13 Things We Want to See in the New Coupe From Genesis

Hyundai has announced that 2016 will be the last year for its Genesis coupe.

While it’s sad that the rear-wheel-drive coupe and Hyundai’s only sports car will no longer be available, you can put your grieving on hold because it’s very likely that a successor to this car is coming from the Korean automaker, although under a different name.

See, Hyundai has launched a new luxury brand called Genesis. Currently offered within the brand is the G80 executive sedan and G90 flagship sedan. Both sound like solid, if a little sterile, players on a small roster. Adding a rear-wheel-drive sports coupe would help spice things up in the lineup and make the brand a bit sexier and enticing for new customers.

ALSO SEE: Hyundai Genesis Coupe Discontinued

Trying to compete against the likes of German sports coupes and American muscle cars alike, this Korean brand has to not only keep up with the established norms in the segment, but also bring its own killer features to stand out from the crowd. In terms of styling, expect a new Genesis coupe to take cues from the Vision G concept we saw during Monterey Car Week about a year ago. We have a few photos of it in this post for reference.

So Genesis, if you’re listening, here’s our wishlist for what we want to see on the next sports coupe.

Lets not kid ourselves – the transmission in the Genesis Coupe was a bit of a dud, especially the manual one, which was vague and way too easy to slip into the wrong gear. While it’s unlikely that the new luxury coupe will be available with a manual (only the BMW 4 Series offers a six-speed manual), we can hope that the Korean brand turns to or benchmarks an established transmission supplier like ZF to provide a solid shifter for its luxury two-door. Responsive and engaging feeling paddle shifters are a must, but if it really wants to wow enthusiasts, Genesis should offer a slick manual as well.

Despite this vehicle not really being classified as a sports car, owners probably don’t treat it like a lifeless appliance. Performance metrics would go a long way to boost the car’s status as a sporty offering, and things like G-force meters, boost gauges and power meters would really look cool and help drivers better understand their car and performance. The old Genesis had three gauges in the center stack, but they were more ornamental and were placed too far down on the center console to be useful to a driver. We hope the new Genesis has useful data displayed right in the gauge cluster where a driver can see it easily.

And that kind of information would look silly in simple dials or an old school LCD screen. Genesis has to deliver a vibrant, unique and gorgeous digital display, kind of like Audi’s Digital Dashboard. This is an all-new coupe and the automaker might as well make it look fresh with unique technology, and not just recycled stuff from the other cars in the stable. A digital display will also help the car’s interior look more luxurious and modern.

And while the high-performance model would have more power, more carbon fiber, more grip and more everything, we think that an option on the regular Genesis should include high-performance brakes. Carbon ceramics may be the way to go here if Genesis really want to look like a serious contender to the established brands in the segment, but even stoppers from Brembo, like in the outgoing Hyundai Genesis Coupe, may be enough to catch the eyes of enthusiasts looking for a new coupe. Carbon ceramics are expensive, and they might have to be reserved for the high-po model to keep the price of the regular coupe competitive.

Speaking of the interior and materials, Alacantara is a must-have. In fact, the upcoming coupe from Genesis needs to be able to compete with the Mercedes C-Class in terms of interior design and quality. How can that be possible? It needs to have a visually interesting and cohesive theme that isn’t confusing, too dark or bland and has the right mix of sport and luxury. Seats should be luxurious and supportive, but also sporty so they could grip the driver during enthusiastic driving.