White House, and a new Korean car company was selling a Giugiaro-designed hatchback for the low, low price of $4,995.

Americans couldn’t pronounce the name of the brand (Hun-dee? Hi-yun-day? Hoon-dye?). And its little Excel did anything but. The wheezy econobox’s most notable performance credential was the LAPD’s dubious—later retracted—claim that Rodney King was driving one at speeds of 110 to 115 mph.

Fast-forward to the present. How beyond belief is it that that same cheap and cheerful automaker—Hyundai—not only has launched a luxury brand but has also built a better BMW 3 Series fighter right out the gate than the Japanese luxury brands have in numerous attempts?

That car is the Genesis G70, and we have voted it the 2019 MotorTrend Car of the Year. That’s all pretty unthinkable, right? Unthinkable, that is, unless you’ve been paying attention.

Hyundai launched Genesis Motors two years ago with the impressive G90, a full-size luxury machine that humbles cars such as the BMW 7 Series and Lexus LS. However, the G90 doesn’t really do much against the 4,700-pound German silverback in the room—the mighty Mercedes-Benz S-Class. And although the quite-fine Genesis G80 is a capable midsizer, it doesn’t exactly send shivers down the backs of engineers in Stuttgart or Nagoya. It isn’t, as we like to say, a needle mover.

The G70, however, is. The segment the G70 competes in—entry-level compact luxury sport sedans—has long been defined by the BMW 3 Series. However, for the past decade or so, the Bavarian’s claim of supremacy has been in doubt. That has opened the door for a plethora of stellar sedans from half a dozen countries, ranging from Audi to Cadillac to Jaguar to last year’s COTY, the Alfa Romeo Giulia. Despite comparison tests showing BMW is no longer in ascendency, when creating segment benchmarks, automaker product planners still circle back to, “We want to create a 3 Series fighter.”

Of course, it helps to have a bunch of ringers on your development team to help bring those Eurocentric touches to your first effort—folks like BMW dynamics veterans Albert Biermann and Fayez Rahman, Bentley design talents Luc Donckerwolke and SangYup Lee, Mercedes color/trim specialist Bozhena Lalova, and Bugatti Chiron designer Sasha Selipanov. Coordinating this dream team is former Lamborghini brand czar Manfred Fitzgerald, who has created a Genesis “brand book” to keep his troops focused.

The result of all this hard work is a stunning, value-packed sport sedan that should shake up any shopper’s consideration list.

“What’s remarkable about the Genesis is the Koreans have done what Toyota, Nissan, Honda, and GM have all failed to do: build a legitimate BMW 3 Series competitor,” international bureau chief Angus MacKenzie said.

Over many beers, you and I could sit and pick apart that statement. Yes, the original Infiniti G35 caught BMW flat-footed. Agreed, dynamically speaking, the Cadillac ATS and aforementioned Giulia are superior to the F30 3 Series. However, Angus’ point is that there is no asterisk required for the G70. We don’t have to say the car is better in this way but not that. No excuses are necessary. Am I saying the G70 is perfect? Of course not. No car is. But I am saying that the G70 is exceptional, and when stacked up against our six key criteria, it clearly emerges as our 2019 Car of the Year.

Before delving into said criteria (and in particular Engineering Excellence), I’d be remiss to go one step further without mentioning the G70’s platform cousin, the Kia Stinger. A finalist at last year’s Car of the Year competition, two negatives held the Stinger back from top honors: Its interior design is too blandly similar to every other Kia extant, and its suspension does not befit its sporty-car pretentions. More impressively, we brought a 3.3-liter RWD Stinger GT with us to our 2018 Best Driver’s Car party. There the Kia finished an honorable ninth place out of twelve. That may not sound like much—until you take into account that several bona fide six-figure supercars were ahead of it, and one (Corvette ZR1) finished behind it. Still, the Stinger has felt a bit … unfinished.

Given one additional year of development time, what we assume is a different sort of customer to chase, and perhaps even a different mandate, the G70 does not suffer from the same shortcomings. “The G70 is smooth, quiet, fast, upscale, nimble, good-looking, and a great value,” guest judge (and AMC, Chrysler, and Ford engineering guru) Chris Theodore said. “It’s very good at almost everything.”

The G70 makes a terrific all-arounder, but certain triumphal notes do stand out. If you want a seat at the 3 Series table, true sporting ability trumps a perfectly damped ride and NVH-free cabin. Some version of the word “balance” appears seven times in the notes from seven judges; any suspension complaints had to do with ride quality, not with handling.

“Holy moly, such ferocity and control,” road test editor Chris Walton said. “My attention was rapt. My heart raced. Held to the standard-bearer, a BMW 3 Series, this car out of the gate is better. It’s more evolved and more luxurious than the original Infiniti G35 was, has an edge to it that a Mercedes-Benz C-Class lacks, and feels more alert than an Audi A4.”

We should mention performance under the hood. The optional 3.3-liter twin-turbo G70 is a ferocious animal. The RWD car hit 60 mph in 4.7 seconds, whereas the heavier AWD car did so in 4.8. The rear-driver did the quarter-mile run in 13.2 seconds, whereas the all-wheeler was just a tenth behind. That’s quicker than the BMW 340i, a touch slower than the Mercedes-AMG C 43, and right on the nose of the 340-hp version of the Jaguar XE. “Your basic rocket ship,” Theodore said. “The engine pulls to infinity and beyond.”

Curiously, few of the 5,595 words we collectively wrote as notes about the G70 mention anything about the base 2.0-liter version feeling slow or underpowered. Yet the numbers tell a different story. The manual 2.0-liter takes 7.2 seconds to hit 60 mph, and the automatic requires 7.4 seconds. By contrast, the BMW 330i needs just 5.5 seconds to hit 60 mph, the Mercedes C 300 sedan takes 6.0 seconds, and the Alfa Romeo Giulia Q2 requires 5.2 seconds. The G70 similarly trails in the quarter—more than a second off its nearest rivals. “The 2.0-liter makes most of its power above 3,000 rpm, and the transmission is geared a bit too long to let the G70 make the most of that meat,” features editor Christian Seabaugh said.

Our fully loaded 2.0-liter Dynamic and the decently contented, power-packed 3.3T Advanced both came in under 45 grand. That’s thousands of dollars if not tens of thousands less than Genesis’ competitors. “I’m blinking hard, looking at the Monroney,” executive editor Mark Rechtin said. “I’m trying to figure out how this is possible. I’m not sure if there’s another vehicle in the segment that drives this way at this price point.”

Like all Car of the Year winners, there’s an X-factor at work, some secret spicy sauce that makes the eventual victor jump up off the page, out of the various spreadsheets, and down from the minds into the hearts of the judges. Last year’s champ, the Alfa Romeo Giulia, had it in spades. So does this year’s Genesis. “Somehow,” technical editor Frank Markus said, “this one, with rear-wheel drive, put it all together for me.”

For others, too. Check out this praise from senior production editor Zach Gale: “What an incredible first effort from a new brand.” Seabaugh professed love for the upgraded engine: “What a great way to wake up. This 3.3-liter TT V-6 is just a monster. I absolutely adore this engine. This was my favorite G70 on the proving ground, and it continues to be in the real world.” Then there’s editor-in-chief Ed Loh: “The pull of the 3.3T makes this one easy to love. BMW, Audi, Lexus, Acura, and Infiniti have a real problem on their hands.”

