Hyundai’s luxury brand, Genesis, is relatively new in the marketplace, however, they are shaking up the segment with some great products. They initially started with sedans like the G80, G90, and the G70. However, in today’s market, if you want to be a successful player, you need SUV/CUVs. Genesis first introduced the GV80, which has won numerous awards and much praise from automotive journalists around the world. Their latest offering in the CUV/SUV segment is the compact GV70, a vehicle I reviewed recently and had an absolute blast driving it.

The previous GV70 I reviewed was the top-of-the-line GV70 3.5T Sport+, this time around I had the opportunity to try out a mid-trim version of the CUV with a smaller engine. We spent a week behind the wheel of 2022 Genesis GV70 2.5T Advanced Plus.

Genesis GV70 Canadian Prices

Since I reviewed the Genesis GV70 3.5T Sport Plus late last year, prices have gone up by $500 across all the trims. Now the base GV70 has a starting price of $49,500 and the top of the line 3.5T Sport Plus starts at $76,000. Below are the new prices for all the trims.

Trim	Price
2.5T Select	$49,500
2.5T Advanced	$55,500
2.5T Advanced Plus	$59,500
2.5T Prestige	$63,500
3.5T Sport	$69,000
3.5T Sport Plus	$76,000

Our review GV70 2.5T Advanced Plus had a price of $59,500. These prices include all fees and PDI, you just need to add your local taxes.

Genesis GV70 Engine Specs & Driving

The engines offered on GV70 include a turbocharged 2.5-liter 4-clyinder and a 3.5-liter V6. Our review car was equipped with the turbocharged 2.5-liter 4-cylinder, which produces 300 horsepower at 5,800 rpm and 311 pound-feet of torque between 1,650 – 4,000 rpm. The GV70 from our previous review was equipped with a twin-turbo 3.5-liter V6, producing 375 horsepower at 5,800 rpm and 391 pound-feet of torque between 1,300 – 4,500 rpm. Both of these engines are also found on the G80 and GV80. Power is sent to all-four wheels via an 8-speed automatic transmission.

I’m familiar with the 2.5-liter turbocharged engine, as I reviewed the G80 and GV80 with this engine last year. I was extremely impressed with the amount of power produced by this engine and wondered why you’d need the larger engine. The GV70 is a smaller vehicle than the vehicles I mentioned, so naturally it should be a more exciting experience.

The GV70 2.5T doesn’t disappoint; 300 HP and 311 lb.-ft of torque were supercar figures not too long ago, now you can have a family hauler with this much power and all this power from a 4-cylinder engine. We’ve come a long way in terms of engine advancements.

The GV70 2.5T is quite a fun vehicle to drive, it takes off quickly from standstill and the power just keep building as you accelerate. The 8-speed transmission shifts gears quickly and smoothly. The GV70 has various on-road driving modes like Eco, Comfort, and Sport. The Sport mode is the most fun, the transmission holds gears the longest and you get to feel all the ponies this little engine produces. The steering weight is much heavier. The suspension doesn’t change in this mode, as only the top trim gets the adaptive suspension. I did notice the adaptive suspension was more comfortable in our previous review car. However, the suspension on the GV70 2.5T Advanced Plus is comfortable on most road surfaces. You do notice a rougher ride on bumpy surfaces, but I don’t think many people will be taking these vehicles off paved roads.

I mostly drove in the Eco mode in the city and on the highway, I felt this mode had more than enough power for normal city/highway driving. In this mode, the engine is mostly driving at low rpms and the highest gear appropriate for fuel savings, so you need to give it a bit of extra motivation to pass slower vehicles. In the Sport mode, the engine is kept at much higher rpms and lower gear; the GV70 accelerates quickly and passing happens without any issues.

The steering feel is soft in Eco and Comfort modes, but it feels quite heavy and sporty in the Sport mode. Unfortunately, there isn’t much feedback, which is the norm in a majority of modern cars.

The GV70 2.5T is rated at 10.7/8.4/9.7 liters/100 kilometers in city/highway/combine driving.

Genesis GV70 2.5T Exterior & Interior

I personally liked the styling on the GV70 3.5T, and it doesn’t change much on the 2.5T. The biggest difference is the smaller wheels on the 2.5T, which are 19” vs 21” on the 3.5T and the exhaust tips. While the 3.5T Sport+ had massive round exhaust tips, the 2.5T has pentagonal openings with the round exhaust tip hidden inside.

