Who said that electric crossovers have to look strange? The Tesla Model Y looks like a suppository, the new electric Mercedes-Benz GLC looks like a caricature of a Mercedes-Benz, and the Cadillac Lyriq—while a solid vehicle—has shades of 6000 SUX to its silhouette. Fine for the bold, but what if you’re not ready to send that message? The Genesis Electrified GV70 might be what you’re after.
Fundamentally, the Electrified GV70 does what it says on the tin: It’s Genesis’ compact crossover with internal combustion swapped for a battery electric powertrain. This means it’s a conversion car, and while that does come with a handful of compromises over a bespoke EV platform, fresh upgrades for 2026 and solid fundamentals make it a rather compelling option.
[Full disclosure: Genesis Canada let me borrow this Electrified GV70 for a week so long as I kept the shiny side up, charged it up before returning it, and reviewed it.]
The Basics
Battery pack: 84 kWh lithium-polymer pack.
Motors: Dual 160 kW motors.
Drive: All-wheel-drive.
Output: 429 horsepower (483 with Boost Mode engaged), 516 lb.-ft. of torque.
Rated range: 263 miles on 19-inch wheels, 243 miles on 20-inch wheels (402 km in Canada).
DC fast charging: Up to 350 kWh on a suitable 800v charger, NACS port.
Base price: $65,875 including freight ($78,500 in Canada).
Price as-tested: $77,495 including freight ($89,000 in Canada).
Why Does It Exist?
Conceptually, the Genesis GV60 is the closest thing many North Americans can get to buying a brand new strange-era Citroën. It’s full of wacky touches that you’d expect to have been J.D. Power’d out a long time ago, such as the crystal ball shifter, the glovebox that’s actually a drawer, and the hidden stash spot in one of the doors. It’s designed for people who want an EV, but what about people looking for something more conventional? A few years back, Genesis put its 800-volt electric powertrain technology in the GV70 compact crossover to create the Electrified GV70, a name that does what it says on the tin. For 2026, that model’s been updated with revisions like a larger battery pack, fresh cabin tech, and subtly revised styling.
How Does It Look?
It should go without saying that the Genesis GV70 is already one of the most handsome compact luxury crossovers on the market. A strong character line here and some compound curves there go a long way. I’ve even warmed up to the touch-of-AMC-Pacer quarter-window treatment. Given how shopping the latest crop of German competitors can largely be summed up as brief interviews with hideous vehicles, all Genesis had to do with the GV70’s mid-cycle facelift is barely change its appearance at all. Mission accomplished. Like a good Hollywood facelift, something’s different here, but it can be hard to tell just what. Credit where credit’s due, sleeker lighting elements, refined valences, and a finer diamond pattern in the Electrified model’s false grille wind back the visual clock a touch without seeming drastic. Think CoolSculpting, not botox.
Speaking of alterations that whisper rather than shout, your neighbors probably won’t be able to tell the difference between the Electrified GV70 and the gas-powered model. Other than the aforementioned false upper grille, the only real tell-tales are the lack of tailpipes or a fuel filler door, and the bold choice of white brake calipers. You know, because regenerative braking is expected to do the heavy lifting.
What About The Interior?
While many marques are still seeing how many surfaces they can plaster with nasty shiny black plastic, Genesis has always been one to lean into brightwork. A big slab of real brushed aluminum on the console, almost pearl-like armrest inserts, satin metallic trim on the temperature knobs and steering wheel and around the air vents and glovebox handle. This extends to the most silver sunglass holder I’ve seen in my entire life, as if it’s made out of 100 percent ethically-sourced Sony Discman. That bit sounds a bit corny, but when combined with this lovely midnight-and-vanilla upholstery, the result is a fantastic place to sit when you’re waiting on a fast charge.
What about space and comfort? Loads and absolutely, thank you very much. The driver’s seat is more adjustable than a magic arm, there’s proper space for a quartet of occupants and their luggage, plus you can squeeze a fifth in the middle of the second row without much complaint. The driving position is just about spot-on, and the seats are good for hours. Someone understood the brief here, that luxury really means ease, comfort, and richness.
How Does It Drive?