Advancement in design is what you would expect from a car company that has poached talent from Europe’s finest. The G70 is not derivative, but anyone who’s hung around premium German cars will notice a certain resemblance. Genesis didn’t crib its classmates’ homework, but it is working from similar notes. Said guest judge (and former Chrysler design boss) Tom Gale: “A lot of credit is due regarding package execution and combination of design elements for this segment.”

Once inside, the interior fitments are clearly worthy of the compact luxury segment. Genesis had four models on hand for us to sample. “Very upscale interior—almost Mercedes-like,” Theodore said. Detroit editor Alisa Priddle followed with more detailed notes: “Gorgeous quilted black-and-white seats with the diamond pattern in the white stitching.” Associate online editor Michael Cantu said the G70 “has the fit and finish some automakers would dream of.”

As is the case with many compact luxury sedans equipped with leather-clad power front seats, the G70 has a rather tight back-seat area. I’m 5-foot-10, and I fit fine behind a like-sized driver. But 6-footers felt pinched. It’s not big back there. Your friends will fit, just not comfortably for lengthy road trips unless front-seat occupants slide forward a bit.

So yes, there are shortcomings. The 2.0-liter version needs to undergo a kale cleanse, as it’s among the heavier sedans of its class. Rechtin called out its lane keep assist function as wandering. Loh and Markus noticed detectable amounts of road NVH creeping into the cabin on rough aggregate paving. MacKenzie felt the engine note needs refining. And Seabaugh was dismayed that the infotainment interface makes no bones that it’s shared with down-market Hyundai and Kia models.

Genesis shows how a new model from a new brand must enter a crowded segment, one where both heritage and perception count. Not in the middle, not as merely a value proposition or even as a funky alternative, but at or so very close to the top that everybody is forced to take notice. If there are sins, they’re easily forgiven. Alfa Romeo did it last year with the Giulia. Genesis does so this year with the G70. If we can once again journey back to the 1980s, Lexus did exactly this (and then some) with the release of the initial LS 400. The entire industry was put on notice. Some brands (hello, Lincoln) have yet to fully recover because the parent companies refused to recognize the threat and invest the funds necessary to fight back against the hard-hitting, hungry, hustling newcomer. The other brands, chiefly the Germans, evolved. Sure beats extinction.

If Genesis can extend its product line with SUVs similar to the excellent new G70, it stands poised to take over the world of ma from PerformanceJunk WP Feed 3 http://bit.ly/2Sbqb6I via IFTTT

[robertkstone]

Genesis G70 is the 2019 MotorTrend Car of the Year

Wind your mental clocks back just over three decades. The year is 1985, Ronald Reagan just began his second term in the White House, and a new Korean car company was selling a Giugiaro-designed hatchback for the low, low price of $4,995.

Americans couldn’t pronounce the name of the brand (Hun-dee? Hi-yun-day? Hoon-dye?). And its little Excel did anything but. The wheezy econobox’s most notable performance credential was the LAPD’s dubious—later retracted—claim that Rodney King was driving one at speeds of 110 to 115 mph.

Fast-forward to the present. How beyond belief is it that that same cheap and cheerful automaker—Hyundai—not only has launched a luxury brand but has also built a better BMW 3 Series fighter right out the gate than the Japanese luxury brands have in numerous attempts?

That car is the Genesis G70, and we have voted it the 2019 MotorTrend Car of the Year. That’s all pretty unthinkable, right? Unthinkable, that is, unless you’ve been paying attention.

Hyundai launched Genesis Motors two years ago with the impressive G90, a full-size luxury machine that humbles cars such as the BMW 7 Series and Lexus LS. However, the G90 doesn’t really do much against the 4,700-pound German silverback in the room—the mighty Mercedes-Benz S-Class. And although the quite-fine Genesis G80 is a capable midsizer, it doesn’t exactly send shivers down the backs of engineers in Stuttgart or Nagoya. It isn’t, as we like to say, a needle mover.

The G70, however, is. The segment the G70 competes in—entry-level compact luxury sport sedans—has long been defined by the BMW 3 Series. However, for the past decade or so, the Bavarian’s claim of supremacy has been in doubt. That has opened the door for a plethora of stellar sedans from half a dozen countries, ranging from Audi to Cadillac to Jaguar to last year’s COTY, the Alfa Romeo Giulia. Despite comparison tests showing BMW is no longer in ascendency, when creating segment benchmarks, automaker product planners still circle back to, “We want to create a 3 Series fighter.”

Of course, it helps to have a bunch of ringers on your development team to help bring those Eurocentric touches to your first effort—folks like BMW dynamics veterans Albert Biermann and Fayez Rahman, Bentley design talents Luc Donckerwolke and SangYup Lee, Mercedes color/trim specialist Bozhena Lalova, and Bugatti Chiron designer Sasha Selipanov. Coordinating this dream team is former Lamborghini brand czar Manfred Fitzgerald, who has created a Genesis “brand book” to keep his troops focused.

The result of all this hard work is a stunning, value-packed sport sedan that should shake up any shopper’s consideration list.

“What’s remarkable about the Genesis is the Koreans have done what Toyota, Nissan, Honda, and GM have all failed to do: build a legitimate BMW 3 Series competitor,” international bureau chief Angus MacKenzie said.

Over many beers, you and I could sit and pick apart that statement. Yes, the original Infiniti G35 caught BMW flat-footed. Agreed, dynamically speaking, the Cadillac ATS and aforementioned Giulia are superior to the F30 3 Series. However, Angus’ point is that there is no asterisk required for the G70. We don’t have to say the car is better in this way but not that. No excuses are necessary. Am I saying the G70 is perfect? Of course not. No car is. But I am saying that the G70 is exceptional, and when stacked up against our six key criteria, it clearly emerges as our 2019 Car of the Year.

Before delving into said criteria (and in particular Engineering Excellence), I’d be remiss to go one step further without mentioning the G70’s platform cousin, the Kia Stinger. A finalist at last year’s Car of the Year competition, two negatives held the Stinger back from top honors: Its interior design is too blandly similar to every other Kia extant, and its suspension does not befit its sporty-car pretentions. More impressively, we brought a 3.3-liter RWD Stinger GT with us to our 2018 Best Driver’s Car party. There the Kia finished an honorable ninth place out of twelve. That may not sound like much—until you take into account that several bona fide six-figure supercars were ahead of it, and one (Corvette ZR1) finished behind it. Still, the Stinger has felt a bit … unfinished.

Given one additional year of development time, what we assume is a different sort of customer to chase, and perhaps even a different mandate, the G70 does not suffer from the same shortcomings. “The G70 is smooth, quiet, fast, upscale, nimble, good-looking, and a great value,” guest judge (and AMC, Chrysler, and Ford engineering guru) Chris Theodore said. “It’s very good at almost everything.”

The G70 makes a terrific all-arounder, but certain triumphal notes do stand out. If you want a seat at the 3 Series table, true sporting ability trumps a perfectly damped ride and NVH-free cabin. Some version of the word “balance” appears seven times in the notes from seven judges; any suspension complaints had to do with ride quality, not with handling.

“Holy moly, such ferocity and control,” road test editor Chris Walton said. “My attention was rapt. My heart raced. Held to the standard-bearer, a BMW 3 Series, this car out of the gate is better. It’s more evolved and more luxurious than the original Infiniti G35 was, has an edge to it that a Mercedes-Benz C-Class lacks, and feels more alert than an Audi A4.”