The interior is also the same on the smaller engine (less expensive) GV70. However, our 2.5T Advanced+ was equipped with brown (non-Nappa) leather. You can choose between a wide variety of interior leather colors, depending on the trim and exterior color. I quite like the “Pine Grove Leather” (not equipped on our car), which looks green. I’m not sure how it would look in person, but in pictures it looks quite interesting. The other difference is in the trim on the doors and center console. I don’t really know what material it is, but it’s kind of funky and different. Our previous review GV70 had this material in carbon fiber, which looked quite good with the read interior.

The 3.5T had the digital 3D gauge cluster, which is not available on the 2.5T. The 2.5T comes with half analogue and half digital gauge cluster. The left side of the gauge cluster is analogue and has the rpm gauge, the right side can be customized a bit. The digital portion of the gauge cluster also displays video from the blind spot when the left or the right turn signal is on.

Another difference is the difference between the steering wheels. Our review car came with the 2-spoke steering wheel, which was also found on the GV80. Personally, I’m not a big fan of this steering wheel design, it looks like it belongs in an “old man” car. The steering wheel on our previous review car had an addition spoke at the 6 o’clock position, which made all the difference in the world, giving it a sporty look.

The interior is extremely luxurious, all the surfaces are soft touch and look great. The interior is comfortable and quiet, the engineers at Genesis have done a great job at reducing noise. The GV70 is on par with, if not better than, the European competition when it comes to luxury, quiet, and comfort.

Convenience, Tech, & Safety Features

Our review 2022 Genesis GV70 2.5T Advanced Plus is the mid-trim, however it still offers a long list of tech, safety, and convenience features. Below is a list of some of the items you can expect in a mid-trim Genesis GV70.

LED Headlights, Taillights, Turn Signals
Heated powerfolding mirrors
Power Folding Auto-dimming mirrors
Full LED Headlights
Automatic Headlights
High Beam Assist
LED Center High Mount Stop Lamp (CHMSL)
LED Daytime Running Lights
LED Taillights
LED Outside Mirror Turn Signal Indicators
Rain-Sensing Wipers
12-way Power Driver Seat including 4-way Power Lumbar
8-way Power Passenger Seat
Heated & Ventilated Front Seats
Heated Rear Seats
Android Auto & Apple CarPlay
18 1055 Watts Speaker Lexicon audio system
4 USB Slots
Leather Wrapped Heated Steering Wheel with Paddle Shifters
Smart Cruise Control with Stop & Go
Wireless Charging Pad
Power Windows with Auto Down/Up with Pinch Protection
Proximity Key with Push-Button Start
Rearview Camera with Parking Guidelines
Surround View Monitor
Head-up Display
Power Hands-free Smart Liftgate w/ Auto Open
Vehicle Stability Management (VSM)
Electronic Stability Control System (ESC) with Traction Control System (TCS)
Anti-lock Braking System (ABS)
Brake Assist (included with ESC)
Hill-Start Assist Control (HAC) and Downhill Brake Control (DBC)
Parking Distance Warning – Front/Rear
Blind-Spot Collision-Avoidance Assist (BCA)
Rear Cross-Traffic Collision-Avoidance Assist (RCCA)
Lane Departure Warning (LDW)
Lane Keeping Assist (LKA)
Lane Following Assist (LFA)
Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist
Driver Attention Warning (DAW)

Final Thoughts on the Genesis GV70 2.5T

I was quite impressed with the GV70 we reviewed a few months ago. Although our current review car wasn’t as loaded and came with the smaller engine, I’m still as impressed with it. It is a great looking car (subjective matter), it’s luxurious and comfortable, and the turbocharged 2.5-liter engine is more than capable. You also get some bonuses like:

5 year/100,000 km complimentary scheduled maintenance
Genesis at Home: for service/maintenance, a Genesis representative will pick up your GV70 from your home or workplace and bring it back once the service is done; leaving you another Genesis vehicle
5 year/100,000 comprehensive warranty
5-year 24/7 roadside assistance

If you’re looking to saving money over the European competition, in addition to the above benefits, you’ll be saving thousands of dollars over a similarly equipped European CUV.