It’s uncommon for an automaker to do every part proper, however Genesis is in that place proper now. From the G70 sport sedan to the G90 flagship and every part in between, each automobile Genesis makes is stellar. That continues with the 2025 GV80. Just lately refreshed, Genesis’ greatest SUV enters its fourth mannequin 12 months with small impactful tweaks however no main adjustments, as a result of why mess with a successful method?
Full disclosure: Genesis loaned me the GV80 on a whim with a full tank of gasoline. It dealt with Costco runs and college journeys in lovely, quiet luxurious.
For those who’re wanting luxurious with a presence, the GV80 is the way in which to go. Positive, badge snobs will cry over the truth that it doesn’t have a German emblem on the hood, however at this level, I feel we’re just a little previous having to elucidate the winged Genesis badge to folks — although if you happen to’re searching for a “funds” Bentley Bentayga, this actually is the SUV for you. Simply Genesis gross sales over the previous few years exhibits how effectively acquired the model has been. Genesis’ gross sales have elevated yearly since 2018, when it bought just below 10,000 automobiles within the U.S, to just about 69,000 vehicles being bought in 2023. Genesis is aware of it has factor going, that’s why the updates to the GV80 are refined.
You’ll should squint to see the distinction, however the GV80’s entrance fascia has been tweaked for the 2025 mannequin. There’s a brand new grille that Genesis calls the Two-Line Crest, with double the variety of interconnecting lattices making up the mesh sample. Under which can be bigger air intakes together with a wider fake skid plate that ought to have been left off the design, but in addition one way or the other works. On the rear, the deletion of exhaust shops cleans up the rear design.
Whereas the GV80’s design is refreshed, its powertrains are carryover. The GV80 is powered by both a turbocharged 2.5-liter inline-4 with 300 horsepower or a twin-turbo 3.5-liter V6 with 375 hp, the latter of which is what powered my tester. Clients who go for the new-for-2025 GV80 Coupe can get that V6 with an electrical supercharger added on for a complete of 409 hp, however it’s not provided on the usual SUV. My GV80 was a Status AWD trim, which meant it was loaded. Pricing for this trim begins at $80,650 together with vacation spot. The one choice on my tester was its glorious matte Storr Inexperienced exterior paint for $1,500, bringing the entire to $82,150.
Getting behind the wheel of GV80 you’ll rapidly discover it’s a large automobile. The GV80 measures simply over 194.5 inches lengthy, 77.8 inches broad and 67.5 inches tall, making it about the identical size as a Mercedes-Benz GLE and barely shorter in peak than a BMW X5. That’s all emphasised by the large 22-inch wheels that come on the Status trim. You actually really feel the GV80’s 5,148-pound heft when driving, and it’s on no account a sporty SUV. Don’t go searching for again roads to sort out on this factor.
Physique lean will rapidly remind you that you need to decelerate earlier than issues get unhealthy. That isn’t to say it’s as unhealthy as a luxo boat from the Eighties or ‘90s, however it’s sufficient to make you come to your senses and decelerate. The dual-turbo V6 pulls strongly, although, and regardless of the GV80’s measurement and weight, the powertrain has no bother getting the SUV in control; unbiased testing exhibits the GV80 with the twin-turbo V6 can hit 60 mph in just below six seconds. And with practically non-existent turbo lag, passing and merging are a breeze.
The GV80 is finest skilled when calmly cruising alongside so you may benefit from the serene, tranquil inside. Nearly no outdoors noise seeps its means into the cabin. It’s actually one of many quietest vehicles I’ve been in outdoors of a Bentley because of Genesis’ energetic noise management. The system is basically advanced however basically, microphones positioned in every seat actively pay attention and cancel outdoors noise earlier than it reaches passengers in milliseconds. The result’s an inside that Automobile and Driver says is one decibel quieter than a Bentley Bentayga. Much more tech is used to provide the GV80 a buttery easy journey. A know-how referred to as Highway Preview makes use of the automobile’s entrance digital camera to scan the street forward and alter the suspension accordingly. It actually helps decrease the hit you are feeling from going over issues like potholes and pace bumps.
