Genesis design study wows, copper-trimmed Airflow underwhelms, next droptop Ferrari
Genesis’ newest electric concept is … not an SUV
Intake: Genesis’ latest design study has a weird name—it’s called the Genesis X Speedium Coupe, named after a Korean racetrack in the city of Inje. The project was spearheaded by Luc Donckerwolke, Genesis’ chief creative officer, and it’s absolutely brilliant, nomenclature aside. X Speedium is more of a design exercise than a preview of an upcoming vehicle, but we’d fully support efforts to make this thing real. The horizontal two lines lamps—a Genesis signature design element—span the entire width of the front fascia, with the lower of the two turning down, then up, to create a crest resembling the Genesis Crest grille. Those twin lines set up an elegant path for the eye to follow back towards the sweeping rear of the vehicle. While this is a coupe, the roofline looks like it could easily handle a second row of passengers. A round of applause for that metallic emerald green paint—Genesis calls it Inje Green—because who doesn’t love a swoopy coupe in a great shade of green?
Exhaust: Donckerwolke and team have taken the Genesis brand’s design language from generic video-game car to double take on Sunset Boulevard. X Speedium—like the X EV concept from which it was stylistically derived—is a breath of fresh air from the deluge of electric crossovers and tricked-up SUV concepts we’ve seen recently. Genesis’ first all-electric offering in the states will be the GV60, which looks … fine. We’re hoping the brand’s future EVs look a lot more like the X Speedium concept rather than the GV60. We’d even deal with the weird name.
Chrysler underwhelms in New York with copper-trimmed Airflow
Intake: The all-new Chrysler Airflow was introduced at January’s Consumer Electronics Show, signaling a new era in EV design for Stellantis. Three months past and the brand is resorting to trim and color changes to make a PR-splash at the New York International Auto Show. So while the first Airflow was white inside and out, the new “Graphite Concept” is black on the outside with dark copper accents throughout. Like, awesome.
Exhaust: There’s no doubt that a clean-sheet EV design like the Airflow deserves a splashy reveal at CES, given the country’s shifting interest toward consumer technology. While Chrysler deserves praise for offering something, anything, new for the auto show season, we still feel a little jilted because this is all we get from an unveiling at a major auto show. A trim job on something we saw elsewhere isn’t a big deal, and the fact that neither are available for purchase yet is a bummer.
Ioniq 5 wins World Car of the Year
Intake: Hyundai’s Ioniq 5 has beaten its Korean cousin the Kia EV6 and the Ford Mustang Mach E to become the 2022 World Car of the Year. Announced at the New York Auto Show, the funky, retro-modern EV won the majority of votes from 102 auto journalists in 33 countries. The Ioniq 5 also won the World Electric Car and World Car Design awards and marks a major turning point for Hyundai, deploying the company’s Electric-Global Modular Platform (E-GMP) which is set to be the basis of another 17 battery-electric EVs from Hyundai and from Genesis by 2030. Other winners included Audi’s e-tron GT which took the World Performance Car gong, the Mercedes-Benz EQS which was voted World Luxury Car. Toyota’s Yaris Cross was named World Urban Car.
Exhaust: It’s Hyundai’s first win at the World Car of the Year awards, but it probably won’t be the last. Stablemate Kia took top honors in 2020 with the Telluride and such is the incredible progress made by the South Korean brands, especially in EVs, that you can expect to see more on the podium in years to come.
America’s Everratis will be built by Aria Group in California
Intake: British classic EV creator Everrati has appointed California’s Aria Group to build its Reimagined Porsche 911 for the American market. Experts in low-volume production and composite materials, the Aria Group already works with Singer and Radford and is on board to meet a rising demand for Everrati’s electro-restomod 964s. Available in Coupe, Targa, and Cabriolet with narrow or wide bodies, the 964 can also be ordered in officially licensed Gulf livery. The top-spec Signature Edition packs a 507-hp rear motor and can reach 62 mph from rest in four seconds and achieve a range of 200 miles.
Exhaust: It makes perfect sense for Everrati to bring in a California partner, since that’s where most of its cars are being ordered. Says CEO Justin Lunny: “These discerning buyers want the look of an icon but would never consider ICE. For them, EV is the only way to go.”
Is this the droptop Ferrari 296 GTS?
Intake: Always a good day when Ferrari is teasing something. Late yesterday, Ferrari’s Instagram uploaded a (very) shadowy photo with a few lit body lines and the following caption: “We have a surprise for you. Don’t miss it on April 19th.” From contours of these body lines (and the avalanche of comments on the post), our money is on a droptop version of the 296 GTB, which would likely dubbed the 296 GTS. In Ferrari parlance, the GTS acronym denotes an open-air variant of an existing model, and the plug-in hybrid, twin-turbo V-6-powered 296 GTB has yet to get the Sawzall treatment on its aluminum body. Place your bets; all will be told on April 19.
Exhaust: While a droptop 296 certainly isn’t a guarantee, there’s precedent. The F8 Tributo, 488, and 458 were all offered as spyders, so it’s safe to assume the 296 would receive the same treatment. Ferrari recently made headlines by announcing that it would take the 296 racing in sports car categories around the world as the 296 GT3; clearly, Maranello is sweet on this high-tech pony. It’s not hard to see why.