We should mention performance under the hood. The optional 3.3-liter twin-turbo G70 is a ferocious animal. The RWD car hit 60 mph in 4.7 seconds, whereas the heavier AWD car did so in 4.8. The rear-driver did the quarter-mile run in 13.2 seconds, whereas the all-wheeler was just a tenth behind. That’s quicker than the BMW 340i, a touch slower than the Mercedes-AMG C 43, and right on the nose of the 340-hp version of the Jaguar XE. “Your basic rocket ship,” Theodore said. “The engine pulls to infinity and beyond.”

Curiously, few of the 5,595 words we collectively wrote as notes about the G70 mention anything about the base 2.0-liter version feeling slow or underpowered. Yet the numbers tell a different story. The manual 2.0-liter takes 7.2 seconds to hit 60 mph, and the automatic requires 7.4 seconds. By contrast, the BMW 330i needs just 5.5 seconds to hit 60 mph, the Mercedes C 300 sedan takes 6.0 seconds, and the Alfa Romeo Giulia Q2 requires 5.2 seconds. The G70 similarly trails in the quarter—more than a second off its nearest rivals. “The 2.0-liter makes most of its power above 3,000 rpm, and the transmission is geared a bit too long to let the G70 make the most of that meat,” features editor Christian Seabaugh said.

Our fully loaded 2.0-liter Dynamic and the decently contented, power-packed 3.3T Advanced both came in under 45 grand. That’s thousands of dollars if not tens of thousands less than Genesis’ competitors. “I’m blinking hard, looking at the Monroney,” executive editor Mark Rechtin said. “I’m trying to figure out how this is possible. I’m not sure if there’s another vehicle in the segment that drives this way at this price point.”

Like all Car of the Year winners, there’s an X-factor at work, some secret spicy sauce that makes the eventual victor jump up off the page, out of the various spreadsheets, and down from the minds into the hearts of the judges. Last year’s champ, the Alfa Romeo Giulia, had it in spades. So does this year’s Genesis. “Somehow,” technical editor Frank Markus said, “this one, with rear-wheel drive, put it all together for me.”

For others, too. Check out this praise from senior production editor Zach Gale: “What an incredible first effort from a new brand.” Seabaugh professed love for the upgraded engine: “What a great way to wake up. This 3.3-liter TT V-6 is just a monster. I absolutely adore this engine. This was my favorite G70 on the proving ground, and it continues to be in the real world.” Then there’s editor-in-chief Ed Loh: “The pull of the 3.3T makes this one easy to love. BMW, Audi, Lexus, Acura, and Infiniti have a real problem on their hands.”

Advancement in design is what you would expect from a car company that has poached talent from Europe’s finest. The G70 is not derivative, but anyone who’s hung around premium German cars will notice a certain resemblance. Genesis didn’t crib its classmates’ homework, but it is working from similar notes. Said guest judge (and former Chrysler design boss) Tom Gale: “A lot of credit is due regarding package execution and combination of design elements for this segment.”

Once inside, the interior fitments are clearly worthy of the compact luxury segment. Genesis had four models on hand for us to sample. “Very upscale interior—almost Mercedes-like,” Theodore said. Detroit editor Alisa Priddle followed with more detailed notes: “Gorgeous quilted black-and-white seats with the diamond pattern in the white stitching.” Associate online editor Michael Cantu said the G70 “has the fit and finish some automakers would dream of.”

As is the case with many compact luxury sedans equipped with leather-clad power front seats, the G70 has a rather tight back-seat area. I’m 5-foot-10, and I fit fine behind a like-sized driver. But 6-footers felt pinched. It’s not big back there. Your friends will fit, just not comfortably for lengthy road trips unless front-seat occupants slide forward a bit.

So yes, there are shortcomings. The 2.0-liter version needs to undergo a kale cleanse, as it’s among the heavier sedans of its class. Rechtin called out its lane keep assist function as wandering. Loh and Markus noticed detectable amounts of road NVH creeping into the cabin on rough aggregate paving. MacKenzie felt the engine note needs refining. And Seabaugh was dismayed that the infotainment interface makes no bones that it’s shared with down-market Hyundai and Kia models.

Genesis shows how a new model from a new brand must enter a crowded segment, one where both heritage and perception count. Not in the middle, not as merely a value proposition or even as a funky alternative, but at or so very close to the top that everybody is forced to take notice. If there are sins, they’re easily forgiven. Alfa Romeo did it last year with the Giulia. Genesis does so this year with the G70. If we can once again journey back to the 1980s, Lexus did exactly this (and then some) with the release of the initial LS 400. The entire industry was put on notice. Some brands (hello, Lincoln) have yet to fully recover because the parent companies refused to recognize the threat and invest the funds necessary to fight back against the hard-hitting, hungry, hustling newcomer. The other brands, chiefly the Germans, evolved. Sure beats extinction.

If Genesis can extend its product line with SUVs similar to the excellent new G70, it stands poised to take over the world of ma from PerformanceJunk WP Feed 3 http://bit.ly/2Sbqb6I via IFTTT

[robertkstone]

Genesis G70 is the 2019 MotorTrend Car of the Year

Wind your mental clocks back just over three decades. The year is 1985, Ronald Reagan just began his second term in the White House, and a new Korean car company was selling a Giugiaro-designed hatchback for the low, low price of $4,995.

Americans couldn’t pronounce the name of the brand (Hun-dee? Hi-yun-day? Hoon-dye?). And its little Excel did anything but. The wheezy econobox’s most notable performance credential was the LAPD’s dubious—later retracted—claim that Rodney King was driving one at speeds of 110 to 115 mph.

Fast-forward to the present. How beyond belief is it that that same cheap and cheerful automaker—Hyundai—not only has launched a luxury brand but has also built a better BMW 3 Series fighter right out the gate than the Japanese luxury brands have in numerous attempts?

That car is the Genesis G70, and we have voted it the 2019 MotorTrend Car of the Year. That’s all pretty unthinkable, right? Unthinkable, that is, unless you’ve been paying attention.

Hyundai launched Genesis Motors two years ago with the impressive G90, a full-size luxury machine that humbles cars such as the BMW 7 Series and Lexus LS. However, the G90 doesn’t really do much against the 4,700-pound German silverback in the room—the mighty Mercedes-Benz S-Class. And although the quite-fine Genesis G80 is a capable midsizer, it doesn’t exactly send shivers down the backs of engineers in Stuttgart or Nagoya. It isn’t, as we like to say, a needle mover.

The G70, however, is. The segment the G70 competes in—entry-level compact luxury sport sedans—has long been defined by the BMW 3 Series. However, for the past decade or so, the Bavarian’s claim of supremacy has been in doubt. That has opened the door for a plethora of stellar sedans from half a dozen countries, ranging from Audi to Cadillac to Jaguar to last year’s COTY, the Alfa Romeo Giulia. Despite comparison tests showing BMW is no longer in ascendency, when creating segment benchmarks, automaker product planners still circle back to, “We want to create a 3 Series fighter.”

Of course, it helps to have a bunch of ringers on your development team to help bring those Eurocentric touches to your first effort—folks like BMW dynamics veterans Albert Biermann and Fayez Rahman, Bentley design talents Luc Donckerwolke and SangYup Lee, Mercedes color/trim specialist Bozhena Lalova, and Bugatti Chiron designer Sasha Selipanov. Coordinating this dream team is former Lamborghini brand czar Manfred Fitzgerald, who has created a Genesis “brand book” to keep his troops focused.

The result of all this hard work is a stunning, value-packed sport sedan that should shake up any shopper’s consideration list.

