GENESIS GV80 - HOW TO SHOW THE WORLD YOU'RE SERIOUS by John Crawford

It doesn’t matter from which angle you view the new Genesis GV80 SUV – it’s a handsome car.

It’s also a beautiful car to drive.

The GV80 is truly a premium product by any standard analysis, and whilst its primary market competitor may appear to be the BMW X5, I think Hyundai could easily set its sights higher.

On the road the GV80 is simply a great driving experience. Yes, I know, I’m the guy who hates SUVs in any form – but forgetting for a moment that it’s a hulk, the driving feedback is exceptionally good for a first-time effort.

Pricing starts at AUD$90K+, but the top model is AUD$108K, and that’s how this car was equipped, featuring a twin-turbo V6 petrol, mated to an 8-speed auto. There’s a ‘Luxury Pack’ priced at a mere AUD$10K, which I think will represent the lion’s share of sales.

The fact that this car is handsome to look at, and equipped with every known piece of ‘tech’ you could specify, should be no surprise to industry insiders. The GV80 came from the same pen as the designer of the Bentley Bentayga – Luc Donckerwolke.

Whilst Hyundai’s parent may have priced the GV80 to compete with lesser lights than da grosse Bentley, a personal driving sampler will tell you it’s right up there with the car from Crewe.

It’s impressively quiet, but that’s mostly down to the ‘active noise suppression’ software, however whilst the soft-riding characteristics might suggest the GV80 will wallow in the bends, it doesn’t.

It’s very surefooted and the adaptive dampers suggest that the Australian crew which generally sorts out Hyundais for Australia’s varied road surfaces, will have little to do to ‘localise’ the GV80. Personally, I think it’s fine just the way it is.

The topline model boasts three rows of seating with two pieces of very useful tech. There’s a front seat microphone set-up which can transfer “Shut up back there” to the third row, so there can be no misunderstandings; and you can recline the third row from the front seat, should the passengers drift off to sleep during a trip. In addition, raising and lowering the third row is electronically-assisted from the rear load space.

The external profile suggests there should be more headroom for the third row passengers, but I suspect they'll most likely be small in stature, and it won't be an issue.

The GV80 is filled with thoughtful touches, and the detail execution could have come direct from the Bentley playbook. Fit and finish margins inside and out are impressively consistent and finely engineered.

If this sounds like a rave – it is. I think the GV80 is not only a fantastic first effort, but it highlights the technical capability of Korea’s biggest carmaker. It has ‘world domination’ written boldly across its handsome shape.

If Hyundai Chairman Euisun Chung set out to reveal Hyundai’s competence to the automotive world, he couldn’t have chosen a more impactful way to do it.

While I personally rate the Genesis sedans very highly, the GV80 is the model which can put Genesis on the 'Desirable Brand' map!

John Crawford

WHY NO 'BIG THREE'? by John Crawford

Recently I posited again about the future of the automotive industry being sustained by collaborations between car companies, and combinations of brands being built in single factories.

 

This highlighted two things I did not mention. First, is the massive (truly ‘massive’) degree of under-utilized manufacturing capacity which exists in the world today. Unions, governments and ‘experts’ are trying vainly to promote the idea that we must (do anything) to save these jobs, despite the fact that the world cannot sustain the level of excess capacity which currently exists. This photo shows 'excess capacity' vehicles 'on grass'!

This focusses us on governments taking the lead in re-training, rather than uselessly accommodating the idea that these automotive workers’ jobs can be retained.

The second element which may appear to have been overlooked by me in my story about Mazda using the Toyota Yaris as the basis for the next Mazda 2, is that I did not mention among the companies which will survive – the American ‘Big Three’.

Let’s dispense with a lie – there is no ‘Big Three’. NONE of these companies exert any element of the global dominance they previously did. Today, they're just domestic American car makers - that's all.

Chrysler (the junior member), now called Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA), has been acquired by Groupe PSA to form Stellantis. Exit Chrysler from the Club.

 

Next, GM (post-bankruptcy) is a shadow of its former self and is following policies which result in GM only making cars in the USA and China. It has retreated from all its prior global markets – Europe, UK, Australia, South Africa are all areas it has abandoned. Exit GM from the Club.

 

Ford, the apparent, and only Big Three survivor, will, in terms of capitalisation barely survive without a slew of collaboration agreements to keep its (now, ambitious) policy of remaining active in far-flung global markets.

