Following a few weeks of teasers and a preview earlier last month, Genesis has now finally unveiled its first EV model, the GV60 in full, including all the specifications for its electric innards. And as a premium fully-electric SUVs these days, everything in the document all sounds fairly standard… well, except one thing – ‘drift mode’.
Drift mode is far from being a new concept by any means. Now that hot hatches have mostly moved on to all-wheel drive propulsion, it’s normal to see it being advertised on these performance-oriented cars, using software and mechanical trickeries to push more torque to the rear wheels to give you more degrees of freedom in the lateral direction.
But on a premium SUV that’s supposed to go up against the likes of the Lexuses and Mercedes-Benzs? Well, we can’t help to feel a little… amused. OK, to be fair, the Kia EV6 GT (which also rides on the same e-GMP platform) also comes with the same feature, but then again, it’s not a Genesis, is it?
Watch the Mercedes-AMG A 45 S and the VW Golf R battle it out on track with their drift mode!
The premium carmaker from Korea says that the drift mode is for those “who are looking for a more dynamic experience”, and enabling the drift mode will allow for more “athletic driving by optimising distribution of the driving power and braking system” – everything people are looking for when they buy a Genesis SUV.
Anyway, we should digress. The Genesis GV60 will be offered in three variants, starting with the entry-level Standard RWD that gets a single electric motor at the rear axle with 228 hp and 350 Nm.
The next step up is the Standard AWD, which gets an additional motor in front for a combined system output of 318 hp and 605 Nm, and at the top of the pyramid is the Performance AWD model, with two 218 hp motors for a combined output of 435 hp and 605 Nm.
Aside from the drift mode, the Performance AWD variant also comes with a “Boost Mode” which gives it a boost up to maximum performance (489 hp, 700 Nm) for 10 seconds – useful when you need to race a fuel-guzzling sports car at the traffic light.
On that note, the Performance AWD variant is capable of a century sprint time of four seconds flat with this mode enabled.
Genesis says that all three variants of the GV60 are equipped with the same 77.4 kWh lithium-ion battery, offering up to 451 km of range on the base variant, 400 km on the Standard AWD, and 368 km on the Performance AWD. We should note that these figures are based on the Korean test cycle, tough – EPA and WLTP numbers aren’t available yet.
For charging, the Genesis GV60 supports AC charging up to 11 kW, and DC fast charging up to 350 kW, which means at a compatible fast charging station, the batteries can charge from 10-80% in just 18 minutes. Similar to the EV6, the GV60 also supports Bi-directional charging at up to 3.6 kW, effectively making the car a driveable power bank during emergency situations.
The stunning Genesis X concept blends classic sports car design with modern tech. Check it out here!
As usual, the Genesis GV60 is equipped with the whole nine yards of advanced driver assistance features, with the notable ones being the Navigation-Based Smart Cruise Control, Intelligent Speed Limit Assist, Highway Driving Assist 2, and Remote Smart Parking Assist.
But this being a Genesis, and an EV at that, there’s also a whole suite of tech in the interior, such as Road Active Noise Control (ANC-R), Ergo Motion seats (with seven air pockets for a massage-like function), and a 17-speaker Bang & Olufsen sound system to make your journeys as comfortable as possible. Oh, and the car can also be locked and unlocked using only your face, just like your fancy new smartphones.
Now, if we circle back to the drift mode again, doesn’t that just feel a bit… out of sync with the rest of the comfort and prestige-oriented equipments? No? Well, just us then…
GALLERY