“What’s remarkable about the Genesis is the Koreans have done what Toyota, Nissan, Honda, and GM have all failed to do: build a legitimate BMW 3 Series competitor,” international bureau chief Angus MacKenzie said.

Over many beers, you and I could sit and pick apart that statement. Yes, the original Infiniti G35 caught BMW flat-footed. Agreed, dynamically speaking, the Cadillac ATS and aforementioned Giulia are superior to the F30 3 Series. However, Angus’ point is that there is no asterisk required for the G70. We don’t have to say the car is better in this way but not that. No excuses are necessary. Am I saying the G70 is perfect? Of course not. No car is. But I am saying that the G70 is exceptional, and when stacked up against our six key criteria, it clearly emerges as our 2019 Car of the Year.

Before delving into said criteria (and in particular Engineering Excellence), I’d be remiss to go one step further without mentioning the G70’s platform cousin, the Kia Stinger. A finalist at last year’s Car of the Year competition, two negatives held the Stinger back from top honors: Its interior design is too blandly similar to every other Kia extant, and its suspension does not befit its sporty-car pretentions. More impressively, we brought a 3.3-liter RWD Stinger GT with us to our 2018 Best Driver’s Car party. There the Kia finished an honorable ninth place out of twelve. That may not sound like much—until you take into account that several bona fide six-figure supercars were ahead of it, and one (Corvette ZR1) finished behind it. Still, the Stinger has felt a bit … unfinished.

Given one additional year of development time, what we assume is a different sort of customer to chase, and perhaps even a different mandate, the G70 does not suffer from the same shortcomings. “The G70 is smooth, quiet, fast, upscale, nimble, good-looking, and a great value,” guest judge (and AMC, Chrysler, and Ford engineering guru) Chris Theodore said. “It’s very good at almost everything.”

The G70 makes a terrific all-arounder, but certain triumphal notes do stand out. If you want a seat at the 3 Series table, true sporting ability trumps a perfectly damped ride and NVH-free cabin. Some version of the word “balance” appears seven times in the notes from seven judges; any suspension complaints had to do with ride quality, not with handling.

“Holy moly, such ferocity and control,” road test editor Chris Walton said. “My attention was rapt. My heart raced. Held to the standard-bearer, a BMW 3 Series, this car out of the gate is better. It’s more evolved and more luxurious than the original Infiniti G35 was, has an edge to it that a Mercedes-Benz C-Class lacks, and feels more alert than an Audi A4.”

We should mention performance under the hood. The optional 3.3-liter twin-turbo G70 is a ferocious animal. The RWD car hit 60 mph in 4.7 seconds, whereas the heavier AWD car did so in 4.8. The rear-driver did the quarter-mile run in 13.2 seconds, whereas the all-wheeler was just a tenth behind. That’s quicker than the BMW 340i, a touch slower than the Mercedes-AMG C 43, and right on the nose of the 340-hp version of the Jaguar XE. “Your basic rocket ship,” Theodore said. “The engine pulls to infinity and beyond.”

Curiously, few of the 5,595 words we collectively wrote as notes about the G70 mention anything about the base 2.0-liter version feeling slow or underpowered. Yet the numbers tell a different story. The manual 2.0-liter takes 7.2 seconds to hit 60 mph, and the automatic requires 7.4 seconds. By contrast, the BMW 330i needs just 5.5 seconds to hit 60 mph, the Mercedes C 300 sedan takes 6.0 seconds, and the Alfa Romeo Giulia Q2 requires 5.2 seconds. The G70 similarly trails in the quarter—more than a second off its nearest rivals. “The 2.0-liter makes most of its power above 3,000 rpm, and the transmission is geared a bit too long to let the G70 make the most of that meat,” features editor Christian Seabaugh said.

Our fully loaded 2.0-liter Dynamic and the decently contented, power-packed 3.3T Advanced both came in under 45 grand. That’s thousands of dollars if not tens of thousands less than Genesis’ competitors. “I’m blinking hard, looking at the Monroney,” executive editor Mark Rechtin said. “I’m trying to figure out how this is possible. I’m not sure if there’s another vehicle in the segment that drives this way at this price point.”

Like all Car of the Year winners, there’s an X-factor at work, some secret spicy sauce that makes the eventual victor jump up off the page, out of the various spreadsheets, and down from the minds into the hearts of the judges. Last year’s champ, the Alfa Romeo Giulia, had it in spades. So does this year’s Genesis. “Somehow,” technical editor Frank Markus said, “this one, with rear-wheel drive, put it all together for me.”

For others, too. Check out this praise from senior production editor Zach Gale: “What an incredible first effort from a new brand.” Seabaugh professed love for the upgraded engine: “What a great way to wake up. This 3.3-liter TT V-6 is just a monster. I absolutely adore this engine. This was my favorite G70 on the proving ground, and it continues to be in the real world.” Then there’s editor-in-chief Ed Loh: “The pull of the 3.3T makes this one easy to love. BMW, Audi, Lexus, Acura, and Infiniti have a real problem on their hands.”

Advancement in design is what you would expect from a car company that has poached talent from Europe’s finest. The G70 is not derivative, but anyone who’s hung around premium German cars will notice a certain resemblance. Genesis didn’t crib its classmates’ homework, but it is working from similar notes. Said guest judge (and former Chrysler design boss) Tom Gale: “A lot of credit is due regarding package execution and combination of design elements for this segment.”

Once inside, the interior fitments are clearly worthy of the compact luxury segment. Genesis had four models on hand for us to sample. “Very upscale interior—almost Mercedes-like,” Theodore said. Detroit editor Alisa Priddle followed with more detailed notes: “Gorgeous quilted black-and-white seats with the diamond pattern in the white stitching.” Associate online editor Michael Cantu said the G70 “has the fit and finish some automakers would dream of.”

As is the case with many compact luxury sedans equipped with leather-clad power front seats, the G70 has a rather tight back-seat area. I’m 5-foot-10, and I fit fine behind a like-sized driver. But 6-footers felt pinched. It’s not big back there. Your friends will fit, just not comfortably for lengthy road trips unless front-seat occupants slide forward a bit.

So yes, there are shortcomings. The 2.0-liter version needs to undergo a kale cleanse, as it’s among the heavier sedans of its class. Rechtin called out its lane keep assist function as wandering. Loh and Markus noticed detectable amounts of road NVH creeping into the cabin on rough aggregate paving. MacKenzie felt the engine note needs refining. And Seabaugh was dismayed that the infotainment interface makes no bones that it’s shared with down-market Hyundai and Kia models.

Genesis shows how a new model from a new brand must enter a crowded segment, one where both heritage and perception count. Not in the middle, not as merely a value proposition or even as a funky alternative, but at or so very close to the top that everybody is forced to take notice. If there are sins, they’re easily forgiven. Alfa Romeo did it last year with the Giulia. Genesis does so this year with the G70. If we can once again journey back to the 1980s, Lexus did exactly this (and then some) with the release of the initial LS 400. The entire industry was put on notice. Some brands (hello, Lincoln) have yet to fully recover because the parent companies refused to recognize the threat and invest the funds necessary to fight back against the hard-hitting, hungry, hustling newcomer. The other brands, chiefly the Germans, evolved. Sure beats extinction.

If Genesis can extend its product line with SUVs similar to the excellent new G70, it stands poised to take over the world of ma from PerformanceJunk WP Feed 3 http://bit.ly/2Sbqb6I via IFTTT

[robertkstone]

Genesis G70 is the 2019 MotorTrend Car of the Year

Wind your mental clocks back just over three decades. The year is 1985, Ronald Reagan just began his second term in the White House, and a new Korean car company was selling a Giugiaro-designed hatchback for the low, low price of $4,995.

