Genesis is preparing to launch a performance version of its GV60 electric crossover under the carmaker’s newly created Magma division, aiming to differentiate itself from Hyundai’s N brand and Kia’s GT line while targeting buyers seeking luxury-focused driving dynamics.
The GV60 Magma has been developed in South Korea, but future Magma models will be engineered and tuned at the Hyundai Motor Europe Technical Center near Frankfurt, Germany. The facility is led by Tyrone Johnson, who played a key role in the development of the Ford Focus RS. He told Top Gear that the first Magma cars designed in Germany, including versions of the GV80 and G80, will arrive in 2027.
“N is ‘corner rascal,’” Johnson said, contrasting Hyundai’s track-focused N division with Genesis’s new approach. “A Magma isn’t about the track, although it will be track capable. It’s a more sophisticated, luxurious driving machine. It has to be about power, and changes to motors and engines are important. But it doesn’t have to be the most powerful [in its class]. It needs sufficient power. Weight is always important. It’s independent of luxury. You have to have weight in focus, partly because range is important and you get diminishing returns with a larger, heavier battery.”
Johnson added that performance differentiation is increasingly software-driven. “Throughout most of my career, separating one car from another was all mechanical engineering. Now it’s all software,” he said. “It is now possible to fundamentally change a car with software.” This suggests the GV60 Magma and future models will use bespoke software tuning to set them apart from Hyundai’s N division vehicles.
Industry reports suggest the GV60 Magma will likely share its dual-motor setup and 84 kWh battery pack with the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N, producing more than 600 horsepower and accelerating from 0-100 km/h in the low three-second range.
