GV60 Magma Lands at $69,950 With Fake Gear Shifts

Genesis’s first performance car, the 2027 GV60 Magma, starts at $69,950 before a $1,545 destination charge, makes up to 641 horsepower, and simulates gear changes that an electric motor does not need.

The Magma is on sale now at select Genesis retailers in California, New York and New Jersey, and it is the opening act for a performance sub-brand Genesis plans to spread across its lineup. It uses the same dual-motor hardware as the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N, a 166-kilowatt front motor and a 282-kilowatt rear motor fed by an 84-kilowatt-hour battery, but wraps it in a wider, lower body with 21-inch forged wheels, front canards, fender breathers and a winglet-style rear spoiler.

Genesis set the price in a July 29 release that lists the car as a single fully equipped trim. The motors produce about 600 horsepower and 546 pound-feet in normal driving, rising to 641 horsepower and 583 pound-feet in Boost Mode. Standard equipment includes an electronic limited-slip differential, launch control, Drift Mode, a GT mode for fast cruising, a Sprint mode that sharpens handling and power delivery, and High-Performance Battery Control to manage heat on a track. "GV60 Magma marks an exciting new chapter for Genesis as we expand our lineup to meet the evolving needs and passions of our customers," said Tedros Mengiste, chief operating officer of Genesis Motor North America.

The gimmicks are the point. Virtual Gear Shift recreates the feel of a multi-speed gearbox with a virtual rev counter, shift feedback through the drivetrain and on-screen gear indicators, while e-Active Sound Design Plus plays engine-style sounds through speakers at the front and rear of the car with a Magma soundtrack Genesis says was inspired by the Goodwood Festival of Speed. Drift Mode can run with both at once. Inside, the Magma gets Genesis’s first performance bucket seats in Obsidian Black suede with Magma Orange stitching, dedicated Boost and Magma Mode buttons on the steering wheel, alloy pedals and a 27-inch OLED display. Paint choices are Magma Orange, Uyuni White, Vik Black and Makalu Gray Matte.

MotorTrend’s first test, published October 28, measured a 4,938-pound car at $72,145 with destination. It reached 60 mph in 3.3 seconds, a tenth quicker than Genesis’s own claim, ran the quarter mile in 11.3 seconds at 127.3 mph, stopped from 60 mph in 103 feet and pulled 0.95 g on the skidpad, with a figure-eight lap two tenths quicker than the Ioniq 5 N’s. The magazine also found the Hyundai quicker in a straight line, with a 2.8-second run to 60 and an 11.0-second quarter mile, and priced it at $62,550, so the Genesis costs about $9,600 more for its interior, badge and wing. MotorTrend put the EPA figures at 78 mpg-e combined and 222 miles of range, recorded 182 miles in its 70-mph highway test and added 121 miles of range in 15 minutes of fast charging. Its verdict was that the Magma is fast, precise and beautifully finished but prefers understeer to playfulness, and that it stops and handles better than a Tesla Model Y Performance while costing far less than a Porsche Macan Electric.

The HyundaiHQ Take

Genesis priced the Magma exactly where it needed to: a few thousand dollars above its Hyundai cousin and tens of thousands below the Porsche it is benchmarked against, which makes it the rare performance EV that looks like reasonable money. The Ioniq 5 N being quicker is awkward but not fatal, because the buyer who wants the fastest possible launch already knows where to find it, and the buyer who wants a suede-lined cabin and a Genesis badge did not want to drive a Hyundai anyway. The bigger job for Genesis is making sure the Magma name means something when it reaches the GV70 and the sedans, because a sub-brand launched in three states is a start, not a statement.