2020 Genesis GV80 Makes Stylish New Year’s Eve Entrance

0 0 Editorial Team January 3, 2020 Edit this post

The 2020 Genesis GV80 SUV is the first of two expected crossovers from the Genesis luxury brand.

These official photos show styling that matches the recently facelifted G90 sedan.

GV80 models are expected to go on sale in early 2020, while the smaller GV70 compact SUV will launch in late 2020 or early 2021.

Apparently Genesis had no New Year's Eve plans, so it decided to stay home and release teaser images of its first SUV. We shared some spy photos earlier this month of the new SUV, but now we have official word (and images) from the manufacturer. Called the GV80, it's set to be the first of at least two SUVs from the newish luxury brand. And from what we can see, this one makes good use of the G90 sedan's honeycomb grille and striped headlamps.

The GV80 will be the brand's mid-size SUV offering, going up against entrenched segment leaders such as the Audi Q7, BMW X5, and Mercedes-Benz GLE-class. Based on a rear-wheel-drive platform that it will share with the next-generation G80 sedan, the GV80 will offer all-wheel drive as an option. We expect to find a V-6 under the hood, possibly the twin-turbo 3.3-liter unit from the G80 Sport.

Inside, we can see a simple but leather-lined cockpit with a large infotainment display that sprouts from the center of the dashboard. Burled wood trim, metal accents, nicely integrated ambient lighting strips, and quilted leather seats give the cabin a distinctly upscale appearance.

Genesis says a third row of seats will be available as an option; that's similar to its Mercedes and BMW competitors, which both offer seven-seat layouts if the buyer desires such a thing. The Audi offers the wayback jump seats as standard equipment. To help it gain a foothold in the particularly competitive luxury-SUV segment, we expect a base price around $50,000, which would undercut said rivals by thousands.

The GV80 will go on sale in South Korea first, with an on-sale date to be set as soon as next month; Genesis says the SUV will be available globally (including North America) later in the 2020 calendar year. We expect more details and specifications, as well as a list of standard and optional features, closer to the GV80's on-sale date.