 

Ford has already begun signing co-operative and collaborative agreements with a host of companies covering the development of autonomous cars; electric vehicles; Subscription Services; Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles (FCEVs); and to ‘save’ its plethora of models whose individual (and) total volumes do not justify the huge investment it has in manufacturing facilities.

 

Ford will be forced to shed jobs in many of its global operations, and, like GM, is likely to retire to just making cars for domestic consumption in the USA – rather than remain a powerhouse (?) in global markets.

I mean, does any other country lust after humungous 7-Litre V8 pickups?

So, forget about referring to ‘The Big Three’ – they no longer exist, and no longer really deserve consideration as automotive barons of any great note, with massive influence in world markets.

 

The ‘Big Three’ is part of an era which has passed. The future, and the centre, of the global car industry is 'for now' firmly based in Europe, and Japan (but only Toyota - no-one else).

 

Even that does not guarantee survival, but at least the ideas that promote collaboration took root in Europe, and may result in a sustainable existence.

 

JOHN CRAWFORD

BATTERY ELECTRIC VEHICLES, THE FUTURE? by BUSINESS INSIDER

 As far as many politicians are concerned electric vehicles are the future of the motor car. Especially BEVs (Battery Electric Vehicles).

Well guys and girls sitting on both government and opposition benches around the world - think again. This sobering report from BUSINESS INSIDER is worth a read. This is reality.

DOMINICK REUTER

BUSINESS INSIDER (USA Edition)

PREPARE FOR MAZDA BY YARIS - by John Crawford

I have been forecasting for quite a while that collaboration and combinations of car companies and brands will be the future for the automotive industry because of the mounting costs of designing, creating and building models exclusive to each brand.

 

The survivors will be the current giants of the industry and that almost certainly will be led by Toyota and Volkswagen; Groupe PSA; and just maybe groupings like the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance.

 

News from Europe that Toyota will build a Yaris Hybrid, badged as the next Mazda 2, in Toyota's factory in Northern France, comes hot on the heels of the news that Toyota will also build Corolla and RAV4 hybrids for Suzuki.

In addition Mazda is getting ready to badge the next Isuzu D-Max utility as the new Mazda BT-50; and although the collaboration between Daimler AG and the Renault-Nissan-Alliance fizzled out after Carlos Ghosn disappeared from the scene, there was supposed to be a growing collaboration between the two, to keep Infiniti on life-support by building new Infiniti models off the smaller Mercedes-Benz CLA and GLA variants.

 

For example, the Infiniti Q30 and QX30 built off the GLA, was supposed to be followed by a new Infiniti Q50, based on the latest CLA, with all these cars built in the Mercedes-Benz facility in Aguascaliente in Mexico.

 

The disruption caused by the appearance of brands like Tesla and a range of new offerings from Chinese companies will also fragment the global motor industry. So, get ready for a whole bunch of look-alike cars with different badges not too far down the road.

 

The costs to the automotive industry of meeting lower emission goals, and the (proposed) death of internal combustion engines, is going to be enormous, and some smaller companies may well disappear.

 

We are approaching the end of an era.

 

JOHN CRAWFORD

BMW'S COUPES ARE 'ON THE NOSE' by Paul Gover

All the talk about the new BMW 4-Series coupes is about the nose.

The frontal styling of the newcomers is as bold, dramatic and confronting as anything that has hit the road in the past 20 years. Or probably longer.

 

BMW has traditionally had a pair of radiator openings that it calls the ‘kidney grilles’, set symmetrically side-by-side, and just below, the company’s spinning propellor badge on the bonnet.

 

Now, even with little need for a radiator opening - and definitely not in upcoming electric cars - every carmaker is looking to make a statement with its nose and BMW has trumped them all. It’s a royal flush.

Us poor, unsuspecting, but keen-eyed enthusiasts, did not know anything about the dramatic new look when the prototypes appeared in the Black Forest. We didn't know the nose was about blow us away.

Apart from the nose, the new 4-Series is much as you would expect.

 

It’s a two-door take on the excellent change up for the latest 3 Series, with the refinement and style you expect of a German luxury coupe.

 

There are a range of 4 Series models, starting with the 420i and moving up through the 430i and M440i xDrive, to the hotrod M4 that will be the dream machine for most 4 Series buyers.

 

Pricing starts from AUD$71,000 and ramps up rapidly to AUD$159,900 for the M4 Competition, but in many ways it’s best to stay with the 420i.

Why is that? Because all the basics are the same; because it is well equipped for the real needs of almost anyone; and because the 420 is now a little cheaper than the car it replaced, and also comes with an M Sport package - think 19-inch alloys, electric front sports seats and some other visual tweaking - as standard.

