Hyundai->ke201 is a company that definitely wants to get more into the building of luxury cars->ke505, but seems unsure about what route to take. That's fine, it's not such an easy field to break into, and bigger and more experienced companies make mistakes in this area. So Hyundai took a page out of Lexus's->ke47 book and made its first luxury car to look at lot like that of the competition, specifically Lexus. But now Hyundai is looking to make something a little more distinct, and we're starting to see some concepts. The 2013 HCD-14 concept was big, bold and loud, a luxury sedan->ke142 with very obvious performance aspirations. But now Hyundai is trying the opposite approach with the Vision G Concept, a much more understated take on luxury.

The concept is a big grand tourer, the sort of thing that would generally come from a European marque. Hyundai states repeatedly throughout the press material that the aim was to create something subtle, something more for the driver than for onlookers. This isn't always an easy thing to achieve, but the Vision G is a surprisingly good example for a company that has never done anything quite like this before.

Continue reading for the full story Hyundai Vision G Coupe Concept.

Exterior

The overall shape of the Vision G is in keeping with other grand tourers that place an emphasis on luxury, and at some angles, one might wonder if Hyundai was hoping to invite a comparison to the 2016 Bentley Continental GT, although the Hyundai has noticeably more headroom in the back. It has a classic look that is indeed understated, although the front fascia is not without a certain amount of flashiness. Here we find a chromed mesh grille and no shortage of chrome accents, but it stops short of going too far, and is the only part of car that so deliberately draws the eye. There is a long hood, partly because there is a lot of engine to fit under it, but also because the long hood is part of the classic look. The most concept-like touch on the exterior is that the driver's door will open on its own as the owner approaches the car, something like what a valet would do. You might think it a bit gimmicky, but you also probably wouldn't mind having it.

Interior

The interior of the Vision G is extremely well realized for a concept car. This makes a certain amount of sense. A concept car made to be understated is going to very different from other concepts simply by its very nature, but it's still surprising to see. There is all of the wood and quilted leather that we've come to expect from a high-end luxury->ke505 vehicle, and for the most part it looks exceedingly good. The gold accents might be a bit divisive, but a production version of this vehicle would almost certainly have a delete option for these. The press photos put a large amount of emphasis on the speakers, although nothing is actually said of them in the body of the press release. I don't personally care for the overly chromed steering wheel and its chunky switches at all, but this is admittedly subjective.

Drivetrain

The Vision G shares a powerplant with the 2015 Hyundai Genesis and the 2017 Hyundai Equus, Hyundai's 5.0-liter Tau V-8. It produces 420 horsepower and returns decent fuel economy for a V-8 of its size. Of course, all of this sounds pretty pedestrian for a luxury grand tourer which otherwise shoots so high. It's difficult to imagine that Hyundai would develop a new V-12 for the concept, but a little more effort under the hood would help to make the Vision G a bit more special. This is something that could always happen if the car somehow made it to production, and maybe a twin-turbo version of the Tau would be a more fitting means of moving this sort of car.

Conclusion

For what seems like the thousandth time, we in the automotive press will say “It's a great car, but will people buy a luxury car with a _____ badge?” The answer tends to be that they will not, and one need only look at the 2014 Volkswagen Phaeton to see that building a truly incredible luxury car isn't enough to get people to actually buy it. But this could always be different; the Vision G at least doesn't suffer from the Phaeton's problem of looking like a slightly bigger Passat->ke224. The design is much more distinctive -- even striking -- and sometimes that's more important than the badge. The Vision G should at least have a shot, it's a good example of understated luxury, the sort of thing that other carmakers should strive for.