Americans couldn’t pronounce the name of the brand (Hun-dee? Hi-yun-day? Hoon-dye?). And its little Excel did anything but. The wheezy econobox’s most notable performance credential was the LAPD’s dubious—later retracted—claim that Rodney King was driving one at speeds of 110 to 115 mph.

Fast-forward to the present. How beyond belief is it that that same cheap and cheerful automaker—Hyundai—not only has launched a luxury brand but has also built a better BMW 3 Series fighter right out the gate than the Japanese luxury brands have in numerous attempts?

That car is the Genesis G70, and we have voted it the 2019 MotorTrend Car of the Year. That’s all pretty unthinkable, right? Unthinkable, that is, unless you’ve been paying attention.

Hyundai launched Genesis Motors two years ago with the impressive G90, a full-size luxury machine that humbles cars such as the BMW 7 Series and Lexus LS. However, the G90 doesn’t really do much against the 4,700-pound German silverback in the room—the mighty Mercedes-Benz S-Class. And although the quite-fine Genesis G80 is a capable midsizer, it doesn’t exactly send shivers down the backs of engineers in Stuttgart or Nagoya. It isn’t, as we like to say, a needle mover.

The G70, however, is. The segment the G70 competes in—entry-level compact luxury sport sedans—has long been defined by the BMW 3 Series. However, for the past decade or so, the Bavarian’s claim of supremacy has been in doubt. That has opened the door for a plethora of stellar sedans from half a dozen countries, ranging from Audi to Cadillac to Jaguar to last year’s COTY, the Alfa Romeo Giulia. Despite comparison tests showing BMW is no longer in ascendency, when creating segment benchmarks, automaker product planners still circle back to, “We want to create a 3 Series fighter.”

Of course, it helps to have a bunch of ringers on your development team to help bring those Eurocentric touches to your first effort—folks like BMW dynamics veterans Albert Biermann and Fayez Rahman, Bentley design talents Luc Donckerwolke and SangYup Lee, Mercedes color/trim specialist Bozhena Lalova, and Bugatti Chiron designer Sasha Selipanov. Coordinating this dream team is former Lamborghini brand czar Manfred Fitzgerald, who has created a Genesis “brand book” to keep his troops focused.

The result of all this hard work is a stunning, value-packed sport sedan that should shake up any shopper’s consideration list.

“What’s remarkable about the Genesis is the Koreans have done what Toyota, Nissan, Honda, and GM have all failed to do: build a legitimate BMW 3 Series competitor,” international bureau chief Angus MacKenzie said.

Over many beers, you and I could sit and pick apart that statement. Yes, the original Infiniti G35 caught BMW flat-footed. Agreed, dynamically speaking, the Cadillac ATS and aforementioned Giulia are superior to the F30 3 Series. However, Angus’ point is that there is no asterisk required for the G70. We don’t have to say the car is better in this way but not that. No excuses are necessary. Am I saying the G70 is perfect? Of course not. No car is. But I am saying that the G70 is exceptional, and when stacked up against our six key criteria, it clearly emerges as our 2019 Car of the Year.

Before delving into said criteria (and in particular Engineering Excellence), I’d be remiss to go one step further without mentioning the G70’s platform cousin, the Kia Stinger. A finalist at last year’s Car of the Year competition, two negatives held the Stinger back from top honors: Its interior design is too blandly similar to every other Kia extant, and its suspension does not befit its sporty-car pretentions. More impressively, we brought a 3.3-liter RWD Stinger GT with us to our 2018 Best Driver’s Car party. There the Kia finished an honorable ninth place out of twelve. That may not sound like much—until you take into account that several bona fide six-figure supercars were ahead of it, and one (Corvette ZR1) finished behind it. Still, the Stinger has felt a bit … unfinished.

Given one additional year of development time, what we assume is a different sort of customer to chase, and perhaps even a different mandate, the G70 does not suffer from the same shortcomings. “The G70 is smooth, quiet, fast, upscale, nimble, good-looking, and a great value,” guest judge (and AMC, Chrysler, and Ford engineering guru) Chris Theodore said. “It’s very good at almost everything.”

The G70 makes a terrific all-arounder, but certain triumphal notes do stand out. If you want a seat at the 3 Series table, true sporting ability trumps a perfectly damped ride and NVH-free cabin. Some version of the word “balance” appears seven times in the notes from seven judges; any suspension complaints had to do with ride quality, not with handling.

“Holy moly, such ferocity and control,” road test editor Chris Walton said. “My attention was rapt. My heart raced. Held to the standard-bearer, a BMW 3 Series, this car out of the gate is better. It’s more evolved and more luxurious than the original Infiniti G35 was, has an edge to it that a Mercedes-Benz C-Class lacks, and feels more alert than an Audi A4.”

We should mention performance under the hood. The optional 3.3-liter twin-turbo G70 is a ferocious animal. The RWD car hit 60 mph in 4.7 seconds, whereas the heavier AWD car did so in 4.8. The rear-driver did the quarter-mile run in 13.2 seconds, whereas the all-wheeler was just a tenth behind. That’s quicker than the BMW 340i, a touch slower than the Mercedes-AMG C 43, and right on the nose of the 340-hp version of the Jaguar XE. “Your basic rocket ship,” Theodore said. “The engine pulls to infinity and beyond.”

Curiously, few of the 5,595 words we collectively wrote as notes about the G70 mention anything about the base 2.0-liter version feeling slow or underpowered. Yet the numbers tell a different story. The manual 2.0-liter takes 7.2 seconds to hit 60 mph, and the automatic requires 7.4 seconds. By contrast, the BMW 330i needs just 5.5 seconds to hit 60 mph, the Mercedes C 300 sedan takes 6.0 seconds, and the Alfa Romeo Giulia Q2 requires 5.2 seconds. The G70 similarly trails in the quarter—more than a second off its nearest rivals. “The 2.0-liter makes most of its power above 3,000 rpm, and the transmission is geared a bit too long to let the G70 make the most of that meat,” features editor Christian Seabaugh said.

Our fully loaded 2.0-liter Dynamic and the decently contented, power-packed 3.3T Advanced both came in under 45 grand. That’s thousands of dollars if not tens of thousands less than Genesis’ competitors. “I’m blinking hard, looking at the Monroney,” executive editor Mark Rechtin said. “I’m trying to figure out how this is possible. I’m not sure if there’s another vehicle in the segment that drives this way at this price point.”

Like all Car of the Year winners, there’s an X-factor at work, some secret spicy sauce that makes the eventual victor jump up off the page, out of the various spreadsheets, and down from the minds into the hearts of the judges. Last year’s champ, the Alfa Romeo Giulia, had it in spades. So does this year’s Genesis. “Somehow,” technical editor Frank Markus said, “this one, with rear-wheel drive, put it all together for me.”

For others, too. Check out this praise from senior production editor Zach Gale: “What an incredible first effort from a new brand.” Seabaugh professed love for the upgraded engine: “What a great way to wake up. This 3.3-liter TT V-6 is just a monster. I absolutely adore this engine. This was my favorite G70 on the proving ground, and it continues to be in the real world.” Then there’s editor-in-chief Ed Loh: “The pull of the 3.3T makes this one easy to love. BMW, Audi, Lexus, Acura, and Infiniti have a real problem on their hands.”

