2026 Genesis G90 Prestige Black Review

You don’t need a limousine to deliver cookies to your friends, but it will make your day better if you have one.

That’s the unsurprising fact I learned in my week with the 2026 Genesis G90 Prestige Black, which did a fine job allowing me and my friends to cosplay ultra wealth. However, a few minor imperfections leave the car feeling more like a (relatively) cheap imitation than a real-deal luxury sedan.

Styling: 9/10

Let’s start with the positives, though: the G90 just looks right. Genesis’s design enthusiasm is on display with this giant sedan’s massive shield-shaped grille, its twin lighting elements that extend beyond the front wheel arch, and its excessive length. But, unlike some other recent Korean cars, that enthusiasm is reined in just enough to make the G90 look like its design is balanced on a knife’s edge between the dull perfection of the Mercedes-Benz S-Class and the garish excess of the BMW 7 Series.

The new-for-2026 Prestige Black treatment only gives the Genesis a more sinister edge. While black-out special editions are common in the industry, few lean into them with as much commitment as Genesis. You may think that it’s easy for an automaker to simply order every part in black and call it a day, but matching the black of the paint to the black plastic of the bumpers to the black of the carpets and every piece in between is impossible, so designers spent hours considering each and every part, looking at them next to one another to ensure that if the shades didn’t match, they’d at least complement each other.

Add to that some golden filigree in the interior trim as the perfect finishing touch and you get a package that, even if it’s ultimately a cash grab, feels like it was deeply considered and stunningly executed.

Features: 8/10

If you’re going to be wearing your money with a car like this, it should be disarming with its looks and charming with its features. And there’s no shortage of fun features to charm your passengers with here. Usually when I review a car, it takes me until the end of the block to explain all the knick-knacks and gadgets that make it cool to any passenger. In the G90, I frequently ran out of ride before finishing my spiel.

Automatically opening doors allow the driver to greet their passengers with magical ease, though actually operating the soft-close doors with your hands can be a little frustrating, since it feels like they’re fighting against you. Twin 12.3-inch screens give the driver plenty of information, while a wireless device charger will keep their phone juiced even if they’re making use of Apple CarPlay or Android Auto — which, by the way, work on both the front and rear screens. Oh yeah: there’s also a screen for rear seat occupants that allows them to make comfort adjustments.

User-Friendliness: 7.5/10

While there are certainly a lot of screens to tap at, there are also a whole lot of buttons, which is nice to see. That stands to reason given the variety of options to control here, but the sheer volume of controls can also be a little overwhelming at times. Despite that, Genesis’s designers have done a reasonably good job making everything manageable.

Comfort: 7/10

The rear seats are the best in the house. Specifically, the rear passenger-side, which not only reclines and features a leg rest, but can also push the front passenger seat out of its way to allow its occupant to really stretch out. Once reclined, the person receiving the royal treatment can warm or cool their seat and turn on the massage function to really relax. In fact, all four seats feature heating, cooling, and massage, making this a pretty comfortable car no matter which seat you happen to be in. All of these features certainly make this a luxurious ride, but they don’t make the G90 stand out in its segment.

What does stand out in the field (but in a bad way) is the air suspension. It does a fine job of soaking up the bumps, but it tends towards wallowiness rather than steady isolation from the road. While that could be forgiven in a less expensive vehicle, when considered in the context of the German limousines it would like to be compared against, it pierces the G90’s sense of solidity and is an unwelcome imperfection that a new kid on the block can ill afford.

Power: 6/10

While we’re on the subject of minor imperfections, my biggest complaint with the G90 is its transmission. Frankly, I was just expecting to feel it less. Caught between wanting to shift slowly to keep its action smooth and wanting to shift quickly to keep revs low, the eight-speed automatic feels indecisive and sometimes borders on clunky.