From its outward appearance, you wouldn’t immediately expect the Electrified GV70 to be the athlete of the range. Then you get to the output: 429 horsepower in regular operation and 483 horsepower when you smash the zero-refractory-period Need For Speed-style boost button on the steering wheel. As a result, this 5,000-pound-plus crossover is always ready and able to fling whatever isn’t strapped in towards the rear window. Canvas totes, loose chihuahuas, more than 100 pounds worth of Facebook Marketplace-found alloy wheels. We’re talking zero-to-60 mph in far enough under four seconds to matter. And this is the normal version.
Perhaps the most impressive part of the sheer pace is that the rest of the Electrified GV70 actually keeps up. There’s a surprising accuracy to the steering and reasonable tenacity to the front end even on winter tires, probably because there’s no longer a big V6 sitting atop the front axle. Roll is kept well in check thanks in part to the low location of that 1,063.3-pound battery pack, and an awful wintry mix tantamount to several hundred tons of Slurpee dumped upon the tarmac reveals an amusing willingness to rotate, even with the stability control in its most helicopter-parent setting. Really, the biggest thing separating the Electrified GV70 from its sportier competition is that it’s ever so slightly underdamped, but setting the suspension to sport mode tightens things up respectably and reduces boom over the sorts of potholes that can legally be classified as craters. For the most part, it’s all a reminder of how cohesive base-model BMWs used to feel, which shouldn’t be surprising considering Hyundai Motor Group’s history of hiring outside talent.
Other than the larger battery pack, the big addition for 2026 is what Genesis calls “Virtual Gear Shift.” Think of it a bit like the fake shifts on the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N, except it feels like it’s mimicking the sound of a turbocharged V6 mated to an eight-speed automatic. While full-throttle acceleration can get slightly ahead of the soundtrack, most of the time it does an uncanny job of replicating the feel of a normal crossover, right down to holding a lower “gear” when you tap the brakes a couple times while descending a sustained grade.
Speaking of the brakes, the pedal blending is the one weak point of the way the Electrified GV70 drives. Neither of the two switchable pedal calibrations does an outstanding job of defining the bite point of the actual friction brakes, so the final stop when pulling up to a red light can feel a bit sudden. Still, slight learner-esque jerkiness aside, this can be an EV that never feels like an EV while you’re driving it. As for charging, the NACS port towards the driver’s side of the false grille is an odd choice in that it doesn’t always play well with streetside charging stations. Short cables and geometry, yeah? On the plus side, the 800-volt architecture makes it easy to pull more juice from a 150-kW charging station than advertised, and this crossover does come standard with both CCS and J1772 adapters.
Does It Have The Electronic Crap I Want?
Almost certainly. For 2026, the Electrified GV70 gets a huge tech upgrade in the cabin, with a massive 27-inch ultrawide OLED display featuring both gauges and infotainment. The big gain here is wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, because reaching for a cable is so 2016. Unsurprisingly, black levels are fantastic, but the big highlight is how many ways Genesis lets you interact with the infotainment. Not only is the right side of the display a touchscreen, but there’s also a rotary knob in the console for physical selection of menu items, plus a touchpad on top of that in case you’re one of those weirdos who liked Lexus’ old Remote Touch interface. Add in real volume and tuning knobs plus plenty of steering wheel controls, and you can be as hands-on or hands-off with the tech as you like. Well, almost—the shortcut keys for media controls are now capacitive touch, and you still have to press icons on a mini-screen to turn on the climate-controlled seats and heated steering wheel.
When it comes to other toys, my loaded test unit was almost overwhelming. The driver’s seat has air bladders that can stretch out a tight back, buttons on the key fob let you ghostride the whip into tight parking spaces, the blind-spot camera feed in the instrument cluster is still genius, you can start the Electrified GV70 with your fingerprint, and the door trim inserts are backlit to look like the Milky Way. As for the Bang & Olufsen audio system, it’s a mixed bag. With a slightly warm tone, clarity and punch are great out of the box, but Bang & Olufsen’s weird quadrant tuner that replaces a normal equalizer is still infuriating. Best to just set, forget, and let the 15-speaker setup blast the dirtiest tearout music almost alarmingly well.
Three Things To Know About The 2026 Genesis Electrified GV70
- Its front-mounted charge port doesn’t always play nice with streetside charging stations.
