Genesis G70 Review & Prices

Genesis is Hyundai’s luxury brand, and this G70 saloon is Genesis’ idea of a BMW 3 Series rival. It’s a conventional four-door saloon, powered only by a petrol engine, in a market that is looking more and more towards hybrid, electric, and SUV models. In that, it’s a bit like its namesake — Genesis the band, still plugging the prog-rock trail when everyone else has moved on to Taylor Swift. 

That said, as part of the Hyundai group, Genesis is backed by serious cash and serious engineering expertise, so the likes of the BMW 3 Series and Mercedes C-Class, and Audi’s new A5, really need to watch out. 

Unlike Genesis (the band’s) somewhat far-out seventies style, the G70 takes a fairly conservative approach to its styling. It’s a very traditional three-box saloon shape, but for all that it’s fairly simple, it’s still very handsome. Look at those lovely bisected headlights and the handsome grille. It’s classy and understated, rather than bland, and you can ramp up that style with dark-finished alloy wheels and bright red Brembo brake callipers.

The Genesis G70’s cabin is also pretty conventional, but again it’s handsome and well-thought out, rather than just plain and ordinary. The layout is sensible, so you can find everything easily, there’s a high-quality finish to everything, and even basic models get leather trim (even if it’s man-made leather, rather than from a cow).

Group Test: Audi A4 vs BMW 3 Series vs DS 9 vs Genesis G70 vs Mercedes C-Class

You get some decent tech, too, even if the 10.3-inch touchscreen is looking a little old-fashioned compared to the latest BMW and Mercedes cabins. The driver’s digital instrument panel has been upgraded from the old 8.0-inch screen to a whizzy new 12.3-inch version, although that’s an expensive option. All the tech looks good and works well, but again a BMW iDrive system is more up to date. 

Where the G70 really struggles is in terms of practicality. It’s pretty small in the back seats, and the boot — as standard — has less space even than a plug-in hybrid BMW 3 Series with just 330 litres. That’s well behind the best-in-class, and never mind comparing it to the gargantuan likes of a Skoda Superb (which although cheaper to buy should be a genuine consideration). 

Sadly, the Genesis G70 can’t make up for all that in the way it drives as it’s just not as good as the German opposition. It’s not as comfortable as a Mercedes C-Class, and it’s not as much fun to drive as a BMW 3 Series, being let down particularly by being too firm over bumps.

At least the Genesis G70 is good in town, where its light steering and decent visibility come into their own, while a 360-degree parking camera is also available, but again it’s a pricey option.

That light steering feels too distant when you take the G70 out on a twisty road, so it never feels as plugged-into the tarmac as a BMW 3 Series. Added to which, there’s only one engine choice at the moment — a 2.0-litre turbo petrol with 245hp, which is fine, but when others can offer six-cylinder options and plug-in hybrids, or even fully electric models, the G70 feels a bit stuck in the past. Like Genesis (the band). That single petrol engine is also thirsty, struggling to break the 40mpg barrier, but the standard eight-speed automatic gearbox is smooth and refined. 

The Genesis G70 might not be up there with the very best saloons, but at least it does bring a dash of style, and something different to a class that’s increasingly all about Audi, BMW, and Mercedes. A shame that it’s not more practical, nor sharper to drive. 

However, Genesis does have one big thing to offer potential G70 owners — whenever it needs a service, it will be collected from your doorstep and dropped back to you when it’s ready, all as part of the standard customer package. Try getting a BMW dealer to do that…

Looking to get a great price on the Genesis G70? Check out the latest Genesis lease deals available through Carwow, or browse used G70s from our network of trusted dealers. You can also take a look at other used Genesis models, and when it’s time to sell your current car, Carwow can help with that, too.

At first glance, the G70 looks very well priced. It costs about the same as a basic BMW 320i, yet has more power, a longer standard warranty, and that collect-for-service gimmick. However, there are some items — such as the big digital instrument screen — that are part of an expensive tech pack, which others offer as standard. It does at least undercut the Mercedes C-Class by a few thousand pounds, but Audi’s slick-looking new A5 saloon is priced almost as sharply as the G70, and will offer much more variety and practicality.

A low rear-wheel drive saloon should be fun, but the Genesis G70 doesn’t stack up to German rivals. It’s good around town, though 

In town

The Genesis G70 has quite light steering, and forward visibility is good, so guiding it around town presents no major bother at first. The eight-speed automatic gearbox shifts smoothly, and doesn’t do that annoying hesitation thing that plagues Audi models, so pulling out of junctions and joining roundabouts is much easier.

Over-the-shoulder visibility isn’t great though, so you’ll want to specify your G70 saloon with the optional — and expensive — Innovation Pack, which includes a 360-degree parking camera as well as handy blind-spot monitoring. 

There are standard-fit adaptive suspension dampers, which do help to ease things over bumps if you put them in Comfort mode, but the G70’s ride can still become too crashy and noisy over big bumps. 

On the motorway

Aside from that tendency to stumble over bumps, the G70 is pretty good on the motorway. Wind noise is kept well down, although there’s too much road roar for comfort. The 2.0-litre turbo engine has plenty of power for catching up with fast motorway traffic, and for dealing with long inclines, but you’ll pay for that with too many visits to the pumps as it’s not the most economical thing. 

