Gallery
Launched just a few years ago, the Genesis GV70 came out of the box with its guns blazin’.
This was a fully realized product that put the established luxury brands on notice, wowing with its refined drivetrains, slick styling, class leading interior, and incredible value. This compact crossover has been a darling of the pundits since its debut, winning more awards than Meryl Streep. About the only thing it doesn’t have going for it is a German legacy badge on its hood.
The 2026 Genesis GV70 flaunts more than a few updates aimed at keeping the brand’s most popular model in Canada firmly in that position moving forward.
Tidy New Look
The 2026 GV70 has a refreshed fascia, redesigned split exterior lighting, new wheel options, and some fresh colours. Other exterior tweaks include a new rear spoiler and trapezoidal exhaust outlets versus the outgoing round ones that were big enough to house a family of squirrels. Four-cylinder models have their exhaust ports hidden behind the bumper.
The GV70’s cabin has always been its standout feature. Its organic design, unassailable quality, artistic colour choices, and attention to detail launched it into an orbit usually populated by much more expensive vehicles. And while the traditional flowing dash line of old is missing, this new cabin is still a paragon of style and class even with its new expanse of digital real estate. The new look — complete with a 27-inch screen — means it loses a number of physical buttons, as the HVAC is now controlled through a haptic panel on the lower dash, although Genesis retained rotary knobs for temperature control. This dedicated panel is clearly laid out and easy to operate. Above is a control panel for audio with a row of well-marked haptic buttons.
New Interior Tech
The GV70’s centre console has been reconfigured; the cupholders are in a more convenient space beside the gear selection dial, and the wireless phone charger is now the traditional flat type as opposed to the previous covered slot from before. The gear selector is still in close proximity to the rotary infotainment controller, but they now look and feel different, which should reduce the chance of mixing them up.
There’s a slim ambient light feature that sweeps right around the entire cabin just below the window line, adding a sense of occasion. It’s subtle and classy, and sidesteps the trend towards Vegas-like garishness some German automakers are currently embracing. The brand’s latest digital key system allows a paired smartphone to work to lock, unlock, and start the vehicle, as well as having the capacity to remotely monitor and control certain functions.
With the new 27-inch screen comes updated infotainment, now with wireless support for both Apple CarPay and Android Auto. It’s a slick look, with instruments on the left and infotainment on the right. As with the outgoing GV70’s infotainment, the graphics are stellar, and navigating the system is a breeze. If you’re running Waze or Google Maps, they can be displayed on the instrument side of the screen in front of the driver.
Another nice feature is the blind-spot view monitoring system that uses rear-facing cameras in the door mirrors to send an image to the instrument display when the signals are activated. There’s also a multi-view 360-degree camera system that also gives a 3-D view of the vehicle — drag your finger over the image to change the view angle.
Genesis has also reworked the GV70’s steering wheel for 2026. The old two-spoke unit was ditched for a three-spoke unit (flat-bottomed in the V6) that feels more natural in the hands. An engineer spoke of how they increased the actual physical weight of the wheel and worked on the damping to give it a more substantial, premium feel. It’s a pretty decent illustration of how obsessive these folks are.
Genesis has switched from Lexicon audio to Bang and Olufsen surround sound bragging 16 speakers and 1,400 watts. The previous systems were superb — and the new one in the top trim is, too.
The rear half of the cabin feels special with its well-contoured seats and beautifully tailored leather here in the top trim. While not best in class for space, there’s still plenty of head- and legroom, and occupants get seat heat, manual window shades, a climate control panel, two USB-C ports, and a 110-volt household outlet.
Same Power
No changes were made to the powertrains for 2026. The turbocharged 2.5L four-cylinder makes 300 hp and 311 lb-ft of torque, while the twin-turbo V6 churns out 375 hp and 391 lb-ft of torque. Both engines are hooked to a smooth shifting eight-speed automatic transmission, and all-wheel drive is standard.
Genesis strengthened the body and chassis and added standard monoblock brake calipers. Fluid-filled bushings are claimed to improve ride quality, and there’s a new terrain mode that tweaks the hardware and software for moderate off-pavement excursions. This augments eco, comfort, sport, sport+, and custom settings.
Cathedral Quiet
The GV70 has always offered an expert blend of compliance and sport, with its dynamic equation leaning more toward the comfort side. The 2026 3.5T Sport trim tested here, with its standard adaptive damping, was the very definition of serenity on a mix of highway and sweeping two-lane country roads. The cabin is cathedral quiet thanks to standard active noise cancellation, acoustic glass, and new-for-2026 hollow chamber 21-inch alloy wheels that were designed to absorb tire noise.
The V6 model also gets “road preview,” a system that reads the surface ahead via the front camera, then adjusts the adaptive suspension accordingly to smooth out the ride. It seems to work well, although the big 21-inch wheels make themselves known over the rough stuff. (The base $60,000 Advanced 2.5L model runs on 19-inch wheels, but doesn’t have the fancy suspension.)
If you want to get sporty in your Genesis GV70 3.5T Sport, it’s more than happy to play along, although you won’t find the dynamic excellence of the Porsche Macan here — or even the new BMW X3, although to a lesser extent. However, this Genesis is plenty quick, it handles very well, and will put up a good pace on a winding B-road.
Could I complain about the lazy response to paddle shifter inputs, the slightly numb steering, and a launch control that feels like it’s only giving 7/10ths? I could, but I won’t, because that’s not what this crossover is about. I’d rather spend a minute staring at the exquisitely detailed window and mirror controls on the door panel, marvelling at how perfectly they’re placed within their red environs, and thinking about the engineers who sweated the details to make them work with such silken tactility.
Final Thoughts
This is craftsmanship at its finest. Spending time in the 2026 Genesis GV70 makes you feel special because you know the brand has to give it everything, and it does. There are no cheap bits, no flimsy panels, no sharp edges, and even the carbon fibre here looks richer and more interesting than anything I’ve seen from Europe in this price range.
The lineup starts at $60,000 for the Advanced trim, while the available Technology package adds leather upholstery, ventilated front seats, 21-inch alloys, surround-view cameras, and more for an extra $7,500. The $73,000 Prestige adds quilted leather, heated rear seats, upgraded audio, and a suede headliner, while the top-of-the-line GV70 3.5T Sport AWD gets all that and more for an all-in price of $84,000 — an increase of $4,000 from last year.
This nascent luxury brand’s underdog status, along with its seemingly inexhaustible reach for perfection, is only good news for those who want outstanding quality but don’t need a legacy badge.
