2025 Genesis GV80 Review: Beautiful looks backed up by true luxury (2024)

Aug 12th 2024 at 6:00AM

Pros: Stunning design; tech-forward and elegant interior; smooth ride; silky V6 engine; excellent driver assistance tech and safety ratings

Cons: Confusing trim structure; four-cylinder is a little raspy; third row is cramped and available in only one version

The 2025 Genesis GV80 enjoys its first substantial update for 2025, and this luxury SUV is all the better for it. Just like before, the GV80 doesn’t portend to be a luxury “performance” SUV; instead, it puts all its energy into being the most luxurious and relaxing option out there. In many ways, Genesis succeeds triumphantly. Its street presence alone is majestic with the large and classy grille matched with the double-line lights you’ll see both front and back. You’ll stand out in a sea of BMW and Mercedes-Benz SUVs, and it arguably looks better than said German rivals.

There isn’t much of a step down when you climb inside and take in the beautiful color options, surprising material choices and its new, pretty OLED infotainment screen. There’s obviously a lot of tech to get acquainted with, but it’s easy to learn, and the sheer scale of the screens doesn't suffocate or overpower the rest of the interior. Now, the GV80's price isn’t as much of a bargain as it was when it launched, but there’s still great value to be had, and there’s very little compromise to be made. Sheer driving dynamics and handling is where Genesis’ competitors still have a leg up, but if you just want an outstanding A-to-B luxury vehicle with space for a small family and all the belongings that come with it, the GV80 has to be on your shortlist.

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What it's like to drive | |

What's new for 2025?

The GV80 goes through a mid-cycle refresh for 2025, bringing small design tweaks outside and big tech updates inside. You can read more about those updates and how they improve the SUV in our first drive review here. A new GV80 Coupe model joins for 2025, as well, but we review that model separately right here.

What are the GV80’s interior and in-car technology like?

The GV80 cabin is just as impressive in person as it is in pictures. It's tastefully unique and genuinely luxurious. Plus, the update for 2025 makes it an even grander sight at first glance.

The dash is significantly revamped this year with a new 27-inch OLED screen encompassing both the instruments and infotainment. It's silky-smooth and crisp, offering wireless Apple CarPlay/Android Auto. We appreciate that Genesis has kept the redundant infotainment control setup featuring both touchscreen and rotary controller on the center console. We also like that Genesis maintains physical controls for volume, tuning and various menu shortcuts, and that the touch-based panel for climate controls looks great and is easy to use. The first owner of every GV80 gets Connected Services complimentary for as long as they own the car, which includes a WiFi hot spot, remote access, post-crash assistance and image capture from surround-view cameras. There’s a fingerprint reader on the console, too, for those who use the available Digital Key to further authenticate their identity.

Genesis went above and beyond with interiorcolorand materials selections. Brown or crème-colored leather seats pair with a distinctive pale forest green on the dash, doors and steering wheel. There’s also a blue option with white seats. If you're not so adventurous, there's a simple all-black and a dark gray with a dark, reddish brown, too.

How big is the GV80?

The GV80 is just a hair longer than the BMW X5, Mercedes GLE and Volvo XC90, while falling 4 inches short of a Lincoln Aviator. It's shorter in height than all of them, however, which combines with some clever design elements to make the GV80 look especially long and sleek.

Despite the lower roof, the cabin doesn't suffer for headroom. There's plenty of it in rows one and two. Second-row legroom isn't as great as you might expect in a three-row crossover, but that's typical of RWD-based models, including the X5 and GLE. The seats are quite cushy and deeply contoured, and recline to a luxurious degree. They can be heated and ventilated.

The third-row seats (above, top right) are exclusively paired with the Advance trim, limiting selection for those in need of extra seating. This certainly curbs its appeal, but it's also not the most usable third-row. Legroom is actually perfectly usable (you don't even have to slide the second-row forward for an adult to fit), but headroom is tight, and it's difficult to reach. The third rows of the XC90 and Aviator are much better – they're also standard.

As for cargo capacity, it can hold the same number of suitcases as the Cadillac XT6, so it’s on the smaller side of three-row luxury SUVs. The five-passenger, two-row GV80s have a rated capacity of 36.5 cubic-feet, while third-row GV80s have just 11.6 cubes when the third row is in place.

What are the GV80’s fuel economy and performance specs?

There are two engines offered, indicated by the names 2.5T and 3.5T.

The base engine is a 2.5-liter turbocharged inline-four, which produces 300 horsepower and 311 pound-feet of torque. All-wheel drive is standard, and an eight-speed automatic is used for both powertrains. The four-cylinder returns an EPA-estimated 19 mpg city, 24 mpg highway and 21 mpg combined.

