Hot Take: Genesis Makes Better Cars Than Lexus – Prove Me Wrong

Taking multi-million (and sometimes billion) risks is something that not many companies are willing to do anymore. For most automakers the plan is simple: launch as many EVs as possible, and have a crossover present in most segments and some niches. Not many believed that a newcomer like Genesis could pose a threat to the likes of some of the biggest premium players in the market, but here we are, a little over seven years after the Hyundai-owned brand was founded, and they are wowing the crowd.

Sales-wise, they’re not really up there with the big players, holding a market share of less than one point in the United States, but their lineup is very fast, comprising premium sedans, wagons, and crossovers, some of which do sport electrification. Realistically speaking, it will be a while until Genesis is capable of throwing a big punch at its German rivals, whose lineups are vaster, and they are constantly expanding, but they are already a threat to Nissan’s and Toyota’s luxury car brands. And after some debate in the office, we came to the conclusion that they’re definitely a better choice over Lexus, whose portfolio does feature certain aging vehicles, some which have been around even before Genesis existed as a brand.

One such model is the IS, which will soon turn ten, albeit with constant updates, including the facelift it received back in 2020. The equivalent machine in Genesis’ lineup is the G70, offered in two body styles, sedan and estate. Their business proposal includes the G80, as well as the G80 Electrified which, despite its name, is a battery-electric car and their first-ever EV.

It’s a challenger to the likes of the Lexus ES, which is slightly smaller, and does not offer an all-quiet variant. As for the flagship proposal as far as the passenger car is concerned, it is the G90. This model has often been referred to as the Korean Mercedes S-Class. It goes up against the five-year old LS, and it is offered in a long wheelbase alternative too. We cannot end this paragraph without mentioning the superb LC, though.

Genesis’ naming scheme is quite simple once you get used to it, and it carries over to the crossover proposals too. These are pretty much named just like the equivalent sedans, albeit with a ‘V’ added to their monikers. The family here is made of the GV60, GV70, and GV80, and it also includes an EV variant of the premium compact one.

The balance tilts in favor of the Korean company in terms of upper-spec proposals, as their GV70 is slightly bigger than the Lexus RX, although the Japanese model is newer, being one year old, whereas the Genesis one entered production in 2020. The GV70 has the NX in its sights. From here on, it’s Lexus dominating the smaller segment, with the UX, and Genesis the upper one, with the GV80 flagship model that guns for the BMW X5 & co.

Besides these, the GV90 (Electrified) is rumored to launch this year, with a similar footprint to the Hyundai Ioniq 7 and Kia EV9, with which it will share several parts. The GV80 will soon get a Coupe variant to go after the likes of the BMW X6 and Mercedes GLE Coupe, and the beautiful X Convertible Concept is reportedly heading to production. That’s definitely not all, because they have other vehicles in the pipeline. Moreover, in order to stay ahead of the fast-moving industry, they have pledged to become an EV-only company from 2025. Ten years later, they plan on achieving carbon-neutrality.

Anyone who knows a thing or two about new cars can tell you that Genesis is ahead of the game in comparison not only to Lexus, but to Infiniti too. In terms of build quality, Mercedes could learn a thing or two from them, and BMW should take lessons about big grille designs, and how to make them look good.

Audi, on the other hand, should steal some of their ideas on how to design minimalistic cabins, and Jaguar, well, them and Cadillac should reshuffle and expand their passenger car lineups first. We haven’t forgotten about Range Rover either, which doesn’t exactly make reliable cars, though that's not really a surprise, is it?

As a matter of fact, in a Consumer Reports study, Land Rover came dead last (42) in terms of owner satisfaction, whereas Genesis was on the seventh position. BMW took the higher step of the podium, followed by Subaru and MINI. Lexus was on the fourth spot, Audi on nine, Infiniti on 18, Cadillac on 24, and Mercedes on 26.