2025 Genesis G80 Review: Forget The Hyundai Connection, The Luxury Is Real

The 2025 Genesis G80 is proof that you don't have to have a long history in the luxury game to be very near the top of your class. In the luxury segment, we typically think of brands like Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and Audi as the standard bearers for what's lavish or posh, but the Genesis G80 is a challenger that faces off with the long-standing German rivals by offering impressive dynamics, a long list of standard features, and competitive pricing – and for what it's worth, it does all that in a pretty sleek package.

On the outside, the G80 looks classy and elegant, with new styling cues for 2025. The front grille, both the front and rear bumper, and the updated headlights all help elevate the G80's overall style. On the inside, this trend continues. From the moment you step into the Genesis G80, you get the feeling that you've entered a premium space with high-quality materials. A massive 27-inch screen dominates the dash, surrounded by plenty of thoughtful details.

One of the best parts of driving a luxury sedan like the G80 is getting in every day and enjoying the atmosphere. Daily commutes, long road trips, and everything in-between feel special. SlashGear's own Chris Davies is already on the record praising the G80's interior for embracing a risky and unusual design, and I totally agree with him. Entering the cabin, you immediately notice that the materials, patterns, and various textures all combine to create an upscale experience; the dashboard, the door panels, the center console, and the seats all feel well constructed.

More than just comfortable, it's quiet on the inside on the G80. Stiff winds have been a big part of daily life in southern California lately, but the G80 shrugged them off with ease. There's a pleasant calm to the interior, with very little wind or road noise making their way into the cabin. The tires make a bit of a hum at highway speeds, but nothing that can't be drowned out with the slightest bit of music or conversation. 

Along with a quiet and aesthetically-pleasing interior, the G80 is pretty feature-packed too. It has all the touchscreen real estate and driver aids a German sedan in this class would lead you to expect. The massive 27-inch touchscreen, for example, spans from the driver display all the way across the middle of the dashboard and it provides a sense of cohesion with the single-screen layout. Good font contrasts and high-resolution makes everything on the dashboard easy to see and read, even in the brightest of lights. 

The touchscreen can be controlled via the rotary knob in the center console or by tapping on the screen itself. That said, over the course of a week in the G80, I grabbed at the PRNDL knob more than once when I was going for the touchscreen controller. That would probably happen less over time, as I got used to the car's interior.

Travis Langness/SlashGear

The G80's 18-speaker Bang & Olufsen stereo (which comes standard on the 3.5T) is more than adequate for some high-volume in-car karaoke. Audiophiles may want a bit more clarity and/or volume, but for just about everyone else, it's a premium sound system that does the job. The G80's driver aids are a bit less top-notch, with features like adaptive cruise control and lane-centering needing a bit of additional refinement. This small gripe certainly isn't a deal breaker though.

I try to escape to the mountains as often as possible, and while a luxury sedan might not be the obvious choice for that, the G80 held up nicely. In Sport mode, it moves well between corners with impressive urgency. The steering wheel feels properly weighted, even if it doesn't feel very directly connected to what the wheels are doing. That's a tall order for any four-door in this segment these days, though, so I can't criticize the Genesis too much.

In Sport Plus (Sport+) mode, the revs stayed high, the steering got significantly heavier, and the G80's rear-wheel steering made a fair bit of sense. Sport Plus made the Genesis genuinely fun to drive quickly, encouraging me to use the paddle shifters, aim for the apex, and squeeze the power on the way out. The car's overall weight, while substantial, didn't feel like it was pulling the G80 out of line either. 

Going up the quickest sections of my local mountain road, I was impressed with the G80's overall handling prowess. The G80 didn't dart between tight corners like a light sports car, but it had excellent stability in long sweepers: a great balance of capabilities for a car in this class. It wouldn't be my first choice for canyon-carving transportation, but I wouldn't be disappointed if my daily commute in a G80 involved a lengthy mountain pass.

In all four major seating positions, the G80's seats are supportive and well bolstered. The center seat in the rear is a bit high up, but still padded reasonably well for short trips. After two hours behind the wheel, I tend to shift around a bit and adjust seat settings to deal with my persnickety back, but not in the G80. After about 100 miles of mixed driving between city streets, highways, and mountain roads, I didn't feel the need to change position or adjust at all. 

On the highway, especially in the suspension's comfort setting, the G80 absorbed almost all the small bumps and ruts of broken highways and shrugged off the larger ones with relative ease. It might've been the Sport Prestige trim, but the ride quality was still top notch.

