It’s quick, comfortable, and almost silent. And it fast-charges in 18 minutes.
Among the definitions of “luxury” are descriptions such as “great comfort,” and something that adds pleasure of comfort that isn’t absolutely necessary. Those seem like perfect descriptions of the Genesis Electrified GV70, a handsome electric vehicle that maintains the Korean brand’s seemingly perfect hitting streak.
That may come as a surprise, because some electric vehicle purists have a tendency to look down on EVs like the Electrified GV70. That’s because it uses a platform that was designed to be powertrain-agnostic rather than riding on a bespoke EV architecture. Genesis has access to one of those—one of the best in the industry in fact, called E-GMP. It underpins the quirky-looking GV60 crossover, as well as some very good EVs from Hyundai (which owns the Genesis brand), but not the GV70.
That hardline take might feel intellectually rigorous, but it’s misguided. Both BMW and the Korean OEMs have developed rather fine platforms that can be used to build pure EVs or cars with combustion engines, and I’ll go as far as to say the Kia Niro EV, BMW i4, BMW i7, and Genesis G80 are each better than their hybrid or gas-burning variants, albeit more expensive.
That is definitely the case here. You can get into a 2.5 L turbo GV70 for less than $45,000; the Electrified GV70 starts at a much heftier $66,450, although at 429 hp (320 kW), it’s a lot more powerful than even the $57,500 V6 GV70. Tick the box to add the Prestige pack, and that price goes up another $6,800, as was the case with our test car.Advertisement
Instead of a thirsty V6, the Electrified GV70 is propelled by a pair of 214 hp (160 kW), 258 lb-ft (350 Nm) permanent magnet electric motors, fed by a 74 kWh battery pack (77.4 kWh gross capacity). Combined power is more often limited by the battery than the motors, but in this case peak power is 429 hp (320 kW), or 483 hp (360 kW) for bursts of up to 20 seconds.
If those specs sound a little familiar, it’s because they’re basically identical to the GV60 we tested last year—just because the GV70’s platform can accommodate an old-fashioned cylinder engine doesn’t mean it can’t have ultramodern EV batteries and motors instead. It charges as fast as a GV60, too—from 10 to 80 percent state of charge in 18 minutes when plugged into a 350 kW charger. (Slow charging takes about seven hours with a 48 A level 2 charger.)
The electrified GV70 is a delight to drive. It’s on the smaller end of the midsized SUV scale at 185.6 inches (4,714 mm) long and 75.2 inches (1,910 mm) wide, and from the driver’s seat, there’s a good view ahead and to the sides with minimal blind spots. It’s easy to place on the road and a doddle to park, aided by a rather good camera and sensor setup.
As ever, how a car looks is a subjective thing, and some might not enjoy the “baby Bentley station wagon” vibes that the GV70 gives off. I do, and hiring former Bentley designer Luc Donckerwolke was one of those smart decisions that’s up there with also hiring BMW’s Albert Biermann to transform Hyundai Motor Group’s R&D efforts.
The interior keeps up that junior Bentley vibe. There’s quilted leather on the seats, and controls on the dash are set into elegant black ovals within the expanse of artificial leather. It lacks some of the techno flair of the GV60—the rotary controller that switches from drive to reverse doesn’t turn into a crystal ball when you turn the car off, for instance, but it’s none the worse for being more conservative. The infotainment gains points for being navigable by a second rotary controller on the center console.
The electrified GV70 truly feels luxurious as you drive around in near-silence. How much of the absence of road and wind noise is down to the GV70’s inherent design and how much is due to the active noise-canceling system that’s part of the Premium package, I’m not sure, but with the radio off, it’s a wonderfully calming environment, particularly within city speed limits of 20-25 mph (32-40 km/h).
A silent interior is hardly a necessary attribute for a car, but in this case, it absolutely adds comfort and pleasure. The suspension does an admirable job of absorbing jolts, including from one particularly large pothole I’ve started using to test refinement, at least until DC gets around to repairing it. I’m starting to notice that EVs do quite well at filtering out that particular shock—perhaps one tiny upside to their heavier curb weights.
I must confess to a touch of rambunctiousness at stop lights, but only in the absence of pedestrians. Press the boost button on the shapely leather-wrapped steering wheel and the dials on the electronic dash change theme and the driver’s side bolsters squeeze you a little tighter than before. Then, when the light changes, unleash full power, but only until you reach 20 mph.Advertisement
There’s a chirp from the tires and about a second and a half of G-load, then you’re back to coasting along. Find a suitable toll booth and from a standing start, 60 mph (98 km/h) should take a little less than four seconds. Again, this is not really something one should consider necessary in an EV, but it does add some pleasure to a trip to the store.
If the Electrified GV70 has a downside, other than a purchase price that’s a good deal higher than the average new car price, it’s a relatively limited range. The EPA range estimate is just 236 miles (379 km), and if you go in for too many boost mode launches, I could believe it. But drive carefully, and I reckon you could stretch that to about 260 miles (418 km) using eco mode, which decouples the front motor to improve energy efficiency and some light hypermiling.
That’s probably enough to disqualify some from considering the Electrified GV70, and others will live in states where the car isn’t being offered for sale (currently it’s only available in Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Minnesota, North Carolina, New Jersey, Nevada, New York, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin). For others, the very rapid fast charging will make up for what currently passes for a smallish battery.
Several days after the Electrified GV70, I still miss it. Sometimes, giving the cars back is the hardest part of the job.