The car has a 2-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine and a ZF eight-speed automatic with shift paddles, feeding to old-school rear-wheel drive.

 

Things I like include the wireless phone charging and Apple CarPlay; the excellent LED headlights with auto high beam; a big infotainment screen; and a ‘parking assist’ package that combines radar, cameras and semi-automated reverse parking.

All very clever, but I did get my drivers' licence a while ago, and I still remember how to accurately reverse park.

The only observation I have about the interior is that it is clean, and slick - but I can't help feeling that overall the functional design needs updating.

 

There is no official ANCAP safety score for the 4 Series, and none is likely, but it should mirror the 5-Star performance of the 3 Series sedan. And it comes with all the safety-net stuff you would expect, from auto safety braking and speed-sign recognition to a rear-traffic alert.

 

The best thing about the 420i - and I’ve driven the 430 and 440 - is that you get everything you want.

The cabin is familiar stuff from the 3 Series; the performance is solid without getting silly; and the chassis performance is excellent. It’s a sweet, well-balanced car that is quiet and comfy on a cruise, but can also deliver more than enough fun on a twisty road.

Compared with the Mercedes C-Class, its most obvious rival, the BMW has edged back in front thanks to the overall excellence of the company’s work on the 3 Series. 

 

But Benz-lovers, fear not – Mercedes-Benz has big plans for its all-new C-Class range, which has been revealed in Europe, but won’t be getting here any time soon, so the eternal BMW-Benz pendulum could swing the other way for 2022 and beyond.

Who nose?

 

Right now, the 420i is a terrific car that is classy and affordable.

If only it didn’t have that nose...

Paul Gover

IT'S ALL ABOUT MEN MAKING THE BIG DECISIONS, RIGHT? by John Crawford

When the ‘Rose Gold’ Bentley Continental GT V8 coupe was on my drive recently, it was universally praised by both men and women in our small community at Lakelands.

I was initially surprised by the equality of the preferences, as I had thought it may not appeal to men, but most guys said it was a striking colour, which highlighted Stefan Sielaff’s subtle design details.

 

Which reminded me of a great story when I was PR Director for Daewoo Auto Australia (1994-1998). In 1995 we launched the Daewoo Cielo sedan and hatchback, which was an update to the previous model, based on the GM T-car (Opel Astra, Holden/Isuzu Gemini, Chevrolet/Vauxhall Chevette).

 

One of the new Daewoo colours was what I would describe as a metallic and attractive ‘Champagne Beige’. Unfortunately I don’t have any correct reference photos, so these two Google Photos will have to suffice.

Of the first 800 Cielos we imported, about 250 were ‘Champagne Beige’ and they sold like hot cakes (perhaps unsurprisingly), to women. The colour really hit the right buttons.

 

The following year the Daewoo Australia executive team travelled from Sydney to Seoul for the annual product planning meetings. Imagine our surprise when we were told that ‘Champagne Beige’ was being discontinued. We protested, backed-up by sales data showing the wild popularity of the colour for a very important segment.

 

NOTE: It’s worth pointing out that Daewoo Auto Australia was only formed in August 1994, so by 1995 it was still a young company – which, thanks to clever, off-beat advertising, went on to sell 21,000 cars a year by 1998.

The head of the Product Group, a particularly arrogant, unctuous, rude and crude Korean male told us:

“The colour is too ‘girly’ and makes it look like we only sell Daewoos for women.” He refused to budge on the decision, and said the new colour range would be aimed at male buyers, to reinforce that “men were much more important than women.”(???)

 

Daewoo Group eventually went bust in November 1999 with debts of USD$75 billion; and its Chairman, Kim Woo Choong, was sentenced to jail for 10 years, charged with embezzlement and fraud, for covering up the massive leveraged debt.

He died in December 2019 aged 83.

John Crawford

JAGUAR F-TYPE 'R' - 'REALLY FANTASTIC' by John Crawford

It’s like ‘old home week’ around here. First up, an all-too-brief drive experience in a magnificent Bentley Continental GT V8 coupe; and then a turn in the latest Jaguar F-type R coupe – this drive made extra-special, thanks to the supercharged 5L V8.

 

Where I waxed poetically about the significant design refinements on the Bentley by Stefan Sielaff, the subtle changes to the Jaguar F-type seem almost to defy comparison with the car it replaces.

