G90 should be priced under LS500 while offering performance and luxury that outdoes Sclass.

Yesterday, I was invited by a local dealer to drive the brand new, 2023 Genesis G90. I drove their top line model with the supercharged V6. Honestly, I came prepared to really be turned off, but the car is pretty amazing.

Back in 2017, Genesis loaned me a G90 for a two day test drive. There were several things that were a turn-off about that car, enough for me to not consider it a contender in the luxury sedan category. This new car is light years better.

The car drives amazingly well, with plenty of pep from the 409hp twin-turbo V6 with an electric supercharger. I would call the propulsion “buttery,” being extremely smooth. Transmission shifts are almost imperceptible.

Ride quality was superb, which was truly amazing, since the car rode on 21” wheels, which are standard on this model. I drove on the freeway and then on some fairly rough surface streets and I was very impressed with the comfort. The wheel design, to my way of thinking, is overly busy and should I ever end up with one of these cars, I’d probably swap out the wheels first thing, hopefully for something smaller in diameter and of a less fussy design. Unfortunately, Genesis provides no spare, but provides a “TireFit” kit. Kudos to Genesis for providing Michelin tires, where one might expect to see the Hankooks that MB saddled me with on my S580.

Genesis has also found it necessary to copy other brands by going with pop-out door handles and an all glass, pano-style roof. How I could have done without either of those!

The massage seats are infinitely better than in my S580. The adjustable pressure is significantly firmer and deeper, while being absolutely silent. I find the “popping” sound made in my S580 to be irritating and have always felt that the pressure was lacking.

Believe it or not, the doors have electric closers with buttons on the door panel and on the center console. Touch the button and the door closes. No stretching to reach the door. Why MB didn’t do this on the W223 is just beyond me. Well done Genesis.

The upgraded Bang & Olufsen sound system seems to rival the 4D in my S580 and is standard in the supercharged model. With 1700 watts & 23 speakers, it’s no wonder why.

Most all features have buttons & switches in addition to the touchscreen controls and the dash layout is much more traditional than the W223. I like it.

The wood trim in the cabin is dull and reasonably ugly. The fact that it really isn’t all that noticeable is a good thing. Even though the interior is very well done, it does not compare with the Exclusive Nappa W223 option. Genesis needs to work on this. The interior could be more attractive. And, just to show that they can be as stupid as MB, the cream color interior has near white, cream colored carpeting, which is insane and completely impractical.

In summing up, right at $100K MSRP, the car is a bargain, in my opinion. I need to drive one for a few hours to really make up my mind as to how good it really is, but based on my 15 minute test drive, I am very impressed. With this new car, I truly believe the new G90 to be a player in the MB, BMW, Audi luxury sedan segment.