The 3.5T gets a 3.5-liter twin-turbo V6 good for 375 hp and 391 lb-ft of torque. All-wheel drive is again standard with this engine. Fuel economy is estimated to be 16/22/19 mpg.

What's the GV80 like to drive?

If you're looking to get the GV80 at its finest, go with the 3.5T. Besides its abundant power, every version comes with adaptive dampers that can adjust their firmness based on information from a forward-looking camera. If that sounds impressive, it is, and it works. On cobblestone streets and broken pavement, the GV80 3.5T displayed good bump isolation that was indeed slightly better than the standard suspension version. Both variants seem firmly sprung, with tight control of body motions, although the 3.5T is still able to deliver a plush ride — the standard-sprung version, slightly less so.

The GV80’s precise steering inspires confidence. It's pleasantly weighted, neither over-boosted nor unnecessarily heavy. Overall, this is a highly agreeable chassis setup, and one without a dizzying array of configurability. Not that it's really needed since the various drive modes don’t have a huge impact on the proceedings beyond the Sport mode’s aggressive throttle tip-in, its preference for lower gear ratios and heavier steering.

The base 2.5-liter makes impressive power for a turbo-four, and it's certainly up to the job of moving the big, heavy GV80. It still demands a bit more patience when accelerating up to freeway speeds or executing a two-lane pass. It's also a bit gravelly under full-throttle acceleration. The turbo V6, therefore, is the better choice if you're less concerned with the price of entry or the price of gas. It's a punchy engine with well-metered throttle response, but we wouldn't call the acceleration as strong as the engine's output might suggest. In other words, it has the guts people expect from this segment, but don't expect an AMG rival.

What other Genesis GV80 reviews can I read?

2025 Genesis GV80 First Drive: It's what's inside that counts

Our first drive of the revamped and refreshed 2025 Genesis GV80.

2021 Genesis GV80 First Drive | In the (second) beginning ...

When we first drove this generation of GV80, here's what we thought about this winner of an SUV.

What is the 2025 GV80’s price?

The GV80 starts at $59,050 for the 2.5T base Standard model. The 3.5T V6 starts at $75,150 with the Advanced trim, and is the only version that comes with a third row.

Standard equipment includes 19-inch wheels, LED headlights, a full suite of driver assistance features (see Safety section below), a hands-free power liftgate, five-passenger seating, heated eight-way power front seats, leatherette upholstery, power tilt and telescoping steering wheel, four USB-C ports, wireless Apple CarPlay/Android Auto and the beautiful 27-inch infotainment/digital cluster screen.

The 3.5T Prestige brings in all the extra goodies at $80,650. Its exclusive upgrades include an electronic limited-slip differential, Nappa leather seating, ventilated second-row seats, three-zone climate control, power rear side sunshades, power soft-closing doors and active noise cancelling. This trim allows you to spec the beautiful Vanilla Beige Smoky Green or Earth Brown Smoky Green (just below) interiors, which we can’t recommend enough.

Below, you’ll find all of the various trims and their corresponding prices.

GV80 2.5T Standard: $59,050
GV80 2.5T: $60,050
GV80 2.5T Select: $62,950
GV80 2.5T Advanced: $66,950
GV80 2.5T Prestige: $71,800

GV80 3.5T Advanced: $75,150
GV80 3.5T Prestige: $80,650

What are the GV80’s safety ratings and driver assistance features?

Every GV80 comes with the latest and greatest in Hyundai Group's substantial safety system arsenal. The standard forward collision warning system with automatic emergency braking not only detects pedestrians, but traffic coming from the left and right at intersections. Lane-keeping assist, blind-spot warning w/rear cross-traffic avoidance, safe-exit assist, auto high-beams, a rear occupant alert system and a driver inattention warning system are all standard, as is an advanced adaptive cruise control system with automated lane changes, highway steering assist and a unique AI-based system that learns the driver's driving characteristics and adapts its automated driving to be similar. For us, that puts the systems into their most aggressive settings with the quickest acceleration and closer following distance.

Optional systems include Hyundai's Smart Park assist, parking sensors, a surround-view parking camera and an enhanced blind-spot warning system with cameras that send images from each side of the car into the digital instrument cluster. The latter is an enhanced version of Autoblog's 2020 Tech of the Year.

The 2024 GV80 was named a Top Safety Pick+ by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, the highest rating possible, so there’s a good chance the 2025 model retains that rating when it’s re-tested. Only the headlights and child seat LATCH ease-of-use scored something other than the best, and even then, they were second-best marginal scores. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has not crash tested the GV80.