New Flavor To A Favorite Dish: The 2018 Genesis G80 RWD 3.3T Sport

The 2018 Genesis G80 RWD 3.3T Sport.

A year and a quarter ago, we professed our deep admiration for the 2017 Genesis G80 5.0.   Something to the effect of  "a Lexus LS competitor for GS money." Not much there we'd change, but the world is changing and five liters worth of V8 under the hood is the old way of doing things, so for its sophomore year, the G80 is offering a 3.3-liter V6 twin-turbo model known as the 3.3T Sport.

2018 Genesis G80 RWD 3.3T Sport.

Choosing the 3.3T Sport over the 5.0 involves some tradeoffs.  The first is power.  The V8 cranks out 420 horsepower, the twin-turbo six 365.  The twin-turbo offsets a lot of that when it comes to off-the-line acceleration, but there's no way not to notice 55 missing horsepower.  And fuel economy only improves incrementally, from 16 city/24 highway in the 5.0 to 17 city/25 highway in the 3.3T Sport.

So where's the upside?  It comes in handling.  The 3.3T Sport is less nose-heavy than the 5.0.  The CDC sport suspension with intelligent drive mode  and high performance brakes allows you to make better, more precise use of the power on hand.  It's simply the more satisfying driver's car of the two.

A base price of $55,250 is actually $1,750 less than the $57,000 base price of the G80 5.0.  Standard equipment includes vehicle stability management, electronic stability control, traction control, ABS and brake assist as well as automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection, driver attention alert, blind spot detection with rear cross-traffic alert, lane keep assist, smart cruise control with stop and start, a multi-view camera, front and rear parking sensors, electronic parking brake with auto vehicle hold, rain-sensing wipers with an automatically-defogging windshield, an eight-speed automatic transmission with Shiftronic and paddle shifters, sport chrome quad exhaust tips and 19-inch sport alloy wheels with all-season tires.

2018 Genesis G80 RWD 3.3T Sport interior.

Inside, you'll find carbon fiber and aluminum trim, pushbutton start, a power tilt-and-slide panoramic sunroof, automatic headlights with high-beam assist, premium leather seating surfaces and black microfiber suede headliner, sport front seats and steering wheel with contrast stitching, and a leather-wrapped power tilt and telescoping steering wheel.

The driver's seat is a 16-way power unit, the front passenger 12-way power.  Both are heated and ventilated.  There's a dual automatic temperature control with CO2 sensor, a full-color heads-up display, auto-dimming rearview mirror with compass and Homelink, a seven-inch color LCD multi-information display and a 9.2-inch color touch screen for the nav and entertainment, which includes Android Auto, Apple CarPlay, AM/FM/XM and HD Radio, all tied into a 17-speaker Lexicon Quantum Logic audio system.

There's also a wireless charging pad, power rear and manual rear side sunshades, a hands-free smart power trunk lid, three years or 36,000 miles complimentary maintenance, complimentary service valet, complimentary Genesis connected services, complimentary SiriusXM Traffic and Travel Link, three years of complimentary map care and 24/7 enhanced roadside assistance and concierge services.

And that's all standard.  The test car had zero options (a rarity).  And with $975 inland freight and handling, the bottom line came to $56,225...or still $775 below the base price of the 5.0.  That's addition by subtraction.  The smaller engine and fewer horses help make the 2018 Genesis G80 3.3T Sport the more satisfying and less expensive car.