However, Jaguar’s Design Chief, Julian Thompson, and exterior design manager Adam Hatton, have executed what all good designers do best – effect change you almost don’t notice, but once acquainted with the details, they flag the skill and talent of people who create an art form in metal.

There’s no point in trying to be clever by ‘playing’ with words on the subject of design changes. So, let’s cut to the chase and I’ll just quote the text from the press release.

‘Calligraphy’ J signature daytime running lights and sweeping direction indicators blend perfectly into the ‘liquid metal’ surfacing of the new clamshell bonnet. The new front bumpers and subtly enlarged grille deliver even more visual impact and presence. 

The rear haunches enhance the F-TYPE’s inherently dramatic, purposeful form, and sweep downwards to the slender rear LED lights with ‘Chicane’ signature inspired by the all-electric I-PACE Performance SUV. 

When highlighted, that description says it all, the changes are symbiotic with the image of the original F-type penned by my legendary friend, Ian Callum.

 

In the almost 20 years I was associated with Jaguar, we always used to say that Jaguar styling should “reflect the car as being fast, when simply standing still.”

This new F-type coupe superbly reflects that epithet, in so many ways.

Now, to a more serious tone. Sales. Pre-pandemic Jaguar sales demographics had split dramatically – cars were ‘on the nose’ and Crossovers were taking the lion’s share. The JLR Board dived into a massive cost-cutting program, gutting funds for some planned programs, using pencils instead of biros, and perhaps even placing limits on toilet paper usage!

 

Despite my desultory comments, the program appears to have paid off, because by the time the pandemic’s effect was felt across the entire auto industry, JLR was in a much better position to parry the changed financial conditions.

 

So, here we have the facelifted F-type, together with a large number of under-the-skin changes which have had a profound effect on the cars’ dynamics.

Matched to new springs and anti-roll bars, the chassis is further enhanced by the continuously-variable dampers. The valves inside each damper, and the control algorithms have been recalibrated to improve both low-speed comfort and high-speed control.

The rear knuckles are now aluminium die castings, which, together with new, larger wheel bearings and revised upper ball joints increase camber and toe stiffness by 37 per cent and 41 per cent respectively. This results in more precise control of the tyre contact patch, which translates to an even more connected steering feel. 

These unseen changes in mechanicals produce a car which is instantly more responsive at high speeds, and introduces greater confidence at the steering wheel.

However once the boot spoiler deploys at 113km/h, you almost get an instant visualisation that you’re at a track day, dicing with your sport-friendly competitors.

What more can you demand of a performance-focussed classic sports car?

I think I’ve said enough. Nothing I can add to this text can change the reality that Jaguar, as a widely-acknowledged and iconic sports car specialist, can produce in this year of 2021, such an accomplished and satisfying example of the breed.

The all-wheel-drive F Type R is very surefooted and responsive, but I am not happy about the level of tyre roar from the Pirelli P-Zeros.

Of course, selecting Dynamic Mode, or by pressing the switchable exhaust button before starting the engine, ensures the distinctive crackle and pop on the overrun which is synonymous with F-TYPE – with the sounds meticulously tuned to suit the distinctive character of each model.  That goes some way to eliminating focus on tyre noise, whilst upping the ‘fun factor’.

Wisely, JLR ditched the full-size spare wheel. On a test drive out of Boston Logan airport to Cape Cod some years ago, my wife and I struggled to accommodate two 62cm rollaway bags, plus our hand baggage – one of which she was forced to nurse on her lap until we arrived at our accommodation.

This is one instance where automotive art and practicality did not form a harmonious bond.

However, on Cape Cod’s wonderful driving roads the F-type coupe was a sheer delight and although I would have liked Jaguar’s new generation sports cars to be somewhat lighter, nimbler and perhaps more basic, I can easily understand that at this level of the market, customers want all the bells-and-whistles and that increases complexity, weight, function-overload and of course, price.

And of course, you couldn’t build a simple sports car like the XK-120 today, because modern legislation, regulatory standards for crash safety, pedestrian protection, side intrusion and crumple zones render that idea unrealistic.

On the flowing, undulating roads I use to sample high speed handling, the F-type was a heady pleasure – superbly responsive, flat in its stance and perfectly poised.

The car you see here starts at AUD$262,936, however with quite useful and pleasure-packed options, the price (before on-road costs) is AUD$272,849.

So, if I judged the AUD$570,000 Bentley Continental GT V8 as a ‘Gold Standard’, then the F-type R is a fantastic bargain for the joy and driving pleasure it delivers.

John Crawford