- The fake gearshift mode does an uncanny job of replicating the feel of a combustion-powered car.
- You genuinely won’t find a richer cabin in this segment.
Does The 2026 Genesis Electrified GV70 Fulfil Its Purpose?
The mission statement for the Electrified GV70 is an electric crossover that doesn’t feel like an electric crossover, and it hits the nail on the head. With a larger battery pack, updated tech, and that reality-warping fake shift mode, you could collect your EV-skeptic extended family members from the airport, and they wouldn’t suspect a thing. Sure, total cruising range isn’t spectacular compared to a Porsche Macan Electric or Polestar 3, but it has legs on the Lexus RZ 550e, and isn’t that far off from what an Audi SQ6 e-tron can manage. The difference is that the Electrified GV70 feels more upscale and traditional than any of the competitors I’ve just mentioned. An obvious choice then, for those who value the luxury side of the equation a little bit more than the electric side. Let’s see how it fares against the forthcoming BMW iX3 and Volvo EX60.
What’s The Punctum Of The 2026 Genesis Electrified GV70?
An exceptionally nice crossover that just so happens to be electric.
Top graphic image: Thomas Hundal
I don’t like the C/D pillar treatment, especially how it’s accented by that chrome strip. I think it would look better if the C pillar was blacked out and blended into the glass there.
I love that this just looks like a car. It’s not screaming “look at me I’m futuristic!”. I wish it were about 20k cheaper.
I don’t hate it. I’m not spending that kind of money so I’m out at the start, but it isn’t too “look at me I’m an EV” or have crap like a lighted logo on the grill. From angles it looks like someone took a Porsche 928 and said “make a Korean SUV out of this.”
Still don’t like the grill, but I am old and not the target market.
OLED infotainment screens could offer a huge benefit for night driving. If they use modern OLED panels and include proper protections, I wouldn’t be too worried about burn in.
Thomas, I am not sure about the situation where you live, but I have literally never seen a streetside charging station anywhere, ever. The reason the NACS port is on the rear left is because that’s where Tesla puts it at their Supercharger stations. I don’t agree with this decision and prefer a rear right placement, but when I charged my I5 at a V3 Supercharger, I had to take up two spaces to do so because those Supercharger cables are too short.
Rear left placement is becoming more common among new EVs with NACS ports for that very reason. To be clear, I think streetside charging would be amazing and should be much more common! I just also know from experience that drivers are much more likely to plug into a Supercharger than a streetside charger due to the dearth of the latter.
Listen, I love the way the GV70 looks. It’s also not very compelling in electric form. Converted EVs are inherently compromised. Something not mentioned in this article is that the GV60 has more rear legroom and similar storage space in the trunk despite being dramatically smaller in every dimension. The GV60 also has more range with the same battery size. I am not a huge fan of the GV60 looks and can totally understand why someone would prefer a GV70 to fly under the radar, but the GV60 is simply better in almost every way.
Genesis needs to do their take on the EV9/Ioniq 9, which is a dedicated EV platform. That would create a super-luxurious EV experience with none of the compromises of the current GV70.
I think they should just make the charging port in the middle like 70s car maybe behind the plate like a 77-78 firbird hah. I think what the Nissan leaf used to be in the front in the middle behind the logo?
Some EVs have their charging port in the middle of the front bumper like the Kona/Niro. I hate it! I always back into parking spaces, so that arrangement would mean pulling into DCFCs all the time. Furthermore, it’s inconvenient for most at-home charging setups. I also think it looks very stupid, although there are probably ways to better integrate the port cover.
The one exception is electric trucks. ALL electric trucks should have the charging port in the front so they can use DCFCs without having to unhitch a trailer.
For regular vehicles, I think rear placements make the most sense, imho.
In theory I love the brushed aluminum center console. In practice, I hope it has some kind of protective coating.
One of the interior elements I hate about modern vehicles is the screens just plopped on top of the dash. Couldn’t they at least put a curving shroud over it? It looks completely unfinished. I suppose it eases replacement when the screen eventually dies.
Yeah that what annoys me about a lot of these newer vehicles I will be sad if/when I replace my Polestar 2 because at least it has a normal set up looking cluster not just a phone screwed into the dash.
