Monday, January 11, 2010

Mixed Feelings: The Hyundai Genesis Coupe

A lot of recent awards here considering the car is new for 2010. I saw one of these on campus today and one thing caught me off guard; i liked it. The way it sounded, the way it looked, the way it moved. It's a whole new animal from a company that i have a deep-rooted despise for. Hyundai has always been known for their unappealing, ugly, and not so economic econo-boxes. Ever heard the song "Gold-Digger"? Even in main stream music, Hyundai catches a bad rap. So what's the difference? Money. After 63 years as a legitimate car company, Hyundai has made enough money on those little crap sleds to pay for the R and D to move in the direction it has in the last year. The Genesis Coupe and Sedan are brilliant. The coupe, designed and piloted by Aussie Rhys Millen, has set world records at pikes peak and is a very solid contender in all forms of motorsport it enters, including time attack, Formula D drift, etc. For a car to do that in it's first year in production means that it is very well designed. FROM THE KOREANS? Since when? Since last year. Watch out for KDM genesis's (or genesi?) and suzuki something or others (because Hyundai has opened the door, suzuki can't be far behind), and KIA's with the same formula. One gripe I have is that out of the box, the Genesis Coupes will be almost identical. There isn't much customization available. Regardless, a shift in the tuner/import scene is upon us, so no more hatin'. Just try to keep up.


Check it out @

http://www.hyundaigenesis.com/

UPDATE: ok, so I have talked to a few people who have driven these more than I have. They say it's very reminiscent of new Corvettes: very quick, very grippy, very dead. They say it has no feedback. Yes that can be fixed with a few major modifications, but this blog is about stock cars, so i have to give it a thumbs down. Sorry Hyundai, sorry Rhys. Just, no.