2021 Genesis GV80 Advanced AWD Review

This week, we take a look at a new entry into the luxury SUV segment, the 2021 Genesis GV80 Advanced package. This is the first entry from Genesis in the SUV arena, and I have to say, the wait was worth it. There will be a smaller GV70 not far behind it.

Exterior

I love the exterior looks of this SUV. There is a huge grill that is reminiscent of a Bentley. There is a sculpted hood, and there are nice chrome accents along the side panels. Dual exhaust pipes come out the back and the 20” alloy wheels are very attractive.

Perhaps my favorite feature is lighting in the front fenders that serve as side blinker and marker lights. They seem to flow from the front LED lights that wrap around.

Powertrain

Under the hood, there is a 3.5-liter V6 with twin turbos putting out a strong 375-horses. It is mated to an 8-speed automatic that has shift paddles. There is also a 2.5 liter turbocharged 4-cylinder available that puts out 300-horses. My tester is all-wheel drive.

Remote Smart Parking Assist

Coolness abounds in the GV80 starting with the key fob. You can hit the hold button on the fob, then move the SUV forward and backward remotely. This would be super handy for backing out of your garage, or when someone parks too close to you, or perhaps just to amaze your friends.

Interior

When you enter the cabin, you get a sense you are in a true luxury SUV. Diamond pleated seats are beautiful, leather materials are everywhere with beautiful two-tone panels and heavy stitching is all around. There are no hard-plastic materials anywhere that I can find.

As you sit behind the heated, power tilt leather steering wheel, there is a vibrant driver display that is configurable. When you hit the start button, you are greeted with beautiful music and terrific graphics from the dash. You also see a vibrant head-up display. Just FYI, the exit music and graphics are equally as enjoyable.

On the gauge cluster, when you turn on your blinker to change lanes either direction, you get a wide-angle camera view from the right side of the gauges to make sure it is safe to change lanes. The center console is surrounded by real wood and houses a rotary shifter, as well as drive modes featuring snow, eco, comfort, custom, and my favorite, Sport mode. There is also an auto hold button which is a feature I truly love.

Also, on the console is a beautiful round dial to operate the 14” touchscreen that sits high on the dash, but it is pretty far away unless you have really long arms. You can scroll through the apps from the dial if you don’t want to reach out to the screen, but I have to say that the dial is a little frustrating. Perhaps I just never got used to it. At the front of the console is a wireless cellphone charger.

There you will find Apple CarPlay or Android Auto, the nav system, stereo settings, and a couple of cool features I love: You can choose Sounds Of Nature to soothe you, there is a quiet mode if the kids are in the back, and there is passenger talk, so you can speak to rear seat passengers from a microphone in the front that amplifies your voice.

Second row passengers will enjoy a power outlet, rear air vents, climate controls, and heated and cooled seats.

My tester is a five-passenger version, but you can get a third-row seat, however, it appears to be very small. Without the third-row, there is a huge amount of cargo area and even more when you use the buttons to fold down the second row seats and there is a nice underneath storage area as well.

Standard Features

This is a luxury SUV, not so much a sporty SUV, so it comes super loaded, with all the latest features including a panoramic moonroof, massaging seats, a terrific rearview camera, a Lexicon 20-speaker stereo, remote start, blind spot monitoring and warning, forward collision alert, and power liftgate.

Ride and Drive

The ride and drive of this SUV is wonderful, it’s super quiet inside, and handling is good. Acceleration was another surprise, this thing will get up and go.

The GV80 will tow 6,000 pounds and the fuel economy, for a large luxury SUV, is good at 18 in town and 23 on the highway.

What You’ll Pay

MSRP is $65,775 and that makes this an exceptional value, especially considering the 10-year/100,000 mile warranty, 3-years of free maintenance, and the concierge service for pickup and delivery when you need service.

Verdict

Sometimes you just know when you are reviewing a true game-changer, and this GV80 is going to be just that.