Hyundai keeps the pressure on with Genesis coupe

• By STEVE WHEELER
• Advocate Wheels editor
• Published: Jun 5, 2009

• Print
• Email
• Save
• Reprints
• Twitter
• Share

• Del.icio.us
• Digg
• Facebook
• Reddit
• 

The 2009 model year marked a turning point for Hyundai, the Korean car manufacturer that fired a shot across the collective bows of the world’s luxury carmakers with the fabulous Hyundai Genesis sedan.

The company vaulted from the tenth best selling brand in the world in 2007 to No. 7 in 2008, surpassing Jeep, Chrysler and GMC in the number of vehicles sold.

A big part of the company’s success has been the new Genesis sedan, which was named the 2009 North American Car of the Year.

Now comes the 2010 Genesis coupe, a sporty rear-wheel drive whose biggest drawback seems to be that it is not the Genesis sedan. The Genesis sedan wowed the automotive world this year, and I think the coupe version will too; just for different reasons.

Even though they are both rear-wheel drive, the coupe and the sedan are two completely different vehicles. The sedan is luxurious, refined and stylish. The coupe is totally hot to look at, but not so refined inside. The 2009 Genesis sedan starts around $33,000 for the base model, and the coupe’s base price is $22,000.

The powertrains are different as well. The coupe is powered by a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine, with an optional 3.8-liter V-6. The turbocharged engine puts out 210 horsepower and 223 lb.-ft. of torque, while the V-6 supplies 306 horses and 266 lb.-ft. of torque. The Genesis sedan comes standard with a 290-horsepower V-6 engine, with an available 4.6-liter V-8 that has 375 horses.

So it is obvious, then, that the coupe is not a sporty version of the sedan. But the 2010 Genesis Coupe is a stunningly beautiful automobile that brings affordability to the rear-wheel drive sports coupe market. Hyundai does not seem at all hesitant to dip its toes into new ponds, and thus far with the two Genesises — or is it Genesi? — the ripples have been impressive.

Hyundai was also the first car company to offer buyers the ability to return the car should they lose a job soon after buying the car. According to Hyundai, only about 10 owners have brought their cars back in the program, but the public relations benefit must have been enormous. Other manufacturers have since jumped on that bandwagon in various forms.

Hyundai invited automotive journalists to test drive the Genesis Coupe recently through the hills just outside of Atlanta. And on the drive, heads turned when the sporty coupe rolled by. It handled the roads without complaint, offering almost no body roll, even in the sharp turns. And because the car is being pushed, not pulled, the steering was sure and even. In fact, there is no other 4-cylinder rear-wheel drive competitor to the Genesis coupe; only front-wheel drives.

Standard on the coupe is a 6-speed manual transmission, but the car I drove was the 3.8-liter V-6 with the optional 6-speed automatic with paddle shifters. The car also had the optional 19-inch wheels with summer tires and a Brembo brake system with 13.4-inch ventilated rotors. Eighteen-inch wheels are standard.

And when it comes to safety, everything is standard, including six airbags, stability and traction control, anti-lock brakes with electronic brake force distribution, brake assist, active front head restraints and a tire pressure monitoring system.

Not yet rated for safety, the coupe with the smaller turbocharged engine is rated at 21 miles per gallon of regular unleaded gas in city driving and 30 mpg on the highway. The 3.8-liter test coupe had a base price of $31,000, and had amenities like leather, heated seats, a power sunroof, proximity key with pushbutton start, Bluetooth, power everything, automatic climate control and heated mirrors.

Miles Johnson, the project PR manager for the Genesis coupe, said preliminary results show the coupe is selling well thus far. The company expects to sell 10,000 to 12,000 units in the United States this year, he said.