Advancement in design is what you would expect from a car company that has poached talent from Europe’s finest. The G70 is not derivative, but anyone who’s hung around premium German cars will notice a certain resemblance. Genesis didn’t crib its classmates’ homework, but it is working from similar notes. Said guest judge (and former Chrysler design boss) Tom Gale: “A lot of credit is due regarding package execution and combination of design elements for this segment.”

Once inside, the interior fitments are clearly worthy of the compact luxury segment. Genesis had four models on hand for us to sample. “Very upscale interior—almost Mercedes-like,” Theodore said. Detroit editor Alisa Priddle followed with more detailed notes: “Gorgeous quilted black-and-white seats with the diamond pattern in the white stitching.” Associate online editor Michael Cantu said the G70 “has the fit and finish some automakers would dream of.”

As is the case with many compact luxury sedans equipped with leather-clad power front seats, the G70 has a rather tight back-seat area. I’m 5-foot-10, and I fit fine behind a like-sized driver. But 6-footers felt pinched. It’s not big back there. Your friends will fit, just not comfortably for lengthy road trips unless front-seat occupants slide forward a bit.

So yes, there are shortcomings. The 2.0-liter version needs to undergo a kale cleanse, as it’s among the heavier sedans of its class. Rechtin called out its lane keep assist function as wandering. Loh and Markus noticed detectable amounts of road NVH creeping into the cabin on rough aggregate paving. MacKenzie felt the engine note needs refining. And Seabaugh was dismayed that the infotainment interface makes no bones that it’s shared with down-market Hyundai and Kia models.

Genesis shows how a new model from a new brand must enter a crowded segment, one where both heritage and perception count. Not in the middle, not as merely a value proposition or even as a funky alternative, but at or so very close to the top that everybody is forced to take notice. If there are sins, they’re easily forgiven. Alfa Romeo did it last year with the Giulia. Genesis does so this year with the G70. If we can once again journey back to the 1980s, Lexus did exactly this (and then some) with the release of the initial LS 400. The entire industry was put on notice. Some brands (hello, Lincoln) have yet to fully recover because the parent companies refused to recognize the threat and invest the funds necessary to fight back against the hard-hitting, hungry, hustling newcomer. The other brands, chiefly the Germans, evolved. Sure beats extinction.

If Genesis can extend its product line with SUVs similar to the excellent new G70, it stands poised to take over the world of ma from PerformanceJunk WP Feed 3 https://ift.tt/2KAC6Z1 via IFTTT

[robertkstone]

Genesis G70 is the 2019 MotorTrend Car of the Year

Wind your mental clocks back just over three decades. The year is 1985, Ronald Reagan just began his second term in the White House, and a new Korean car company was selling a Giugiaro-designed hatchback for the low, low price of $4,995.

Americans couldn’t pronounce the name of the brand (Hun-dee? Hi-yun-day? Hoon-dye?). And its little Excel did anything but. The wheezy econobox’s most notable performance credential was the LAPD’s dubious—later retracted—claim that Rodney King was driving one at speeds of 110 to 115 mph.

Fast-forward to the present. How beyond belief is it that that same cheap and cheerful automaker—Hyundai—not only has launched a luxury brand but has also built a better BMW 3 Series fighter right out the gate than the Japanese luxury brands have in numerous attempts?

That car is the Genesis G70, and we have voted it the 2019 MotorTrend Car of the Year. That’s all pretty unthinkable, right? Unthinkable, that is, unless you’ve been paying attention.

Hyundai launched Genesis Motors two years ago with the impressive G90, a full-size luxury machine that humbles cars such as the BMW 7 Series and Lexus LS. However, the G90 doesn’t really do much against the 4,700-pound German silverback in the room—the mighty Mercedes-Benz S-Class. And although the quite-fine Genesis G80 is a capable midsizer, it doesn’t exactly send shivers down the backs of engineers in Stuttgart or Nagoya. It isn’t, as we like to say, a needle mover.

The G70, however, is. The segment the G70 competes in—entry-level compact luxury sport sedans—has long been defined by the BMW 3 Series. However, for the past decade or so, the Bavarian’s claim of supremacy has been in doubt. That has opened the door for a plethora of stellar sedans from half a dozen countries, ranging from Audi to Cadillac to Jaguar to last year’s COTY, the Alfa Romeo Giulia. Despite comparison tests showing BMW is no longer in ascendency, when creating segment benchmarks, automaker product planners still circle back to, “We want to create a 3 Series fighter.”

Of course, it helps to have a bunch of ringers on your development team to help bring those Eurocentric touches to your first effort—folks like BMW dynamics veterans Albert Biermann and Fayez Rahman, Bentley design talents Luc Donckerwolke and SangYup Lee, Mercedes color/trim specialist Bozhena Lalova, and Bugatti Chiron designer Sasha Selipanov. Coordinating this dream team is former Lamborghini brand czar Manfred Fitzgerald, who has created a Genesis “brand book” to keep his troops focused.

The result of all this hard work is a stunning, value-packed sport sedan that should shake up any shopper’s consideration list.

“What’s remarkable about the Genesis is the Koreans have done what Toyota, Nissan, Honda, and GM have all failed to do: build a legitimate BMW 3 Series competitor,” international bureau chief Angus MacKenzie said.

Over many beers, you and I could sit and pick apart that statement. Yes, the original Infiniti G35 caught BMW flat-footed. Agreed, dynamically speaking, the Cadillac ATS and aforementioned Giulia are superior to the F30 3 Series. However, Angus’ point is that there is no asterisk required for the G70. We don’t have to say the car is better in this way but not that. No excuses are necessary. Am I saying the G70 is perfect? Of course not. No car is. But I am saying that the G70 is exceptional, and when stacked up against our six key criteria, it clearly emerges as our 2019 Car of the Year.

Before delving into said criteria (and in particular Engineering Excellence), I’d be remiss to go one step further without mentioning the G70’s platform cousin, the Kia Stinger. A finalist at last year’s Car of the Year competition, two negatives held the Stinger back from top honors: Its interior design is too blandly similar to every other Kia extant, and its suspension does not befit its sporty-car pretentions. More impressively, we brought a 3.3-liter RWD Stinger GT with us to our 2018 Best Driver’s Car party. There the Kia finished an honorable ninth place out of twelve. That may not sound like much—until you take into account that several bona fide six-figure supercars were ahead of it, and one (Corvette ZR1) finished behind it. Still, the Stinger has felt a bit … unfinished.

Given one additional year of development time, what we assume is a different sort of customer to chase, and perhaps even a different mandate, the G70 does not suffer from the same shortcomings. “The G70 is smooth, quiet, fast, upscale, nimble, good-looking, and a great value,” guest judge (and AMC, Chrysler, and Ford engineering guru) Chris Theodore said. “It’s very good at almost everything.”

The G70 makes a terrific all-arounder, but certain triumphal notes do stand out. If you want a seat at the 3 Series table, true sporting ability trumps a perfectly damped ride and NVH-free cabin. Some version of the word “balance” appears seven times in the notes from seven judges; any suspension complaints had to do with ride quality, not with handling.

“Holy moly, such ferocity and control,” road test editor Chris Walton said. “My attention was rapt. My heart raced. Held to the standard-bearer, a BMW 3 Series, this car out of the gate is better. It’s more evolved and more luxurious than the original Infiniti G35 was, has an edge to it that a Mercedes-Benz C-Class lacks, and feels more alert than an Audi A4.”

