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Pre-owned deal alert: Hyundai Genesis

Hyundai used to make really crappy cars: horrible to drive, horrible build quality, and unreliable. Any sales person that sold Hyundais in the early 2000s can regale you with a story that goes like this: "I was delivering a brand new Hyundai to a customer and _____________ broke, but I told the customer _______________ and the customer brought the car home anyway. Selling those pieces of crap required true salesmanship. Hyundai knew its products would not sell without a competitive edge, so it offered one of the best warranties in America: 5 years/60,000 miles bumper to bumper and 10 year/100,000 miles on the powertrain. At the time most consumers viewed that warranty as a necessity; they felt they would not buy a Hyundai without the best warranty in America. All of that changed in 2008 with the debut of the Hyundai Genesis sedan. Everyone thought a luxurious Hyundai was impossible until they saw and drove the vehicle. The design was subdued yet elegant, the interior was not world-class but was above average, the ride was comfortable and quiet, and its steering was acceptable. The Genesis sedan is powered by a 4.6-liter, 375-horsepower V8 or a 3.8-liter, 290-horsepower V6. Both of these engines were smooth and propelled the car to 60 in under six seconds. The Genesis was not better than a Lexus or a Mercedes. But it was a great value: The starting price was $34,000 for a V6 base and topped out well under $50,000 if you got the V8 and tech package. Even so, Hyundai knew people might not plunk down $40,000 for a Hyundai, so they leased them out at really aggressive numbers. A no-money-down lease on the Genesis was around $450 a month during the darkest days of the recession. I was told the dealers were leasing them out for around $350 a month. Which brings us to today, when the market is flooded with tons of lease returns. A used Hyundai Genesis is an even better value. There are a good number of 2013 models with under 45,000 miles on the odometer for under $20,000; the average price is at $18,500. Assuming the vehicle was leased in 2013, you would still get at least two years and 20k miles on the bumper-to-bumper and at least five years of powertrain warranty with the car. Most of these lease return models come with power everything, leather, sunroof, upgraded sound system – most of what you expect in a luxury car. Some are more aggressively priced than others.

Genesis' decision to build the Electrified GV70 in America is a sign of things to come

As Steely Dan famously sang, they call Alabama the Crimson Tide. Here in Montgomery, we’re knee-deep in a Green Tide thatÂ’s transforming the business of building and selling cars. The high-style Genesis Electrified GV70 emerging from Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama (HMMA) is the first Genesis built outside South Korea. ItÂ’s only the second made-in-America EV from a foreign-based automaker, after the Volkswagen ID.4 whose Tennessee production kicked off in July.  Get ready for many more. Spurred by the Inflation Reduction Act — whose final interpretations and outcomes remain in Washingtonian flux — automakers foreign and domestic are scrambling to onshore EV-and-battery production to boost American jobs and security, as a condition to securing lucrative tax incentives for manufacturers and consumers. Beginning in 2024, qualifying for EV credits may even require sourcing a hefty percentage of minerals and other battery materials from America or approved trade partners, a list that conspicuously does not include China or Russia. As things stand, that sticking point could make a vast number of 2024 EVs ineligible for purchase credits; though leasing a vehicle may still earn dealers a $7,500 commercial credit that they could pass along to consumers, as most currently do for EV lessees.  The electric version of GenesisÂ’ most-popular SUV is the avatar of Hyundai MotorÂ’s $10 billion American EV investment, which is expected to foster up to 8,000 good-paying jobs. Even thatÂ’s a fraction of what Atlas Public Policy estimates to be $128 billion in industry-wide investment in AmericaÂ’s EV, battery and recycling capacity through 2030 alone. HyundaiÂ’s planned onshore footprint includes a new battery factory northwest of Atlanta, and a $5.5 billion EV factory near Savannah that aims to produce Hyundai, Kia and Genesis EVs beginning in 2025. Beginning that year, Genesis says every new model introduced will be an EV, with no fossil-fuel option. And Genesis plans to phase out gasoline-powered models entirely by 2030, a similar timeline to luxury brands including Volvo and Cadillac. In Alabama, where Hyundai also builds the Elantra, Sonata, Santa Fe and Santa Cruz, an Electrified GV70 is hoisted onto a lift for the final stop on its 16-hour assembly journey.

Hyundai's Genesis G90 caught totally uncovered

It seems weird to type "Genesis" without "Hyundai" in front of it – unless we're referring to the band, of course, which we aren't. What we have here is the first car that'll launch under Hyundai's new premium brand, officially called Genesis. This is essentially the replacement for the Equus, and when it reaches the States, it'll be called G90. The G90 clearly makes strong use of Hyundai's "Athletic Elegance" design language, and looks like a more premium version of the existing Genesis sedan. There's a long hood, hexagonal grille, and vertically oriented taillamps that flow down the rear fascia. Judging by these low-res spy shots, we like what we see – even if, from some angles, it looks strangely familiar. Genesis (the brand) launches next month in Hyundai's home market. Following the G90, the Genesis sedan as we currently know it will move to G80 nomenclature, and a midsize, rear-wheel-drive sedan – G70 – will follow. A luxury SUV and sport coupe will round out the premium lineup. Head over to Korean site Bobaedream.co.kr for a view of the G90's rump, as well.