2026 Genesis GV80 Coupe Review

Modern automobiles are far from perfect, but when viewed through an objective lens, they’ve never been better.

Rugged utility vehicles double as luxury spaces, sports cars are more livable than they’ve ever been, and everyday commuters come with technology that would’ve been reserved for the fanciest flagships not that long ago.

Few vehicles distill this jack-of-all-trades requirement more jarringly than the luxury sportback SUV: it has to be cushy, it has to be big, it’s got to be quick, and it must be stylish — and all on the same four wheels. It’s a tall task, and some rise to the occasion better than others.

Through an objective lens, the 2026 Genesis GV80 Coupe is a very desirable automobile. But from behind the wheel, it can’t help but reveal itself as a compromise.

Design: 8/10

If you know the industry, it’s no longer a hot take to say that Genesis makes some of the most beautiful luxury vehicles on the road today. And from the front, the GV80 Coupe stands out as one of the cooler-looking SUVs in its class. From the back, however, this GV80’s awkward, hunchback hatch is going to garner as much love as it does hate.

On the other hand, the blacked out accents seen here look good. Genesis offers Black editions of its larger vehicles, including the conventional GV80 as well as the G80 and G90 sedans, that add black exterior trim and wheels as well as interiors covered in black leather, genuine black wood trim, and smoky chrome, making the place look like an extension of an evil billionaire’s penthouse.

Even without the Black motif, the GV80’s cabin feels a cut above its similarly priced rivals, and much of it is in the details. Genesis is generous with the stitched leather surfaces, the carpets feel plush, all closeable cubbies are lined in felt, and the headliner is a soft suede that’s worth petting just for the sake of it.

User-Friendliness: 8/10

It’s a fairly usable space, too, full of buttons, knobs, and a very wide 27-inch OLED screen that not only looks crisp and vibrant, but is laid out logically and is easy to use. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are both wireless. One mark against the GV80 (and every other Genesis that uses this) is its rotary gear selector, which is cursedly placed right next to a similarly sized knob that controls the infotainment system.

Everyday Usability: 8/10

Until the fancy-as-heck GV90 arrives, the GV80 is the brand’s largest SUV. Sitting behind my own driver’s seat setting at five-foot-eight, rear passengers should have lots of legroom, although rear headroom is tighter than expected, especially if for those above average height. Officially, there’s 200 mm (0.8 in) less rear headroom than what’s in the conventionally shaped GV80.

Rear occupants get their own climate controls and climate zone, complete with seat heating and ventilation. The pulldown armrest in the middle seat also looks quite nice, incorporating cupholders and a closeable storage cubby that is, yes, lined in felt.

Despite being 166 L smaller than the regular GV80’s cargo area behind the second row, opening up the Coupe’s hatch gives way to a space that still feels fairly huge. Fold down the rear seats, and you get 1,729 L of space.

Power: 8/10

In Canada, the GV80 Coupe is available with one powertrain: a twin-turbocharged 3.5L V6 with an electric supercharger. Total output is 409 hp and 405 lb-ft of torque, which means it’s positively peppy enough in everyday driving and can get up to speed on the highway without issue.

This is a heavy SUV, though, and despite the turbochargers and supercharger, don’t expect true high-performance SUV acceleration from this like you’d get in, say, a BMW X6 M. It drives more like a competitor to the Acura MDX Type S — powerful enough to get out of its own way, but falling a couple hundred horsepower short of a true machine of excess.

Driving Feel: 7/10

In a similar vein, the GV80 Coupe can be quite fun to hustle around lightly — emphasis on lightly. This is a casual, reasonably sharp go-fast SUV, with steering that’s deliberately heavy and fairly pleasant. Push it even a little hard, though, and this vehicle’s sheer weight is hard to hide, and its brakes can feel a bit sensitive and twitchy, even in comfort mode.

Comfort: 7/10

This measured approach to performance would be fine if it were a home run as a comfortable cruiser, but this test unit exhibited an odd and unpleasant vibration throughout the whole vehicle at about 100 km/h, right around where you might cruise on the highway.

Outside of that, though, the GV80 is comfortable — the ride is cushy over potholes, the seats are great and supportive, and it’s extremely quiet when it comes to road and wind noise.

Equipment: 9.5/10

Other than the Black model, the GV80 Coupe isn’t broken down into a bunch of trim levels, nor are a bunch of features locked behind optional packages — the toys you see here are standard. These include 22-inch wheels, a panoramic sunroof, Nappa leather, the microfibre suede headliner, heating and ventilation for all outboard seats, a heated steering wheel, rear sunshades, the 27-inch screen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a digital rearview mirror, and a 16-way power-adjustable driver’s seat with “Ergo Motion.” The latter isn’t a massage, per se, but a system that moves various parts of your back and legs around so you’re less sore and tired over long drives. By any objective measure, the GV80 comes with a lot.

Safety: 9.5/10

What’s more, adaptive cruise control, lane-keeping help, blind-spot collision avoidance, and a whole laundry list of other advanced safety features are all standard. And par for the Hyundai Group course, semi-automated highway driving works really well, keeping you in the lane effectively and feeling natural in the way it modulates speed.

Efficiency: 7/10

According to Natural Resources Canada (NRCan), the GV80 burns through 13.7 L/100 km in the city, 10.9 on the highway, and 12.4 combined. For comparison, that combined figure happens to be in the same ballpark as those of the BMW X6 M60i, Mercedes-AMG’s GLE 53 Coupe, and the Acura MDX Type S. Meanwhile, the Lexus RX 500h F Performance gets 8.6 L/100 km, but that’s a hybrid.

Over more than 520 km of mixed driving, I observed 13.3 L/100 km, and the ignition stop-start system felt remarkably seamless. Premium fuel is recommended for maximum performance but not required.

Value for Money: 7/10

As tested, this 2026 Genesis GV80 Coupe Black goes for $108,100, but a non-Black model costs $105,600. Destination is included and, other than colour and dealer accessories, there aren’t any other trims, packages, or choices to make here. The price is the price.

For comparison, the spiritually similar Acura MDX Type S costs $94,127 but isn’t as powerful and arguably isn’t as nice as this Genesis as an item. The 375-hp BMW X6 xDrive40i starts in the high-$90,000s, and the Mercedes-Benz GLE 450 Coupe goes for about $109,000, but there’s an argument to be made that the German brands don’t come as well-equipped as the Genesis without adding a bunch of options.

The Verdict

The 2026 Genesis GV80 Coupe is really nice, as long as you don’t think about it too much. The leather looks and feels rich, and it smells like a fancy furniture store inside. This Black model’s wood trim is a vibe, as are the inky blacks of the ultra-sharp OLED display spanning two-thirds of the dash.

But as a driving machine that attempts to straddle both comfort and excitement, it’s merely OK — a sometimes good, sometimes flawed jack of both trades but very much a master of neither. It can even be pretty nice to drive, as long as you don’t ruin yourself by ever trying, say, a Porsche Cayenne.

To be fair, all vehicles are compromises to some degree. But the GV80 Coupe, as solid as it mostly might be, isn’t quite as good at hiding its compromises as it should be.