During our trips around Mt. Hood, we got a chance to drive the all-new Genesis G80. The Genesis G80 AWD 3.3T Sport is a serious sport sedan in Casablanca White.
Bringing the 3.3L twin-turbocharged V6 engine to life and letting it sing during the drive is a joy, the quad exhaust tips ushering forth a sweet sound upon exiting an apex. Connected to the engine is an 8-speed automatic transmission with shift-by-wire – not as fun as other input methods, but the paddle shifters were responsive.
Tackling the corners was a breeze courtesy of a sport suspension and HTRAC all-wheel drive. The HTRAC system gives the benefits of AWD when needed, but during our testing it was all rear-wheel drive – and it made the difference.
Interior refinements included carbon fiber and aluminum metal interior trim, leather seating surfaces with a microfiber headliner, heated and ventilated front seats, and a panoramic sunroof that opened gave fantastic views of the towering mountain above us.
The Genesis G80 AWD 3.3T Sport comes with a 9.2-inch touchscreen infotainment system with a 17-speaker Lexicon surround sound system.
It also comes with the usual safety equipment for luxury sedans, including automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection and smart cruise control. Functions that weren’t needed that day, but good to have.
As we drove it, the 2018 Genesis G80 AWD 3.3T Sport comes in at $58,725 (MRSP).