Another hundred miles driving back home and my comfort streak was unbroken, there was still no need to adjust. Looking for small things to complain about, I did notice that the heated and ventilated front seats took a bit longer than I would've liked. The heating and ventilation settings brought temps up and down reasonably well, but the heating element was a bit slow. I did say it was a small complaint, didn't I?

While the G80 showed unexpected prowess on a curvy mountain road, that doesn't mean there were no foibles to the rear-wheel steering system that helps it be so capable at speed. My first drive of the Genesis was punctuated by what I felt as a wobbly sort of quality to the ride, almost like the suspension was disconnected from its mounting points. It had been a while since I'd experienced rear steer, but Genesis' implementation on the G80 was a markedly stronger implementation than I'd noticed in other brands' vehicles.

Below 37 miles per hour, the rear wheels turn in the opposite direction of the front wheels, making the turning radius tighter, but it was tough to acclimate to. In comfort mode, the rear steering gave the G80 a slightly floaty and unstable feel. Over 37 mph, the rear wheels turn in the same direction as the front wheels (or in-phase), and I felt much less of that disconnected sensation. Unlike in some cars with such a system, Genesis doesn't make it easy to disable rear-wheel steering (though it is deactivated if you choose the "Snow Chains Installed" option in the settings).

The twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6 under the hood of the G80 puts out more-than-adequate power and it does so in a relatively refined way. With 375 horsepower and 391 lb-ft of torque on tap, the G80 moves with urgency, especially as it builds power throughout the rev range. By comparison, the standard 2.5T powertrain offers 300 hp and 311 lb-ft of torque — adequate, but not as exciting — while the Electrified G80 swaps out ICE altogether, for a pair of electric motors.

Shifts from the 8-speed automatic transmission are quick but they're also smooth, with only small jolts being provided under the heaviest of acceleration runs. A small bit of engine noise is piped into the cabin, which was neither offensive or particularly entertaining.

On top of having impressive power, the G80 also has pretty serious brakes: 14.2-inch rotors in the front and 13.6-inch rotors in the rear. Stopping power is strong and the pedal feedback stayed consistent, even when I pushed the G80 further into corners before braking. The pedal feedback in the brakes built confidence too. 

During my time with the G80, I averaged just over 20 mpg. That includes about 20% city driving, 10% curvy mountain roads, and the remainder on the highway. Compare that to estimates from the EPA and it's pretty favorable. With the 3.5-liter engine — shared with the GV80 SUV – the EPA estimates that the G80 will return 19 mpg (16 mpg city/24 mpg highway). The standard G80 powertrain, the 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine, has slightly better estimates: 24 mpg combined (20 city/29 highway).

Unfortunately, most of the Genesis' rivals do better at the pump. The BMW 5 Series, Mercedes-Benz E-Class, and Audi A6 all have better fuel economy ratings in pretty much every trim level they offer. It might outperform its estimates slightly, but the Sport Prestige trim level of the G80 isn't exactly a class-leader when it comes to fuel economy. 

The G80 is on par with most of its German rivals however when it comes to legroom, headroom, and cargo space. The trunk has 13.1 cubic feet of storage (similar to the A6 and the E-Class, but less than the 5 Series) with a large opening for loading in big pieces of luggage. A family of four going on vacation should have no trouble stuffing their bags into the trunk of the G80. 

As equipped, the G80 I tested was priced at $78,280 (including $1,250 destination fee). That includes the 3.5-liter turbocharged engine, all-wheel drive, the big 27-inch center touchscreen, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a vibrant head-up display, nappa leather, microfiber suede on the headliner and the pillars, rear-wheel steering, and a number of driver aids like adaptive cruise control, lane-keep assist, a driver attention monitor, and blind-spot monitoring.

All that gear is part of the G80's charm, especially on the top 3.5T trim level, the Sport Prestige. It's feature-packed while being comfortable and entertaining to drive, not to mention spacious, stylish, and distinct enough to command attention at the valet stand. If the 3.5T Sport Prestige's price tag is too large, though, the lower trim levels — from $57,100 plus destination — of the G80 offer a lot for the money as well, especially if you find the 2.5T's powertrain setup adequate for your needs. German rivals (or rivals from Acura and Lexus) may have it beat in a few categories, but the G80 is certainly a tough competitor amongst luxury sedans, no matter what standard you judge it by.