A couple of weekends ago, I was at the OC Auto Show and took time to test drive several cars. One of those cars, of course, was the 2012 Genesis R-Spec 5.0. As most of you know, they've made some minor, but significant changes for the 2012 Genesis. New front and rear facias, Hyundai-built 8-speed automatic, standard direct-injected 3.8 V6, and the addition of direct-injected 5.0-L, 429-hp V8.
Besides these obvious changes, it's always the subtle changes that seem to stand out when owning a car, and two things stood out to me: steering wheel tilt adjustment travel and the throttle response. Until now, I've never had a complaint about the steering wheel adjustability on my 2011 Genesis. BUT, I always felt it was a bit low even at it's highest tilt level and it is hard to see the gauges from my seat setting. On the 2012, however, the steering wheel tilts maybe another 1" further up.
The throttle response is something I've written about a while back and it is very evident that there is a split second delay when starting up from a stop. At times, when slowing to a near stop and accelerating results in a delay and a sudden surge of power. This is something even the 2011 Equus and the newer BMWs apparently suffers from. It could be that Hyundai have been using the same electronic suppliers as BMW and other manufacturers, but in the 2012, this throttle delay was pretty much missing. The 8-speed automatic that was much maligned by Car and Driver's short drive review a couple months ago felt just as smooth and responsive as the ZF 6-speed unit.
So, the big question is, how does the new 5.0 compare to the 4.6? On the few, short straightaway stretches of local roads, it pretty much felt the same as the 4.6. This is not to say that the 5.0 is slow or anything, because the 4.6 feels much more than adequate. However, it is a bit disappointing that there was no noticeable difference. The ride and handling felt mostly the same and that is also a little disappointing, given that the ride hasn't improved and the steering remains somewhat numb.
In all, I'm not so sure that the new R-spec is really worth the extra cost over a 4.6, and for 99% of the population, the new 330-hp 3.8 V6 is likely more than sufficient, but a loaded 3.8 is only $1000 cheaper than the 4.6! You'd save some gas with the V6, but the effortless power and smoother operation is well worth the money.
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