Buyers can't get enough of leather-lined compact SUVs with status badges, which are now the core of the premium-car market. While consumers are giving up some of the performance and handling of sedans, the demand for wagon-like versatility and an above-the-cars seating position has propelled these SUVs to prominence. Into this white-hot arena Genesis throws its new GV70 crossover, arguably the most important product yet from Hyundai’s nascent luxury brand.
Unfortunately, the vast number of vehicles in this segment is matched by the vast scope of the auto industry's supply disruptions. Vehicle shortages made a giant comparison test impossible. Instead, we opted to take the GV70's measure against two SUVs that have long stood as templates for the segment: the BMW X3 and the Lexus RX.
Most entries in this segment kick-off just north of $40K.But all-wheel-drive, six-cylinder power, and a long list of extras pushed our average as-tested price to $64,243, with our three competitors separated by a slim $1930. The price point works in the GV70's favor, as that money will buy the top Sport Prestige model fitted with the optional 375hp twin-turbo 3.5-liter V-6 and nearly every imaginable feature, from leather-and-suede seats to a head-up display.
Lexus started this automotive genus when it launched the RX300 for 1998. Easygoing refinement and proven reliability-plus annual sales that regularly top 100,000 have been the RX's hallmarks ever since. Its current fourth-generation also pushes the boundaries of tasteful SUV exterior design and offers both conventional and hybrid powertrains. We settled on the RX350, powered by a standard 295-hp 3.5-liter V-6 and dressed in optional F Sport regalia.
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The Best Odds
SOMETIMES-NOT OFTEN, BUT sometimes-car manufacturers create something semi-wondrous that is also borderline irrational and three-quarters inexplicable to their own marketing types.
Mileage Booster
Kia Carnival Hybrid HIGHS: Big mpg bump, no CVT weirdness, solid ride and handling. LOWS: Shared HVAC and audio controls, second-row loungers can't be removed, changing brake-pedal feel.
Medium Spicy
Kia K4 GT-Line Turbo HIGHS: Lengthy list of features, spacious interior, generous trunk. LOWS: Uncomfortably flat seats, rivals are quicker, only modest grip.
Drivelines
HORACIO PAGANI IS A visionary designer and self-taught engineer.
Suspensions of Disbelief
It's easy to say a vehicle rides well but much more difficult to explain the nuanced implications of that highly subjective statement.
PUMPED-UP KICKS
NISSAN ISN'T SHY about experimenting with its subcompact of ferings. In the recent past, it briefly gave us the adorable Cube, seemingly designed by Hello Kitty, followed by the frog-eyed Juke that somehow spawned a six-figure R-badged super-SUV in other markets.
THE ALFA ROMEO GIULIA QUADRIFOGLIO. THE BMW M3 COMPETITION. AND THE CADILLAC CT4-VBLACKWING HEAD SOUTH ONA ROAD TRIP TO FIND OUT WHICH ONE BEST DELIVERS ON THE SPORTS-SEDAN PROMISE.
One of us, gassing up the 2025 Cadillac CT4-V Blackwing, says, \"No, we drove from Michigan.
SINCE WE APPRECIATE GREAT TALENT IN ALL ITS FORMS, WE ALSO HONOR THE 10BEST TRUCKS, SUVS, AND VANS. INCLUDING ONE WINNER WITH LITERAL BUZZ.
THE DISCUSSION AROUND this year's 10Best Trucks competition had some editors wishing the award were called 12Best.
OUR VERSION OF A 2024 AUTOMOTIVE AWARDS SHOW (SOMETIMES HUMOROUS, SOMETIMES NOT).
America's fastest senior citizen made the save of the year when his Funny Car's engine exploded at Virginia Motorsports Park.
"A ROMANCE THAT BUILDS WITH SPECTACULAR PASSION. THE LONGER YOU DRIVE IT, THE BETTER IT GETS."
When the history of the sports sedan is written, the late-narrative plot twist that few would have seen coming is the emergence of CadillacCadillac!-as the keeper of the flame. And yet, that's exactly what's happened.
