Yahoo Autos Our 2017 Genesis G90 Has Proved Itself to Be the Perfect Road Tripper
WHAT WE LIKE: For Hyundai, the Genesis G90 is very much its Lexus LS400, a meaty first foray into the realm of luxury sedans that Genesis-which began with only five employees in Korea-obviously hopes will undercut the established players.
For its mission, Hyundai has armed this car to the teeth. It is exquisitely detailed inside-our car's off-white interior is especially charming, although predictably dirty-and both the wood accents and the faux-suede headliner demand to be touched. Also in Lexus LS fashion, the car is astonishingly quiet at all speeds. You'll try to start an already-running engine, and at 80 mph the cockpit encourages gentle conversation atop classical music from the lovely Lexicon 17-speaker stereo. All so soothing. The G90 is an accomplished long-distance cruiser, a 1000-mile-per-day tourer that taxes its driver little, with a trunk big enough to hold most of the Sopranos' cousins.
For even deeper coverage of the Genesis G90, view our Buyer’s Guide in-depth review.
We ordered our G90 with the 365-hp twin-turbocharged 3.3-liter V-6. Acceleration is beyond adequate-zero to 60 mph in 5.2 seconds, which is surprising for a car that weighs 4717 pounds and threatens to inflict coast-to-coast furrows on America's asphalt. The consensus so far is that the optional 420-hp V-8 is unnecessary. The eight-speed automatic performs its chores in efficient transparency such that paddle-shifting will never occur to you. Sightlines are open in all directions. The vast rear seat qualifies as limousine-quality.
The price for the G90 3.3T RWD Premium is $69,050. At this point, 30,000 miles into its stay with us, that seems bargainlike, although it's a sum that would also put you into a Mercedes-Benz E-class, meaning your neighbors would know what a cool car you're driving. Still, as Buyer's Guide senior editor Rich Ceppos noted, "This is a more convincing luxury car than either Cadillac or Lincoln has managed."
WHAT WE DON’T LIKE: The G90's shifter is apparently a collaboration between Satan and Comedy Central. You pull back for drive, but for how long shall you hold it there to effect a gearchange? Simultaneously, your foot must be depressing the brake, but, again, for how long before a shift is permitted? No matter where you push or pull the lever, it returns to its central "no gear at all" location, attached to nothing but someone's imagination at the factory in Ulsan, Korea. Finding neutral at the start of an automatic car wash is like cracking an old Soviet code. Then, to add to the misery, park is not on the shifter at all but is a push button in front of the lever. To engage park, you must snake a finger up and around the lever, a task you cannot perform from muscle memory. You'll have to look. Here again we have a primary control whose operation has been designed for the purpose of being different. It's different all right, as in gratuitously complicated.
The G90 doesn't earn any handling kudos because it doesn't try. The suspension simply feels unerringly well-oiled and supple. The steering is numb, and the Sport mode's only effect is to add a smidgen of steering weight and allow upshifts at higher revs. Unfortunately, the car defaults to Smart mode at startup, so you're left to retoggle to your desired mode at the start of every drive.
Our G90 came with Continental ContiProContact tires, size 245/45R-19 in front, 275/40R-19 in back. That the G90's ride is so plush given the aggressive rubber is downright amazing. Even though these tires are rated as M+S, they are simply dreadful in mud and worse in snow. (We did fit a set of Bridgestone Blizzak LM-32 tires for winter.)
Other quirks: The traction control is far too aggressive. The Genesis logo resembles Chrysler's, and the car's nose recollects a Chrysler 200's. The G90 ought to be structurally stiffer, which is especially noticeable as the car accelerates on corrugated surfaces. Imagine, here, a dog shaking water off its back. Of course, when you build a car that is 204.9 inches long, it wants to twist.
WHAT WENT WRONG: At 20,763 miles, the G90's V-6 mysteriously quit but restarted without complaint, then repeated that unhappy performance at 22,595 miles. Shortly thereafter, we found that one of the battery cables was not properly tightened to its respective terminal. After tightening them we've had no more AWOL ignition. And throughout the car's 30,000-mile life so far with us, there's been a mild front-end shimmy that feels like a tire imbalance but isn't. It's more likely a brake-rotor issue, but our complaints so far have not warranted replacements.
WHERE WE WENT: Our G90 is such a capable and cushy grand tourer that it fell into heavy vacation rotation. It arrowed through Illinois, Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, Wisconsin, Michigan's Upper Peninsula, and then crossed the country to inhabit southwestern Montana at John Phillips's Double J Cat Ranch. Out there, the car's low ground clearance had it daily scraping along uneven gravel roads but with apparently no harm. The G90 then continued to Oregon for a coastal vacation in Newport, including a whale watch, followed by a quick trip to a peacock farm in Damascus. Then-and, really, this next bit is true-the G90 carried two of us to a goat-yoga session in Oregon City, where the goats stand on one's spine to administer a "meditative massage" while inflicting hoofprint welts. You pay $35 for that.
Back in Montana, we attempted to transit the in-the-clouds Beartooth Highway in mid-June, where the Continental tires dealt so poorly with snow that the attempt was canceled by Phillips. Also by the Montana Highway Patrol. Also by a snowplow driver who was suffering a major psychological event.
Months in Fleet: 15 months Current Mileage: 30,675 miles
Average Fuel Economy: 22 mpg
Fuel Tank Size: 21.9 gal Observed Fuel Range: 480 miles
Service: $183 Normal Wear: $0 Repair: $0
Damage and Destruction: $50
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