2020 Genesis G90
For this week’s review we’ve gotten our hands on the 2020 Genesis G90 which has been totally refreshed on the outside. Genesis started off as model under the Hyundai brand until it re-branded as a luxury brand to compete with luxury brands like Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and Audi. For a new car brand it had a great year in 2019 boosting stales up to 96% thanks to the G70 Sport Sedan which won North America Car of the year. The refreshed G90 aims to take a larger chunk of the cake in the luxury sedan category.
Disclosure: Genesis provided me with the 2020 G90 for a week to test drive, and photograph. All photos in this blog post was taken by me. #GenesisG90
ACCELERATION: 7/10
5.0L GDI V8 - 420 HP / 383 lb-ft
3.5L Twin Turbo V6 - 365 HP / 376 lb-ft
8-speed automatic transmission
5.3 second 0-100 km/hr
Due to the curb weight, accelerating off the line feels slow even with a beefy V8 engine
BRAKING: 7.5/10
Decent braking ability considering it’s heavy curb weight
HANDLING: 6.5/10
Boat like handling , quite a bit of body roll
RIDE: 9/10
Genesis Adaptive Control Suspension
Silky ride
ECONOMY: 7/10
V8 AWD - 15/23/19 (City/Highway/Combined)
V8 RWD - 16/24/20 (City/Highway/Combined)
V6 - 17/25/11 (City/Highway/Combined)
CABIN NOISE: 9/10
Super silent cabin
EXTERIOR: 9/10
Exterior has been refreshed for 2020 and my favourite things about it are the wheels and front headlights. I love how there’s a beam of light slicing through the middle.
The wheels remind me of a Toyota Century
That massive grill shaped like a superman logo make a statement and gives it quite a bit of road presence. Interestingly the shape of the grill is actually the shape of the exhaust tips!
In the rear it has one horizontal LED light that extends and wraps around the car. While it does look unique I’m not a huge fan of the look.
I had lots of people staring at my car and asking what it was and looking inside from the windows. It succeeds to have this boss like street presence.
INTERIOR FOR DRIVER: 8/10
Overall interior is very classy looking with the open pore natural wood and brown nappa leather material in my tester. It is very nice but it’s slightly got this old man feel, but this is the type of car someone a CEO or President might be driven in.
Super comfy to sit in the 22-way power adjustable seats
The storage space next to the shifter is a wireless charger. For larger phones, or phones with a thicker case it may not fit, or you may not be able to close it after! Just something to look out for if you intend to use it for wireless charging!
Since I recently tested the Hyundai Palisade which has an all digital display with an updated infotainment, it does make the G90 feel a bit older. Since this is the most expensive Genesis, I would have liked to see a dual digital display especially since their European competition have that in their cars. The driver instrument cluster feels a bit last gen in the G90
The cameras look low res compared to a Hyundai Palisade. For me it was a little disappointing that the most expensive Genesis has a lower resolution camera than a Hyundai.
Soft close doors are super nice to have standard! Very nice!
If it had massage seats it can easily compete with the S-Class.
INTERIOR FOR PASSENGERS: 9.5/10
The rear right side passenger will have the ability to move the front passenger seat to give them a little bit more room using the controls on the left of the passenger seat pictured above!
The center arm rest reveals a command center to control the infotainment system, climate, and rear seat adjustments.
If you’re planning to have a chauffeur then I would recommend sitting in the rear right seat as you have control to move the front passenger seat as you wish from the command console. You’ll feel more like a boss and less like a child sitting in there!
Front passenger is a 16 way adjustable seat
14-way power-adjustable right rear seat and 12-way power-adjustable left rear seat incl. rear seat power-adjustable head restraints with manual tilt
Heated and cooled seats
As a passenger I’m not sure what else I could want other than massaging seats and maybe a panoramic sunroof to let in more light in the back
INTERIOR STORAGE: 8/10
15.7 Cu Ft
Trunk is massive! To open it, there’s a small buton above the Genesis logo. It will also opens automatically when standing behind the trunk for a few seconds
The rear seats do not fold down, but there is a pass-throught behind the rear center armrest for long narrow items like skis.
INFOTAINMENT SYSTEM: 7/10
The system works well. When comparing it to other brands that have gesture or voice control, it makes me want to see Genesis really up their infotainment to the next level.
Supports Android Auto and Apple Car Play
OVERALL IMPRESSION OF THE 2020 Genesis G90:
The refreshed G90 is the biggest and most expensive Genesis and has a boss-like street presence with its all new exterior. The company claims that every panel except the roof and doors have changed. The G90 is a really nice car to drive and to be driven in. It offers silky comfortability, quietness, and spacious cabin that matches the European luxury sedans like the BMW 7-series and Mercedes-Benz S-Class. It’s low price tag is unmatched in the luxury sedan segment. Not only does Genesis provide the longest warranty coverage in its class, it also includes compliemtary scheduled maintenance, and other complimentary perks where dealership staff pick up your G90 and take it in for service on your behalf. If you can get over that this doesn’t have prestigious European badge, you’ll save 10s of thousnads of dollars for a similiar luxury experience. Another plus is there aren’t too many G90s on the road and a lot of people are going to be checking out your car. Seeing the quality that Genesis can do with the G90 makes me excited for what they have in store in the future. I’m really looking forward to their first SUV.
I often had people asking if it was an Aston Martin or Bentley. While that’s cool that the general public confuses this car for those prestigious companies, I think that is a sign that Genesis needs to work on developing making their brand unique. People should look at a car, and immediately be able to identify the brand.