Hyundai’s luxury division has just unveiled an all-electric version of one of our favorite SUVs, and it’s coming to America. We’ve already fallen in love with Genesis‘ handsome and tech-rich GV70 SUV, and as of today, there’s a new version to covet: The Electrified GV70. Awkward name aside, there’s good reason to be even more excited about this compact premium crossover which just debuted at China’s Auto Guangzhou show expo.
About that awkward name thing: It’s not just the tricky word order. We at Roadshow have been trying to educate people on the differences between “electrified” and “electric” when it comes to new cars for years. For some time now, car company execs have been making bold proclamations about how many “electrified” models they are bringing to market in order to appear more forward thinking and environmentally conscious. Confusingly for many folks, “electrified” has always been a somewhat intentionally misleading term, because it’s one the industry has used to encompass not only pure electric vehicles like this one, but also any model with a hybrid gas-electric powertrain.
That’s right, this Electrified GV70 is actually the Electric GV70. There’s no internal combustion happening underneath its muscular bodywork. This two-motor EV features standard all-wheel drive with up to 483 horsepower (360 kW) and 516 pound-feet of torque (700 nM) in boost mode. That’s enough oomph, the manufacturer says, to reach 60 mph in 4.5 seconds. For those keeping track, that’s quicker than the gas-powered GV70 Sport that’s already on sale with its available 375-horsepower V6 (a model that was just named as a finalist for the 2022 North American Utility of the Year Awards on Wednesday).
For the moment, we don’t know how far the Electrified GV70 will go on a charge when it reaches US and Canadian dealers, and thus far, Genesis isn’t speaking to how large the SUV’s battery is. That said, we do know it features the same adaptive 400-volt/800-volt quick-charge tech found in the upcoming GV60 crossover, as well as the funky, nearly here Hyundai Ioniq 5. According to Genesis, using a 350kW charger, the pack can go from 10% to 80% capacity in less than 20 minutes. The vehicle also features i-Pedal, which adds a one-pedal drive mode that relies heavily on regenerative braking for added efficiency. And speaking of maximizing efficiency, the Electrified GV70 also includes automatically disconnecting driveshafts to make it run in 2WD mode to curb parasitic drag when all-wheel-drive grip isn’t called for.
Also like the Ioniq 5, the Electrified GV70 offers a 3.6kW Vehicle to Load feature that be used to power external devices. That’s a lot of juice — far more than you could ever need to keep laptops, tablets and smartphones humming. It’s enough to power an individual’s glamping campsite or a big-screen-and-daquiri-machine tailgate party or even enough to rescue another stranded EV owner.
Stylistically, not much has changed for the Electrified GV70, but that makes sense, as it was already sleek to begin with. Exterior differences from the standard GV70 include a revised grille with an integrated charge port door, as well as a smoother rear bumper cap without openings for the IC model’s prominent tailpipes. At a glance, the cabin appears unchanged, as well (at least beyond the need for different menus and displays related to the all-electric powertrain). No bad news there, I love the GV70’s rewardingly luxurious interior as-is, especially its rich materials and surprisingly broad and bold color palette.
At the moment, Genesis Motor North America officials aren’t saying when the Electrified GV70 will make it to US and Canadian dealers, but the company has confirmed the model will be offered in our market, which is excellent.