Screen+no shroud=glare. I had a Hyundai Sonata rental with the tablet instrument panel and the display washed out really badly when the light hit it the wrong way.
I was worried about glare in my I5 with a similar instrument cluster design, but in practice, it has never been an issue. I am guessing Hyundai didn’t think through the placement of the Sonota’s cluster very well.
When I had a 23 RF Miata for a little while with the top down it was hard to see to infotainment at times because of said glare on the screen was not the best designed placement for it.
My Legacy has the same issue.
I’m assuming this means the gearshift thing can be disabled. That’s good.
I am mystified why that is something people actually want… assuming people actually do and it’s not some focus group nonsense. The smooth, invisible hand of acceleration is one of the highlights of EVs. Just press the pedal and *woosh* you’re going arrest-me speeds.
Yeah, I imagine this is a feature that 99% of buyers will never use. I guess it’s just software, and since Hyundai already had it developed for the I5N, it was free to include?
Like the people who want fake shift points on a CVT. The Subaru forums have had many posts from people wishing they could disable the fake shifts. But at least Subaru added stop/start to compensate for the fuel lost by fake shifting /s
I don’t understand the person willing to pay $75,000 for 240 miles of range (less in winter) and I’ve resigned myself to the fact that I likely never will.
I hope the people who buy it enjoy it, but there’s basically nothing I could use less than this.
Yep. That is just not enough range for the money. It looks great and I’m sure it’s very comfortable, but there are so many other compelling EV choices on the market for this kind of money or less with wayyy more range.
Kind of like the ID Buzz would have love one of those but for the price and the range/performance just not there for me. At least this Hyundai…erm Genesis has the power but yeah that range is pretty lack luster for something starting at 65k+. Myself if I had that kind of money for a new car I would be looking at a Lucid or Rivian.
I’m not a Genesis buyer (I’m cheap) and I’m not a cross-over buyer (I have no kids and prefer to be lower to the ground) but… I don’t hate it? It looks like a regular freakin car and not a piece of tech. It has normal door handles!
I guess if I wasn’t so cheap, I’d be interested.
Im so bummed they cancelled the sedan version before this refresh. Those aren’t holding their value at all and would’ve made an incredible secondhand deal
I had the gas version of this as a rental a few months ago as an “upgrade” – Hertz still has a sense of humor about what that word means. It was exceedingly meh. I doubt making it electric and even heavier would change that in the slightest. There was not a thing about the cabin to get me the least bit interested, just typical modern too busy too many screens bullshit.
I just want to go back to ~1990.
Rental upgrades in my experience:
Ah, I see you have a midsized crossover booked as your rental. Unfortunately it’s unavailable. But we’ve decided to upgrade you to this much larger and sporty 8-year-old Dodge Charger with base 6-cylinder that’s seen some things, only a few trim bits that are falling out on the interior cabin on this particular example and do mind the oddly-stained seats
or
We’ve got a new Volvo and a C-klass Mercedes sitting on the lot, would you rather one of those than the compact-economy car your company selected?
I’m usually booking AT LEAST a “premium” sedan, and am President’s Circle. So I do usually get something at least “nice”. But Hurtz doesn’t really have anything nice anymore. I have recently switched to Avis – we will see how they do.
I have a travel budget, and how I spend it is up to me. It just has to be “reasonable”, and my company has a broad idea of what “reasonable” means. 🙂
Will your company let you choose the rental without restrictions other than price? Like, could you go through Turo and rent something fun?
Lack of tailpipes is the only test my wife ever applies. I’m surprised that fake ones aren’t a thing yet.
It seems tailpipes are faux-pas in modern car design anyway with many turnddown tips hidden behind vanity panels at the bottom of the rear bumper. I actually like when they’re visible.
If I had to guess, it’s probably due to the way GDI engines deposit soot on the tips. Hiding them, either behind fake tips or under the bumper, helps with that.
That being said, nice visible real exhaust tips are always welcome and I’m glad my Integra has them, even if I do have to wipe a bit of soot off of them when I wash the car.
That’s something I don’t think about with the FR-S. The tips themselves are big resonators, so that might hide that a bit.
Major improvement over the standard ones — IMO the massive oval pipes really don’t blend with the rest of the car. Audi did the same thing on the RS6, they just look so garish. This looks great without them