Meanwhile, despite featuring two turbochargers and an electric supercharger, the 3.5L V6 is thoroughly outgunned by its German competition. By any objective metric, 409 hp and 405 lb-ft of torque is more than enough to get this luxury sedan moving smoothly, but even the entry-level versions of Mercedes’s S-Class (442 hp and 413 lb-ft of torque) and BMW’s 7 Series (536 hp and 552 lb-ft of torque) are more impressive, to say nothing of the fact that both models also offer electrified powertrains — whose ability to deliver smooth, silent, and torquey power suit the character of these limos better than a wheezy six-cylinder.

Driving Feel: 8/10

Fortunately for Genesis, although the M packages and the AMG tuning prove that there’s a confounding market for sickeningly speedy luxury cars, not matching its competitors power outputs isn’t a deal breaker. In fact, I would argue that Genesis’s addition of a chauffeur mode here is about a billion times more useful than a sport mode ever could be. The mode helps soften the throttle mapping and smooths out brake application without removing all feel from the controls. The mode simply works and helps undo almost all the harshness of the transmission, and I wish every car had a chauffeur mode like this. I’d use it much more in my day to day life than any other.

Safety: 7/10

To help park this behemoth, drivers are offered surround-view monitoring, though I found the camera angle difficult to read when I got really close to a wall, which is exactly when such a system might be most useful. Genesis’s latest driver assistance system, Highway Driving Assist II, performed relatively well, but with Mercedes offering a Level 3-capable driver assistance system (arguably the most advanced on the market), the G90’s feels like it’s a step behind. However, in crash testing the G90 performed extremely well, earning a Top Safety Pick+ rating from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).

Practicality: 6/10

The G90’s trunk will accommodate 300 L of stuff, which is more than enough to haul you and your luggage — or, in my case, 13 boxes of cookies — wherever you need to go in great comfort. However, that’s 200 L less than the all-electric BMW i7’s trunk.

Fuel Economy: 6/10

The G90’s fuel economy rating of 11.8 L/100 km in combined driving is pretty bad, but the hybrid S-Class isn’t as much better as I’d expected, burning 10.1 L/100 km in the same scenario. Naturally, the i7 is significantly greener and saves your driver from having to go to the gas station between rides.

Value: 9/10

I don’t know that this is necessarily a good thing in a segment defined by luxury and excess, but Genesis’s allergy to surcharges make the G90 a bargain compared to its German competitors. Seriously, the base price is $118,000 and the top of the line model with everything in it costs $121,500.

My tester had no options installed because they were all already included by default, nor was there a destination charge (not a visible one anyway), and Genesis will take care of your car for you. From my perspective, that’s a breath of fresh air as compared to German automakers’ love of options. For example, the base S-Class starts at around $150,000 but Mercedes will gladly charge you as much $350,000 if you want a Maybach badge, a V12, and a $20,000 coat of paint. Certainly, you get more for your dollars, but I didn’t exactly feel like I was roughing it in the Genesis. Then again, I did have to clarify that it wasn’t “basically a Hyundai” once or twice, so it isn’t really the most conspicuous way to consume out there.

The Verdict

The 2026 Genesis G90 feels like it’s in the one segment where this brand’s tactic of offering more for less falls apart. The car struggles to offer more luxury than its competitors and it’s fighting to win over a clientele for whom money is no object.

However, despite the fact that the G90 is fighting against its badge and the fact that there are a few rough edges, it gets pretty close to matching its competitors’ aura, and all for a price that looks less ridiculous with each passing day.

Specifications

Trim Tested

2026 Genesis G90 Prestige Black AWD

Base Price

$121,500

A/C Tax

$100

Destination

Incl.

Price as Tested

$121,600

Optional Equipment

None

Engine Displacement

3.5L

Cylinder Count/Configuration

Supercharged V6

Peak Power

409 hp @ 5,800 rpm

Peak Torque

405 lb-ft @ 1,300-4,500 rpm

Fuel Economy

13.6 / 9.6 / 11.8 L/100 km cty/hwy/cmb

Cargo Space

300 L