Genesis GV60 Premium UK first drive

Quite often, less is more with EVs. The base models tend to be so quick already, and so well equipped, that the more expensive versions have little more to offer than on-paper bragging rights and, unhelpfully, less range. So when we road tested the Genesis GV60 in 483bhp Sport Plus form, we wondered if the standard rear-wheel-drive version, with its single rear motor, reduced focus on ‘sportiness’ and smaller wheels, might be the sweet spot of the range. So now we’ve tried one in the UK.

But first, a quick refresher on what a Genesis GV60 is, in case you’ve not quite kept up with the new Korean luxury brand’s quickly expanding range. It uses the same underpinnings and 77.4kWh battery as the Kia EV6 and Hyundai Ioniq 5 but adds Genesis’s styling cues, more premium interior materials and a dollop more refinement. In effect, then, this is an EV6, but posher and, to this tester at least, better looking.

Until relatively recently, it wasn’t even that much more expensive than an EV6. However, a price hike late last year of nearly £7000 (from £47,005 to £53,905) has well and truly torpedoed that particular USP. It’s now quite a bit more expensive than the standard-range rear-drive Tesla Model Y and even the Audi Q4 E-tron.

The interior still trounces the Audi and Tesla for quality and plushness, although some of the fussier styling details might be a bit too chintzy for some. It’s the least spacious of the three, but there’s still plenty to go around, offering more leg room than an ICE car of a similar length.

You need to take some time when you first get the car to set up the infotainment and turn off some of the annoying ‘features’, but once you’ve done so, it’s one of the easiest and frustration-free systems out there, with logical menus, a responsive touchscreen and plenty of physical controls, including a rotary selector.

On the move, the promise of extra comfort over cheaper EVs materialises – mostly. Noise isolation is excellent for the class, and the Ergo-Motion seats (we’ve yet to try any Genesis with standard seats) have a huge amount of adjustability, and are mostly very supportive on long journeys.