Not that this is shocking news, exactly, but an electric-powered Genesis G80 has been seen in testing on the famed Nürburgring track. The Korean luxury automaker has hinted broadly that electric powertrains of some sort were inevitable for its lineup of sedans (and now SUV, with the debut of the GV80). At the last Montreal Auto Show in Montreal in January 2020, the company confirmed its commitment to producing an all-electric sedan by 2021. And here we have an electric G80 in testing.
And it’s no exaggeration to refer to inevitability. Ever-more stringent emissions rules in Europe, for one, mean that all automakers have to get in the EV game if they want to keep their products available in those markets.
And so it is that Genesis is testing a prototype of its newly-revised G80 luxury performance sedan on the track where so many prototypes of the past have cut their teeth.
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From the video, it’s hard to see much of a difference externally between this electric-powered G80 and the regular combustion-engine model. Noteworthy are the absence of exhaust pipes, and a front grille that serves no real purpose, this being an all-electric vehicle. It also appears that the front and rear bumpers have been slightly modified.
According to Motor 1 website, there’s speculation that the model will get a range of around 500 km on a full charge and come equipped with Level 3 autonomous driving systems. Its likely targets if and when it does become a real live production car? The Tesla Model S and the Mercedes-Bens EQS.
Meantime, we still pine for the company’s gorgeous little Mint EV concept, unveiled at the 2019 New York auto show and presented at the Montreal Auto Show this past January.
