The first thing you notice about the 2026 Genesis GV60 Performance AWD is that it doesn’t look like every other electric SUV rolling off a factory line. It has curves where others have slabs, personality where others have anonymity, and a cabin that feels less like a tech cockpit and more like a place you’d actually want to spend time. Start the car — yes, with an actual button, bless them — and a laser-etched crystal sphere on the center console rotates to reveal a rotary gear selector underneath. It glows a soft blue when the car is off, like some kind of fortune-teller’s prop, and then flips to business mode when you’re ready to drive. It’s a gimmick, sure, but it’s the kind of gimmick that makes you smile every single time.
Once you’re rolling, the GV60 Performance does not waste time reminding you why “Performance” is in the name. Twin electric motors put out 429 horses in their resting state, which is already plenty to pin you back in your seat from a stoplight. But Genesis tucked a Boost button onto the steering wheel, right where your thumb naturally falls, and pressing it uncorks 483 horsepower and 516 pound-feet of torque for a giddy 10-second burst. A word of advice: warn your passengers before you press it. Phones will fly, coffee will slosh, and someone may let out a noise they’ll deny later.
The all-wheel-drive system is smart about sending power to whichever wheels need it most, so the car feels planted and confident through turns. The suspension is equally clever — a camera up front actually reads the road ahead and adjusts the ride before you hit a bump. For a vehicle that tips the scales at nearly 4,900 pounds, the GV60 feels surprisingly nimble.
On the inside the GV60 is genuinely opulent. Nappa leather covers the heated, ventilated, front seats. The driver’s seat will even give a massage. A 27-inch display stretches from behind the steering wheel to the center of the dashboard, with both wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The Bang & Olufsen 17-speaker system with Dolby Atmos sounds phenomenal. Best of all, Genesis kept physical buttons for the climate and seat controls — you don’t have to dig through menus just to warm your hands on a cold morning.
On the practical side, the upgraded 84-kilowatt-hour battery delivers an EPA-estimated 252 miles of range — up from 235 miles in the 2024 model — and a new Tesla-standard NACS charging port gives you access to more than 20,000 Superchargers. You can go from 10 to 80 percent in just 18 minutes on a 350-kilowatt DC fast charger. Where the GV60 asks for compromise is in cargo space — the rear hatch area is on the small side for the segment, and the front trunk is barely big enough to stash a charging cable. And leaning on that Boost button with any regularity will trim those range numbers in a hurry.
The crystal sphere’s soft glow when you walk up at night, the way the suspension smooths out a rutted road before you even feel the bump, the satisfying thump of the Boost button under your thumb — Genesis set out to build a luxury EV that doesn’t feel like a science experiment, and the GV60 Performance delivers on that promise with style to spare.
