Hyundai’s luxury car brand Genesis is preparing to electrify its first SUV, the GV70. We should point early on that it’s not clear though if this is a fully-electric model (as our spies suggest) or a plug-in hybrid model, as it’s lacking any stickers we usually see on electrified prototypes of either kind in Europe. We’ll remind you that Genesis recently trademarked the eGV70 moniker, along with a bunch of other “e” names.
Spied undergoing testing in Germany, the Korean SUV will look slightly different than the regular GV70, with a modded grille and new bumper design with smaller side air intakes.
Last year was supposed to be the breakout year for Genesis in the United States, but due to the coronavirus pandemic, it had to delay the launch of its long-awaited GV80 and the latest-generation G80. The automaker expects 2021 to be very different.
Dealership lots started to receive the GV80 in December and in the first-quarter, the facelifted G70 sports sedan will touch down. What’s more, the GV70 compact crossover is set to arrive in the middle of the year and Genesis will also unveil its first all-electric vehicle before the end of 2021.
Auto News notes that throughout 2020, Genesis dealerships saw their inventories of the G80 dwindle. The company’s sales dropped by 23 per cent to 16,384 vehicles, but that hasn’t deterred Genesis Motors North America chief executive Mark Del Rosso who believes sales will double this year.