Genesis GV70 long-term test

The car Genesis GV70 2.5T + 8AT AWD Luxury | Run by Darren Moss, deputy digital editor

Why it’s here To show that Genesis can mix with premium rivals at the top end of the large SUV market

Needs to be Luxurious, comfortable, and able to function as a mobile office when needed

Mileage 6078 List price £46,470 Target Price £46,470 Price as tested £60,229 Test economy 24.4mpg Official economy 29.7mpg Dealer price now £37,729 Private price now £33,537 Running costs (excl. Depreciation) Fuel £482.23

14 March 2024 – Talking points

As you might imagine, we talk about cars a lot in the What Car? office. Whether they’re good or bad, our water-cooler chat is as much about what we’re driving as it is about which TV show is worth binge-watching next. And despite having run company cars for the better part of a decade, I’ve not been asked so much about what my car is like as I have with the Genesis GV70.

I think that’s what comes from driving a car from a relatively new brand – people want to know how it squares up to the competition. And after four months and 6000 miles, the answer is rather complicated.

You see, there are some things which the GV70 does far better than its rivals. Its physical rotary dial to control the infotainment system, for example, is far better than the touchscreen setup in the Audi Q5. And while the BMW X3 matches the Genesis in this regard, it misses out on proper dials to control its climate, which my GV70 has. For ease of use, then, my GV70 rules the roost. 

I found Genesis’ own infotainment system easy enough to get along with, but to keep in touch with the office I usually like to use Apple CarPlay, since this reads out Whatsapp notifications from my phone. And in the GV70, the CarPlay integration is only allowed to take up three quarters of the 14.5in screen’s real estate, with the remainder given over to widgets – which, for example, liked to tell me the results of sports teams who I don’t follow. 

Other areas of the GV70’s technology suite worked better. The blind spot cameras, for example, which displayed an image of what was behind me within the instrument cluster as I indicated to change lanes, is one of the best systems of its kind. And while lots of premium cars come with 360-degree cameras to help you park, the GV70’s were crisp and responsive, so I never worried about fitting my car into the tightest spaces.

For my commute to and from the What Car? Office, the GV70’s 2.5-litre petrol engine offered more than enough power, while the car’s relatively light steering helped me to weave through urban traffic and the slick eight-speed automatic gearbox allowed me to get away from junctions quickly.

On faster roads, however, I found I had to work the engine hard to get the best out of it, which in turn generated a fair amount of noise. At least once I was up to speed, the GV70 was impressively quiet, with both wind and road noise kept at bay – if not quite up to the same level of serenity managed by the petrol-engined Q5 I ran a few years ago.

So we come to the elephant in the room – fuel economy. I didn’t expect the GV70 to be a cheap car to run, given its official figure of just 29.7mpg. However, having averaged considerably less than that over most of my time with the car – my economy hovered around 21/22mpg when commuting, before hitting 26mpg on longer motorway trips – it’s still been costlier than I expected.

Perhaps, if I was to run a GV70 again, I could keep costs down by being more restrained with the options list? My car was kitted out with everything from a pack which coated the interior in fine Nappa Leather, to a detachable tow bar. And while the former kept me and my passengers happy – indeed, the quality of the GV70’s materials was a common theme when ferrying friends – I barely used the latter. Besides, being in range-topping Luxury trim, my car had almost every kit need covered to begin with.

The GV70 was practical enough for my needs, even though both the Q5 and X3 can officially fit more luggage into their boots. Indeed, when I took my aged cat, Halo, home for Christmas, the GV70 swallowed her and all of her kit while still leaving plenty of room for passengers and presents.

Overally, I’ve enjoyed living with a car from a relatively new brand – it’s certainly given me plenty to talk about, both good and bad – and while it hasn’t been a financial success, my GV70 has filled the brief for a comfortable large SUV. Plus, when it comes to kick-starting office conversation, nothing can beat it.

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