2010 Hyundai Genesis Coupe 3.8 Track

Jason Cammisa hit the nail on the head with his initial review of the Genesis coupe: Fans of domestic pony cars will not be interested in this new Hyundai, even though it shares so many specs with those Big Three poster children. No, the people who'll find themselves signing up for a Genesis coupe will probably most commonly be those who lust after the likes of the Infiniti G37 or the Nissan 370Z but can't quite come up with the $36,000 for the four-seat G or the $30K for a basic two-seat 370Z. The $22K-base-price, four-cylinder Genesis coupe certainly offers a solid alternative to those Nissan products, but I'd personally save my pennies for the G37 (itself an impersonator of the BMW 3-series). I'd definitely like to try a four-cylinder Genesis coupe with the standard suspension, rather than this $30K six-cylinder model with track suspension. My biggest issue with the two-door Genesis is its ride quality. The Genesis sedan (which is barely recognizable as a relative to this car) struggles in this regard, but this "track-tuned" coupe is darn near intolerable. That's OK in an out-and-out sports car, but the Hyundai coupe lacks that mission, which makes the rough ride annoying above all else. Thankfully, the handling and steering are sufficiently sporty, and the somewhat buzzy engine at least sounds pretty ballsy and provides a decent amount of oomph. The gearbox is better than that of the G37, too, but it's still a bit wonky and too notchy. Also, the clutch has a pretty small, grabby engagement point, which makes smooth driving a bit tricky. I do quite like the two-door Genesis's interior design, and the build quality in the cabin is very good as well, even if there are some cold, hard plastics here and there. The exterior's overall styling isn't my cup of tea, nor is the bright yellow paint, but at least this car makes an effort to stand out from other Korean cars. And I definitely admire Hyundai for boldly jumping into this supercompetitive, low-volume category. Keep 'em coming, Hyundai; you'll have a Mustang-fighter before too long ... Rusty Blackwell, Copy Editor