We should mention performance under the hood. The optional 3.3-liter twin-turbo G70 is a ferocious animal. The RWD car hit 60 mph in 4.7 seconds, whereas the heavier AWD car did so in 4.8. The rear-driver did the quarter-mile run in 13.2 seconds, whereas the all-wheeler was just a tenth behind. That’s quicker than the BMW 340i, a touch slower than the Mercedes-AMG C 43, and right on the nose of the 340-hp version of the Jaguar XE. “Your basic rocket ship,” Theodore said. “The engine pulls to infinity and beyond.”

Curiously, few of the 5,595 words we collectively wrote as notes about the G70 mention anything about the base 2.0-liter version feeling slow or underpowered. Yet the numbers tell a different story. The manual 2.0-liter takes 7.2 seconds to hit 60 mph, and the automatic requires 7.4 seconds. By contrast, the BMW 330i needs just 5.5 seconds to hit 60 mph, the Mercedes C 300 sedan takes 6.0 seconds, and the Alfa Romeo Giulia Q2 requires 5.2 seconds. The G70 similarly trails in the quarter—more than a second off its nearest rivals. “The 2.0-liter makes most of its power above 3,000 rpm, and the transmission is geared a bit too long to let the G70 make the most of that meat,” features editor Christian Seabaugh said.

Our fully loaded 2.0-liter Dynamic and the decently contented, power-packed 3.3T Advanced both came in under 45 grand. That’s thousands of dollars if not tens of thousands less than Genesis’ competitors. “I’m blinking hard, looking at the Monroney,” executive editor Mark Rechtin said. “I’m trying to figure out how this is possible. I’m not sure if there’s another vehicle in the segment that drives this way at this price point.”

Like all Car of the Year winners, there’s an X-factor at work, some secret spicy sauce that makes the eventual victor jump up off the page, out of the various spreadsheets, and down from the minds into the hearts of the judges. Last year’s champ, the Alfa Romeo Giulia, had it in spades. So does this year’s Genesis. “Somehow,” technical editor Frank Markus said, “this one, with rear-wheel drive, put it all together for me.”

For others, too. Check out this praise from senior production editor Zach Gale: “What an incredible first effort from a new brand.” Seabaugh professed love for the upgraded engine: “What a great way to wake up. This 3.3-liter TT V-6 is just a monster. I absolutely adore this engine. This was my favorite G70 on the proving ground, and it continues to be in the real world.” Then there’s editor-in-chief Ed Loh: “The pull of the 3.3T makes this one easy to love. BMW, Audi, Lexus, Acura, and Infiniti have a real problem on their hands.”

Advancement in design is what you would expect from a car company that has poached talent from Europe’s finest. The G70 is not derivative, but anyone who’s hung around premium German cars will notice a certain resemblance. Genesis didn’t crib its classmates’ homework, but it is working from similar notes. Said guest judge (and former Chrysler design boss) Tom Gale: “A lot of credit is due regarding package execution and combination of design elements for this segment.”

Once inside, the interior fitments are clearly worthy of the compact luxury segment. Genesis had four models on hand for us to sample. “Very upscale interior—almost Mercedes-like,” Theodore said. Detroit editor Alisa Priddle followed with more detailed notes: “Gorgeous quilted black-and-white seats with the diamond pattern in the white stitching.” Associate online editor Michael Cantu said the G70 “has the fit and finish some automakers would dream of.”

As is the case with many compact luxury sedans equipped with leather-clad power front seats, the G70 has a rather tight back-seat area. I’m 5-foot-10, and I fit fine behind a like-sized driver. But 6-footers felt pinched. It’s not big back there. Your friends will fit, just not comfortably for lengthy road trips unless front-seat occupants slide forward a bit.

So yes, there are shortcomings. The 2.0-liter version needs to undergo a kale cleanse, as it’s among the heavier sedans of its class. Rechtin called out its lane keep assist function as wandering. Loh and Markus noticed detectable amounts of road NVH creeping into the cabin on rough aggregate paving. MacKenzie felt the engine note needs refining. And Seabaugh was dismayed that the infotainment interface makes no bones that it’s shared with down-market Hyundai and Kia models.

Genesis shows how a new model from a new brand must enter a crowded segment, one where both heritage and perception count. Not in the middle, not as merely a value proposition or even as a funky alternative, but at or so very close to the top that everybody is forced to take notice. If there are sins, they’re easily forgiven. Alfa Romeo did it last year with the Giulia. Genesis does so this year with the G70. If we can once again journey back to the 1980s, Lexus did exactly this (and then some) with the release of the initial LS 400. The entire industry was put on notice. Some brands (hello, Lincoln) have yet to fully recover because the parent companies refused to recognize the threat and invest the funds necessary to fight back against the hard-hitting, hungry, hustling newcomer. The other brands, chiefly the Germans, evolved. Sure beats extinction.

If Genesis can extend its product line with SUVs similar to the excellent new G70, it stands poised to take over the world of ma from PerformanceJunk WP Feed 3 https://ift.tt/2KAC6Z1 via IFTTT

[robertkstone]

Genesis G70 is the 2019 MotorTrend Car of the Year

Wind your mental clocks back just over three decades. The year is 1985, Ronald Reagan just began his second term in the White House, and a new Korean car company was selling a Giugiaro-designed hatchback for the low, low price of $4,995.

Americans couldn’t pronounce the name of the brand (Hun-dee? Hi-yun-day? Hoon-dye?). And its little Excel did anything but. The wheezy econobox’s most notable performance credential was the LAPD’s dubious—later retracted—claim that Rodney King was driving one at speeds of 110 to 115 mph.

Fast-forward to the present. How beyond belief is it that that same cheap and cheerful automaker—Hyundai—not only has launched a luxury brand but has also built a better BMW 3 Series fighter right out the gate than the Japanese luxury brands have in numerous attempts?

That car is the Genesis G70, and we have voted it the 2019 MotorTrend Car of the Year. That’s all pretty unthinkable, right? Unthinkable, that is, unless you’ve been paying attention.

Hyundai launched Genesis Motors two years ago with the impressive G90, a full-size luxury machine that humbles cars such as the BMW 7 Series and Lexus LS. However, the G90 doesn’t really do much against the 4,700-pound German silverback in the room—the mighty Mercedes-Benz S-Class. And although the quite-fine Genesis G80 is a capable midsizer, it doesn’t exactly send shivers down the backs of engineers in Stuttgart or Nagoya. It isn’t, as we like to say, a needle mover.

The G70, however, is. The segment the G70 competes in—entry-level compact luxury sport sedans—has long been defined by the BMW 3 Series. However, for the past decade or so, the Bavarian’s claim of supremacy has been in doubt. That has opened the door for a plethora of stellar sedans from half a dozen countries, ranging from Audi to Cadillac to Jaguar to last year’s COTY, the Alfa Romeo Giulia. Despite comparison tests showing BMW is no longer in ascendency, when creating segment benchmarks, automaker product planners still circle back to, “We want to create a 3 Series fighter.”

Of course, it helps to have a bunch of ringers on your development team to help bring those Eurocentric touches to your first effort—folks like BMW dynamics veterans Albert Biermann and Fayez Rahman, Bentley design talents Luc Donckerwolke and SangYup Lee, Mercedes color/trim specialist Bozhena Lalova, and Bugatti Chiron designer Sasha Selipanov. Coordinating this dream team is former Lamborghini brand czar Manfred Fitzgerald, who has created a Genesis “brand book” to keep his troops focused.

