In Aretha Franklin’s monster hit, she cried out for a little “R-E-S-P-E-C-T.” The one thing you could say about that song and Hyundai’s similarly named Genesis “R-Spec” sedan is that they both have plenty of soul.
Hyundai has confounded more than a few critics with the success of its full-size rear-wheel-drive four-door that was launched for the 2009 model year.
How could the company that brought us the lowly Excel and subsequent econo-runners dare to think that it could run with the big dogs from Detroit, Germany and Japan?
The Genesis was a gutsy call for the Korea-based automaker, especially when fuel prices were surging and the economy was losing steam. But the car’s luxury leanings and comparatively modest price tag (likely aided by a reassuringly lengthy warranty) have allowed the Genesis to carve out a niche. It also spawned the larger and even more luxurious Equus.
For 2012, Hyundai is branching out the Genesis, taking it on a path that involves the development of a performance brand dubbed the R-Spec. Forget the rather unoriginal “R” and “Spec” to denote performance, and consider that this car actually has real performance.
Engine
The heart of the transformation to R-Spec from an ordinary Genesis sedan sits between the front fenders. The displacement of the automaker’s Tau-branded V8 has been increased to 5.0-litres from 4.6 and the horsepower/torque rating to 429 and 376 pound-feet from 385/333. For comparison, that’s 17 horses more than the much-celebrated-by-Ford-fans 5.0 in the Mustang GT.
The new Hyundai R-Spec, is now the only Genesis V8 model available in Canada and employs the same powerplant as the larger and more luxurious Equus.
Bells and whistles
The R-spec theme continues inside with “tuxedo black” leather combined with bright trim surrounding the control panel and shifter.
And of course Hyundai’s bells-and-whistles department has included most of the desirable items. That means you can count on a standard power sunroof, memory settings for the power front seats, heated front and rear seats plus steering wheel, woodgrain trim, front and rear park assist, backup camera and a 17-speaker premium sound package.
Performance
Despite the power bulge, the R-Spec still returns reasonable fuel economy of 13.1 l/100 km city and 8.1 highway.
On the performance front, Hyundai expects the R-Spec to run zero-to-60-m.p.h. (96 km/h) in the low-five-second range, which is pretty decent for a hefty 1,880-kilogram sedan.
