Yahoo Autos Genesis Is Getting Serious About Performance Cars
Korean brand Genesis is entering the land of high performance with its new Magma subbrand, it revealed Monday night before the New York International Auto Show. The automaker disclosed its intent to develop a high-performance Magma version of each vehicle in its product line, showcasing the GV60 Magma Concept in a bold shade of orange. The carroty color, you might remember, is a nod to a previous concept Genesis rolled out in New York last year.
The GV60 Magma Concept is wider and lower than its tamer sibling, with air curtains to improve aerodynamics. Three hollows above the main air deliver cooling to its battery, brakes, and motor and the aero discs on the flow-formed 21-inch wheels chill the brakes.
Genesis Chief Creative Officer Luc Donckerwolke told media at the reveal that his mission since he re-joined the brand in 2020 was to “expand the territory” of the brand. It wasn’t that long ago that Genesis made only sedans, and now the automaker has nine vehicles in the stable, including SUVs. It seems as though Genesis is about to burst at the seams with expansion, as three other Magma vehicles, including the GV80 Coupe Concept, G80 Magma Special and X Gran Berlinetta Concept were also uncovered in New York.
“Everybody said in 2016 and 2017 that Genesis has no future because it has no SUVs,” Donckerwolke said. “Within a couple of years, we have the whole range of SUVs added to the brand. And not only combustion engines but EVs.”
The next step, the designer says, is to add more feeling to the drive, and it has to go deeper than the aesthetics.
“We don’t like the ‘all show, no go’ or the go-fastest rides,” he emphasized. “We want to make sure that what we do is there to increase the performance of the vehicle. We have to find this duality between the great experience: the serenity, the comfort, the refinements of driving a Genesis and at the same time, making more emotion.”
At the same time, Donckerwolke says Genesis didn't want to create something that was too showy.
"It’s not about bragging. It’s not about being vulgar," he says. "It’s almost like wearing the fur coat inside out; you know what you can do and you don’t need to brag about it."
We're looking forward to getting our hands on this one.
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