2025 Genesis GV80 Coupe review

Genesis GV80 Cons

I've never understood the point of coupe SUVs, especially considering they're almost always uglier than the conventional SUVs they're based on, cost more, and are less practical.

They never sell as well, either, but there are nevertheless plenty of people out there who like vehicles such as the BMW X6 and Mercedes-Benz GLE Coupe.

They also allow carmakers to cost-effectively spin off another body style of a popular model to appeal to different buyers – considering the price premium they attract, they can help the bottom line.

Enter the 2025 Genesis GV80 Coupe, the Korean luxury brand's first coupe SUV, which goes up against the X6 and GLE Coupe. It's the priciest, least practical and – to my eyes at least – most unattractive member of the updated GV80 lineup.

Not that it's a rolling monstrosity to look at. The basic goodness of the GV80's design is largely unmarred, though there is a similarly sloping rear to rival coupe SUVs instead of the (still quite rakish) posterior of the regular GV80.

Genesis has also made some detail changes to further distinguish it, including a unique front bumper with larger air intakes and a restyled rear bumper.

Designers also gave the tailgate a bit of a duck bill look, while there's a unique spoiler further up; the GV80 Coupe also has its own 22-inch alloy wheel design.

It still hasn't sold me on coupe SUVs in general, but if you're the kind of person who is fond of this body style, you now have another option to consider.

The GV80 Coupe sits atop the range and is available in a single, highly specified trim level.

2025 Genesis GV80 pricing:

To see how the GV80 compares with its rivals, use our comparison tool.

The GV80 Coupe's interior is distinguished from that of its more conventionally styled sibling via some subtle trim tweaks.

Aluminium pedals are standard, for example, while the Coupe foregoes the attractive wood and metal inlays for also attractive "jacquard-pattern" real carbon-fibre appliques.

There's a slightly different range of colourways, with some featuring both colour-contrast stitching and seatbelts.

Where you'll most notice the difference from GV80 to GV80 Coupe, however, is in the rear of the cabin.

That sloped roofline exacts a toll on headroom, and if you're taller than I am – 5'11'', or 180cm – you'll find headroom tight.

You can still opt for dual 14.7-inch entertainment screens mounted on the front seatbacks, while standard second-row amenities include a separate climate zone with controls and vents, two USB-C outlets, a 12V outlet, and heated and ventilated outboard seats.

There are ISOFIX child-seat anchor points for the outboard second-row seats, plus top-tether outlets for all three seating positions.

Naturally, the third row has been removed, while space behind the second row shrinks to 644L. This expands to 1033L with the rear seats folded. For context, the regular GV80 has 735L and 1097L, respectively.

Instead of separate front and rear sunroofs, with fold-down vanity mirrors ahead of the latter, there's a more conventional panoramic sunroof with a thin bar separating the panes.

Otherwise, the interior is identical to the regular GV80. That means material quality is superb, with soft-touch surfaces everywhere, though we wish the trim on the sides of the centre console, where your knees may rest, was softer.

Everything is finished in Nappa leather, suede or soft-touch plastic – even the lowest reaches of the door have soft-touch plastic, as do the inside of the door pockets.

The highlight of the 2025 GV80's cabin is a new 27-inch OLED display that incorporates a digital instrument cluster and the infotainment touchscreen.

Instead of just being two separate screens housed in the one assembly however, it's one continuous display. Should you choose, you can even have a map view extend across the entire display.

Other highlights include an augmented reality (AR) view for the satellite navigation, superimposing turn-by-turn directions over camera footage of the road ahead, while there's the usual array of Genesis features like a quiet mode that mutes the rear speakers; miscellaneous sounds of nature; and a voice memo function.

But where, Genesis, is wireless smartphone mirroring? The company hasn't confirmed whether this will come as part of an over-the-air update.

It's a shame as rivals like the BMW X6 offer this functionality, and it lets down an otherwise impressive suite of technology inside the cabin.

We appreciate Genesis maintaining physical knobs for the climate control, and while the the cupholders have lost their cover as part of a redesign of the centre stack and console, there's a new compartment concealed behind a door that houses the wireless charging pad.

This repositioned pad now allows you to more easily see your phone, which is handy if you want to check it's actually charging.

We still question the logic of having such similar rotary dials for both the infotainment and the transmission in such close proximity to each other.

In fairness, they do feel slightly different and both are lovely, high-quality items, but on at least one occasion I grabbed the wrong one.

The GV80 Coupe debuted overseas with a 309kW/540Nm twin-turbo 3.5-litre V6 with an electric supercharger.

Alas, this is only available in left-hand drive models, which means in Australia the GV80 Coupe sticks with a less powerful carryover twin-turbo V6 from the wagon… not that it's a shrinking violet.

