Hyundai Genesis is beginning to pile on the miles and many of the car’s original critics have mellowed towards it, recognizing that it’s a luxurious and spacious long-distance cruiser that’s also a good value.
This past summer, the Genesis made the 6000-mile round-trip trek from Ann Arbor, Michigan, to Monterey, California, for the annual vintage-car jamboree that takes place on the peninsula. On the way, our travelers, a family of four, decided to spend a couple of days camping in the Black Hills area of South Dakota. This short diversion necessitated adding a tent, sleeping bags, air mattresses, and various camping materiel to the assorted luggage needed for a week’s vacation. Oh, plus a couple of coolers with food and drinks. By the time that lot was jammed in the trunk, there was an overflow of various toys and trinkets that the two young passengers deemed necessary for survival on the road. The commodious back seat looked a little cramped once backpacks, blankets, a Hot Wheels collection, and half a library shared the space with a couple of kids.
Still, there was little whining about the lack of space. (There was plenty about the amount of time spent in the car, but is that really surprising?) The availability of an in-car DVD system would have been nice. Instead, a newly bought power inverter enabled laptop movie viewing, which seemed to keep the youth content for hours at a time.
But there was nearly a disaster after leaving Madison, Wisconsin, en route to California. The stereo completely quit. No amount of playing around with the settings could cause the speakers to produce sound, so we called some Hyundai PR representatives, who eventually talked us through the process of rebooting the system. Apparently, the audio system can get stuck in Bluetooth mode, which is precisely what had happened. The problem occurred again later, but was looked at by the dealer in that case.
Other than that, the car acquitted itself well. It was quiet, easily ran 350 miles between fuel stops (which was generally longer than our passengers could), and was very stable at speed. At times in the middle of nowhere we ran in triple-digit territory, and the Genesis tracked straight and true. Even on the odd occasions when we ran through twisty roads, it was pleasing to drive, although the body control isn’t up there with that of a BMW 5-series. While the ride quality is lumpy in Michigan, we discovered that once you’ve escaped the frost-heaved roads of the Midwest, it is acceptable: The one carsick-prone child never felt ill, even when he had his head buried in a book.
Back home, the Genesis returned to the dealership for a routine service and oil change at 23K miles ($113), as well as a follow-up visit in October to have its winter rubber installed and to have the aforementioned radio issue examined ($11).
Specifications
VEHICLE TYPE: front-engine, rear-wheel-drive, 5-passenger, 4-door sedan
PRICE AS TESTED: $42,050 (base price: $38,050)
ENGINE TYPE: DOHC 32-valve V-8, aluminum block and heads, port fuel injection
Displacement: 282 cu in, 4627cc
Power (SAE net): 375 bhp @ 6500 rpm
Torque (SAE net): 333 lb-ft @ 3500 rpm
TRANSMISSION: 6-speed automatic with manumatic shifting
DIMENSIONS:
Wheelbase: 115.6 in Length: 195.9 in Width: 74.4 in Height: 58.3 in Curb weight: 4119 lb
PERFORMANCE: NEW
Zero to 60 mph: 5.3 sec
Zero to 100 mph: 12.7 sec
Zero to 130 mph: 22.5 sec
Street start, 5–60 mph: 5.7 sec
Standing ¼-mile: 13.8 sec @ 104 mph
Top speed (governor limited): 154 mph
Braking, 70–0 mph: 164 ft
Roadholding, 300-ft-dia skidpad*: 0.84 g
EPA fuel economy, city/highway driving: 17/25 mpg
C/D-observed fuel economy: 21 mpg
Unscheduled oil additions: 0.5 qt
*Stability-control-inhibited.
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