The result of all this hard work is a stunning, value-packed sport sedan that should shake up any shopper’s consideration list.

“What’s remarkable about the Genesis is the Koreans have done what Toyota, Nissan, Honda, and GM have all failed to do: build a legitimate BMW 3 Series competitor,” international bureau chief Angus MacKenzie said.

Over many beers, you and I could sit and pick apart that statement. Yes, the original Infiniti G35 caught BMW flat-footed. Agreed, dynamically speaking, the Cadillac ATS and aforementioned Giulia are superior to the F30 3 Series. However, Angus’ point is that there is no asterisk required for the G70. We don’t have to say the car is better in this way but not that. No excuses are necessary. Am I saying the G70 is perfect? Of course not. No car is. But I am saying that the G70 is exceptional, and when stacked up against our six key criteria, it clearly emerges as our 2019 Car of the Year.

Before delving into said criteria (and in particular Engineering Excellence), I’d be remiss to go one step further without mentioning the G70’s platform cousin, the Kia Stinger. A finalist at last year’s Car of the Year competition, two negatives held the Stinger back from top honors: Its interior design is too blandly similar to every other Kia extant, and its suspension does not befit its sporty-car pretentions. More impressively, we brought a 3.3-liter RWD Stinger GT with us to our 2018 Best Driver’s Car party. There the Kia finished an honorable ninth place out of twelve. That may not sound like much—until you take into account that several bona fide six-figure supercars were ahead of it, and one (Corvette ZR1) finished behind it. Still, the Stinger has felt a bit … unfinished.

Given one additional year of development time, what we assume is a different sort of customer to chase, and perhaps even a different mandate, the G70 does not suffer from the same shortcomings. “The G70 is smooth, quiet, fast, upscale, nimble, good-looking, and a great value,” guest judge (and AMC, Chrysler, and Ford engineering guru) Chris Theodore said. “It’s very good at almost everything.”

The G70 makes a terrific all-arounder, but certain triumphal notes do stand out. If you want a seat at the 3 Series table, true sporting ability trumps a perfectly damped ride and NVH-free cabin. Some version of the word “balance” appears seven times in the notes from seven judges; any suspension complaints had to do with ride quality, not with handling.

“Holy moly, such ferocity and control,” road test editor Chris Walton said. “My attention was rapt. My heart raced. Held to the standard-bearer, a BMW 3 Series, this car out of the gate is better. It’s more evolved and more luxurious than the original Infiniti G35 was, has an edge to it that a Mercedes-Benz C-Class lacks, and feels more alert than an Audi A4.”

We should mention performance under the hood. The optional 3.3-liter twin-turbo G70 is a ferocious animal. The RWD car hit 60 mph in 4.7 seconds, whereas the heavier AWD car did so in 4.8. The rear-driver did the quarter-mile run in 13.2 seconds, whereas the all-wheeler was just a tenth behind. That’s quicker than the BMW 340i, a touch slower than the Mercedes-AMG C 43, and right on the nose of the 340-hp version of the Jaguar XE. “Your basic rocket ship,” Theodore said. “The engine pulls to infinity and beyond.”

Curiously, few of the 5,595 words we collectively wrote as notes about the G70 mention anything about the base 2.0-liter version feeling slow or underpowered. Yet the numbers tell a different story. The manual 2.0-liter takes 7.2 seconds to hit 60 mph, and the automatic requires 7.4 seconds. By contrast, the BMW 330i needs just 5.5 seconds to hit 60 mph, the Mercedes C 300 sedan takes 6.0 seconds, and the Alfa Romeo Giulia Q2 requires 5.2 seconds. The G70 similarly trails in the quarter—more than a second off its nearest rivals. “The 2.0-liter makes most of its power above 3,000 rpm, and the transmission is geared a bit too long to let the G70 make the most of that meat,” features editor Christian Seabaugh said.

Our fully loaded 2.0-liter Dynamic and the decently contented, power-packed 3.3T Advanced both came in under 45 grand. That’s thousands of dollars if not tens of thousands less than Genesis’ competitors. “I’m blinking hard, looking at the Monroney,” executive editor Mark Rechtin said. “I’m trying to figure out how this is possible. I’m not sure if there’s another vehicle in the segment that drives this way at this price point.”

Like all Car of the Year winners, there’s an X-factor at work, some secret spicy sauce that makes the eventual victor jump up off the page, out of the various spreadsheets, and down from the minds into the hearts of the judges. Last year’s champ, the Alfa Romeo Giulia, had it in spades. So does this year’s Genesis. “Somehow,” technical editor Frank Markus said, “this one, with rear-wheel drive, put it all together for me.”

For others, too. Check out this praise from senior production editor Zach Gale: “What an incredible first effort from a new brand.” Seabaugh professed love for the upgraded engine: “What a great way to wake up. This 3.3-liter TT V-6 is just a monster. I absolutely adore this engine. This was my favorite G70 on the proving ground, and it continues to be in the real world.” Then there’s editor-in-chief Ed Loh: “The pull of the 3.3T makes this one easy to love. BMW, Audi, Lexus, Acura, and Infiniti have a real problem on their hands.”

Advancement in design is what you would expect from a car company that has poached talent from Europe’s finest. The G70 is not derivative, but anyone who’s hung around premium German cars will notice a certain resemblance. Genesis didn’t crib its classmates’ homework, but it is working from similar notes. Said guest judge (and former Chrysler design boss) Tom Gale: “A lot of credit is due regarding package execution and combination of design elements for this segment.”

Once inside, the interior fitments are clearly worthy of the compact luxury segment. Genesis had four models on hand for us to sample. “Very upscale interior—almost Mercedes-like,” Theodore said. Detroit editor Alisa Priddle followed with more detailed notes: “Gorgeous quilted black-and-white seats with the diamond pattern in the white stitching.” Associate online editor Michael Cantu said the G70 “has the fit and finish some automakers would dream of.”

As is the case with many compact luxury sedans equipped with leather-clad power front seats, the G70 has a rather tight back-seat area. I’m 5-foot-10, and I fit fine behind a like-sized driver. But 6-footers felt pinched. It’s not big back there. Your friends will fit, just not comfortably for lengthy road trips unless front-seat occupants slide forward a bit.

So yes, there are shortcomings. The 2.0-liter version needs to undergo a kale cleanse, as it’s among the heavier sedans of its class. Rechtin called out its lane keep assist function as wandering. Loh and Markus noticed detectable amounts of road NVH creeping into the cabin on rough aggregate paving. MacKenzie felt the engine note needs refining. And Seabaugh was dismayed that the infotainment interface makes no bones that it’s shared with down-market Hyundai and Kia models.

Genesis shows how a new model from a new brand must enter a crowded segment, one where both heritage and perception count. Not in the middle, not as merely a value proposition or even as a funky alternative, but at or so very close to the top that everybody is forced to take notice. If there are sins, they’re easily forgiven. Alfa Romeo did it last year with the Giulia. Genesis does so this year with the G70. If we can once again journey back to the 1980s, Lexus did exactly this (and then some) with the release of the initial LS 400. The entire industry was put on notice. Some brands (hello, Lincoln) have yet to fully recover because the parent companies refused to recognize the threat and invest the funds necessary to fight back against the hard-hitting, hungry, hustling newcomer. The other brands, chiefly the Germans, evolved. Sure beats extinction.

If Genesis can extend its product line with SUVs similar to the excellent new G70, it stands poised to take over the world of ma from PerformanceJunk WP Feed 3 https://ift.tt/2KAC6Z1 via IFTTT