On a twisty road

There’s a Sport mode for the Genesis G70’s adaptive suspension, which definitely makes it feel more ‘hunkered down’ in corners, and which also adds some extra weight to the steering. Sadly, that extra weight doesn’t make the steering actually feel any better, and it’s too vague around corners for the G70 to be any fun. A BMW 3 Series makes mincemeat of it. That middling suspension quality doesn’t help either, especially if you hit a mid-corner pothole. It’s not a terrible car — the steering’s sharp enough to get that pretty nose turned into a corner briskly — but compared to the German opposition, it’s just not up to scratch.

The G70 is comfortable and well-made inside, but it’s nowhere near as practical as it should be

Up front, the Genesis G70 is roomy enough for two tall occupants, but it’s not the most practical when it comes to storage. Next to the gear lever and starter button on the centre console, there are two big cupholders, and in front of the gear lever is an open storage space that’s taken up by a wireless phone charger. There’s storage under the front armrest, but it’s a little bit shallow, and the door bins are on the narrow side. Basically, you can tell that the G70 is a slightly older design — it’s a car that was on sale in the US for a few years before it came to the UK. 

Space in the back seats

Here’s where the Genesis G70 really falls down. None of the BMW 3 Series, Mercedes C-Class, nor Audi A5 are the biggest nor roomiest cars in the world, but they all provide enough space for two six-foot people to sit behind two six-foot people. The G70 just doesn’t. Anyone in the back who’s around average height or taller will struggle for legroom, while the combination of sweeping roofline and thick rear pillars, as well as the bulky transmission tunnel, make the back seat feel even more cramped than it is. Don’t even try to fit a third passenger in the middle of the rear seat — no-one’s going to be comfortable there. The best that can be said for the G70’s rear seats is that at least the cabin quality is as good in the back as it is in the front. 

Boot space

Has Genesis sacrificed rear-seat space in the G70 in order to give it a massive boot? No. No it hasn’t. In fact, the G70 has the tiniest boot in its class, with just 330 litres of space on offer. To put that in context, a standard petrol-powered BMW 320i has a 480-litre boot, while the 330e plug-in hybrid model — even though it has to juggle space for both a petrol tank and a hybrid battery — has more space than the petrol-only G70, with 375 litres. The new Audi A5, in spite of having a smaller boot than the old A4, still manages to monster the G70, with 445 litres of luggage space. We could also mention the latest Skoda Superb — okay, so a Skoda doesn’t have the badge appeal of a Genesis, but for much less cash, the Superb has more than 600 litres of luggage space. 

The Genesis G70’s cabin has great quality, but its tech costs extra

When you first sit in the cabin of the Genesis G70, you’re very likely going to be impressed. Everything is really well-made, and the choice of materials is excellent. If you’re looking for cheap, nasty plastics you’re going to struggle to find them — everything is either glossy and smooth, or soft and squishy, with a smattering of brushed aluminium. As an optional extra, the G70 can be outfitted with rich quilted leather for the seats which makes it look like a junior Bentley inside. 

However, there’s a problem in that to get the G70’s cabin to be at its best, you do have to spend extra. For instance, if you want a fully adjustable electric front seat (including the side bolsters and the cushion length), as well as an electrically adjustable steering wheel, that’s all going to cost extra. So too is the digital instrument pack. As standard the G70 comes with two analogue dials (admittedly handsome analogue dials) with a small digital screen in between them, but if you want the big 12.3-inch instrument screen then that’s part of the very expensive Innovation Pack, which also includes a head-up display, blind-spot monitoring, and surround-view camera.

The 10.3-inch touchscreen in the centre of the dashboard is actually quite simple and logical to use, and the graphics are super-sharp, but the screen itself looks a bit too small and almost like an aftermarket screen compared to what you get in alternatives, and there’s a lack of shortcut buttons to get you to what you need quickly.

However, Genesis deserves major kudos for sticking with proper physical dials and buttons for the climate controls, which are so much easier — and more satisfying — to use than on-screen controls. Alternatives, take note.

The lack of any engine choice — especially the lack of a hybrid or plug-in hybrid — really holds the Genesis G70 back. Average fuel economy is going to work out at, at best, 35mpg when most of its rivals can easily top 40mpg in real-world conditions. It’s going to be expensive to pay Benefit in Kind tax too, if you’re given the G70 as a company car (£249 per month is the starting price) and you’re going to get stung for extra VED road tax, as the G70 has a base price of above £40,000. It’s hard to make those numbers add up, to be honest.

The G70 was tested by Euro NCAP back in 2021, and scored a maximum five-star rating, with an 89% score for adult occupant protection; 87% for child occupant protection, 76% for vulnerable road user protection, and 88% for its electronic safety systems. 

As standard, all G70 versions come with adaptive cruise control, lane keeping assistance, lots of airbags, and emergency calling services. If you want a blind-spot monitor, that’s part of the pricey Innovation Pack.

There are so few G70s around that it’s pretty hard to get a handle on just how reliable they are. However, there are some good indicators. One, the G70 has been on sale elsewhere in the world for some time now, and no horror stories are circulating. Equally, while Genesis didn’t appear in the latest Auto Express Driver Power survey, Hyundai — which owns Genesis — did, and scored very well when it came to reliability and customer satisfaction. Every G70 comes with a standard five-year, unlimited mileage warranty.