The GV80 Coupe features the same powertrain as its wagon sibling, while Genesis couldn't confirm just what changes have been made to the suspension tune vis-a-vis the wagon.

If there are any they're minor, as the GV80 Coupe drives much like the wagon.

There is one key difference here, however, and that's the presence of a Sport+ mode which adjusts the powertrain, adaptive suspension and steering.

A Flex Brake function also allows you to toggle a sportier brake setting, though I didn't observe a massive difference in feel or performance on our limited drive.

As Sport+ deactivates the stability control, I didn't activate this mode. However, I went into the settings and adjusted the My Mode to put the powertrain, steering and suspension in their respective Sport+ configurations.

The result? Heavier if not exceptionally more feelsome steering, and a noticeably firmer ride that still proved comfortable over rougher rural roads.

It's refreshing to see how tangible the difference is between the drive modes, and while the GV80 Coupe is still far from the sportiest coupe SUV even in its most hardcore drive mode, it should provide owners with plenty of variety.

It's worth noting that even in its firmest suspension setting there's still just a touch of float. We look forward to the GV80 getting the Magma treatment.

As with the regular GV80, the GV80 Coupe features adaptive suspension with Genesis' Road Preview technology. This uses both the windscreen-mounted camera and navigation data to determine what lies ahead and adjusts the suspension accordingly.

The cabin is whisper-quiet, with just a muted growl from the twin-turbo V6. The Active Sound Design function allows you to amplify this and it's not a bad sounding mill, and even in its loudest setting the GV80 Coupe isn't unrefined.

The twin-turbo V6 has competitive power and torque outputs and yet the GV80 Coupe never feels like a rocketship, with Genesis clearly prioritising smooth, effortless thrust.

Notably, the GV80 Coupe is actually slightly less aerodynamic (0.355 vs 0.33) and fractionally slower from 0-100km/h (5.7 seconds vs 5.6 seconds) than the wagon.

It's unclear how much of a difference the more powerful 3.5-litre in left-hand drive models would make in feel.

We saw fuel consumption of 13.6L/100km across our rural drive route, though much of that was spent with the engine, transmission and suspension in their raciest settings.

The regular GV80 now comes standard with all the equipment from the previous Luxury Package, while the GV80 Coupe builds on that spec list with a handful of additional items.

Standard equipment across the range includes:

The six-seat option features second-row captain's chairs and a fixed centre console with a wireless phone charger.

The new GV80 Coupe lacks a rear wiper but adds:

A rear-seat entertainment package is $4500 on all GV80s, and brings dual 14.7-inch touchscreens, a remote control, a USB-C port and an HDMI port.

All models have Genesis Connected Car Services, which include:

You can also use a smartphone app to access the following functions:

The Genesis GV80 is currently unrated by ANCAP, as the five-star safety rating awarded in 2021 applied only to discontinued 2.5-litre turbo-petrol and 3.0-litre turbo-diesel models, and the Coupe body style has never been tested.

Standard safety equipment includes:

The GV80 range is backed by a five-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty with five years or 50,000km of complimentary scheduled servicing.

Servicing is required every 12 months or 10,000km, and Genesis offers its Genesis To You service during the warranty period.

This sees a valet come pick up your Genesis for servicing and leave you with another Genesis vehicle. The complimentary pickup service is only available if you're within 70km driving distance from the Sydney, Melbourne or Brisbane CBDs.

There's five years of roadside assistance, extending to 10 years if you service your vehicle with Genesis.

Look, if you love the styling of coupe SUVs we can't reason with you.

We could say the extra $6000 isn't really worth it for a car that's less practical and drives much the same, but you may have already taken a look at that sloped roofline and those carbon-fibre accents and decided this is the GV80 for you.

It undercuts a BMW X6 xDrive40i by $8900, although with the Bimmer you at least have the option to haggle. You don't with a Mercedes-Benz GLE 450 Coupe though, and that's a whopping $23,900 more.

The GV80 Coupe isn't cheap, but it's wanting for nothing when it comes to standard equipment.

The cost of admission also brings a smooth, powerful twin-turbo V6 engine, a luxuriously appointed interior with one slick 27-inch screen, and an impressive level of refinement.

If you are expecting a sportier driving experience than the plush GV80 with this new body style, you'll be disappointed.

This is still a very comfort-focused SUV. But is that really all that bad? Genesis will eventually release a Magma version of this for rev heads, and for those who want a luxurious, refined SUV and aren't chasing thrills, the GV80 Coupe will suit just fine.

MORE: Buy a Genesis GV80 MORE: Everything Genesis GV80

Content originally sourced from: CarExpert.com.au