Genesis is really pushing for better brand recognition in the U.S. which is why it has chosen the 2019 New York Auto Show as the venue to show off its new Genesis Mint concept, a bold and futuristic city EV. It’s not s spectacular as the super sleek Essentia Concept (a luxurious grand tourer study) that it debuted at last year’s edition of the NY auto show, but it has some cool features, and it bares the promise of inspiring future Genesis production models.

What is The 2020 Genesis Mint Concept?

If you haven’t already noticed by scrolling through the photos, the Mint concept a concept in the older definition of the word - it will never see the production line in a form like this. However, its design and styling foreshadow Genesis’ future design direction. We hope that its cool cargo-only gullwing doors make will somehow make it into a production model, simply because they’re so cool, although chances are realistically slim.

They would have nowhere to go, as this study is a strict two-seater. The front seats also move forward electrically to provide additional access into the back through the front door opening. An unusual and really useless feature, but overall it works with this concept and makes it quite cool.

From the side, the Mint concept looks like a shooting brake supercar, but with a ridiculously small wheelbase. It’s definitely a looker, and it pulls off the supercar look well. Since it’s designed as an all-electric vehicle, the front end has very small openings and the most striking detail here is the full-width light bar that connects the front light clusters.

The amphibian look is certainly also helped by the paint finish applied to it - Genesis calls it “Hunter Green” matte paint, and it is an absolutely beautiful shade; it suits the concept’s design very well too.

Inside, Genesis has concentrated all the car’s functions on a series of six small screens placed to the sides of the steering wheel. The main screen is placed in the middle of the steering wheel, and there’s also an additional long screen extending along the width of the upper part of the dash. None of this looks production ready, but it is quite pretty to look at and not fussy at all - if Genesis’ future interiors will take inspiration from this Cognac leather-clad cocoon, then they’re probably heading in the right direction (at least from a visual, not necessarily functional standpoint).

This is a trend with manufacturers these days, not mentioning performance figures for small, city bound EV concepts, arguing that these figures are irrelevant because by the time such cars reach the road, they will most likely be able to drive themselves and they will need to be smooth, rather than fast.

Further reading

Read our full review on the 2018 Genesis Essentia Concept.