It’s additionally simply plain lovely inside. Genesis’ designers appear to be impressed by residence interiors and trendy artwork. Each floor, coloration, texture and angle is attractive and prime quality. The inside of my tester was completed within the Earth Brown Smoky Inexperienced coloration mixture, which used a stunning inexperienced on the higher half of the doorways, the dashboard, the outer rim of the steering wheel and the decrease half of the middle console, whereas every part else is a heat shade of brown. This contains the Nappa leather-based seats and the microfiber suede headliner. It was topped off by an equally lovely gentle coloured matte wooden end that wouldn’t look misplaced in a house.
The spotlight of the inside is the large 27-inch OLED instrument cluster, which is new within the GV80 for 2025. Whereas different automakers have been releasing comparable curved shows, they’re not one complete seamless display; there’s often some type of clean or false house between the screens. Not so within the GV80. The show is actually one large seamless unit.
Genesis is forgoing what different automakers are doing by burying all controls into the display. There are precise bodily knobs and buttons for the audio and local weather features. Effectively, they’re not buttons per se as they’re haptic, however nonetheless, it’s good to have them be anyplace else however in a rattling menu.
My tester was additionally loaded to the hilt with options. Within the Status trim you get issues like a Bang & Olufsen audio system, a dual-pane panoramic sunroof, three-zone local weather management, soft-close doorways, a head-up show, and heated and cooled entrance and rear seats with energy changes for the second row. It even has a temper curator that lets you calm down with completely different themes that play sounds, present pictures and alter the colour of the inside lighting. Talking of which, the ambient inside lighting of the GV80 is among the coziest I’ve skilled, particularly at night time.
The GV80 isn’t with out faults. One in every of them is the gasoline mileage. A twin-turbo V6 and a 5,000-plus-pound curb weight means this factor is thirsty. Its EPA scores of 16 mpg metropolis, 22 mpg freeway and 19 mpg mixed are V8-like; I averaged one lower than its mixed score at 18 mpg throughout my time with the GV80. What’s wild is that these gasoline economic system numbers aren’t far off of a Bentley Bentayga. Regardless of the GV80 being down two cylinders and 167 hp to the Bentayga’s twin-turbo V8, EPA scores are simply off of the Bentley: simply two mpg higher within the metropolis, one mpg higher on the freeway and and three mpg higher mixed. A scarcity of an even bigger engine or hybrid choice would possibly flip some consumers off as effectively, particularly given the truth that the GV80 performs in a phase the place each can be found elsewhere.
A scarcity of a third-row seat can be an issue. For some motive Genesis relegates the GV80’s obtainable third row to the Superior trim, which sits one rung down from the Status. The shortage of this third row does unlock cargo house, because it has 36.5 cubic toes behind the second row and 71.7 cubic toes with each rows folded. That shrinks to simply 11.6 cubic toes when outfitted with the third row.
So is the GV80 actually nearly as good as a Bentley? Sure and no. As our personal Erin Marquis identified, the 2 SUVs take completely completely different approaches to luxurious. Nothing can beat the Bentayga’s opulence as a result of it’s a Bentley, in fact. And with its $200,000+ price ticket, the Bentley’s presence speaks for itself. That doesn’t imply you need to depend out the GV80. Regardless of being on a lower cost and status stage, the GV80 is superb and must be the envy of each one who drives a German or Japanese luxurious automotive. Its sensible mixture of luxurious, efficiency, consolation and high quality matches or beats what its rivals are doing, for much less cash and with a wonderful guarantee on high of that. For being a fledgling model in a stacked phase, it’s wild that the GV80 actually is that this good, and as time goes on, Genesis will most likely make it even higher.
