Recently, Hyundai confirmed the Genesis coupe will be discontinued after the 2016 model year. As of this writing, the company has not announced a sporty, two door replacement, but the new upscale Genesis marque will get a more luxurious coupe.
The Genesis . . . Literally
Hyundai introduced the Genesis coupe to U.S. consumers in 2009 as a 2010 model. It was immediately compared to the Infiniti G37 coupe (which it closely resembled), Nissan 370Z, and other rear-wheel drive cars at the time.
The original Genesis coupe came with a base 2.0 L turbocharged four-cylinder engine with 210 horsepower and 223 lb-ft of torque. The optional engine was a 3.8 L V6 with 306 horsepower and 266 lb-ft of torque. Transmission choices included a standard six-speed manual or an optional six-speed automatic. Hyundai refreshed the Genesis coupe for the 2013 model year, which also introduced a unique but polarizing exterior design. The refreshed Genesis coupe received a big bump in power for the 2.0 L turbocharged four-cylinder engine, which now produced 274 horsepower and 275 lb-ft of torque. Unfortunately, this power bump was not sufficient enough to keep the engine in production as it was dropped from the Genesis coupe in 2014.
The 2016 Hyundai Genesis coupe is powered by an updated 3.8 L V6 which produces 340 horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque. The standard transmission is a six-speed manual, while an optional eight-speed automatic is also available.
The Competition
The rear-wheel drive Genesis competed with other sports coupes like the Scion FR-S and Subaru BRZ twins. It even competed with muscle cars like the Ford Mustang and Chevrolet Camaro. Besides the two American muscle cars, rear-wheel drive sports coupes are not as profitable to manufacturers in the current automotive environment – this was one of the reasons why Hyundai decided to axe the Genesis coupe.
However, the main reason is that Genesis will now be spun off into its own luxury brand.
The Future Genesis
Since the announcement, Hyundai has worked tirelessly to separate the Genesis brand from the mainstream Hyundai nameplate. As a result, the second-generation Hyundai Equus was renamed the Genesis G90 and the original Genesis sedan was renamed the Genesis G80. It just makes sense to drop a non-premium model which shares its name with the new luxury brand, and avoid any confusion between the two.
So for the near future, Hyundai will not have any rear-wheel drive sports coupes, but the Genesis brand will soon get its own two-door luxury coupe.
“A new, more sophisticated and luxurious coupe appropriate for the new Genesis brand is currently under development,” said Hyundai representative Christine Henley in a press release.
We are not sure how this new, luxurious Genesis coupe will look, but if it looks anything like the stunning Vision G coupe concept unveiled last year, then we cannot wait to dry our saliva glands by drooling at it.
*Rahul Raman is the Founder of CARS 360 Mke, an automotive news outlet. He is a regular contributor to Automoblog and the author of our First Look series.
Images and Source: Hyundai
