Genesis unveils tank-tough X Gran Equator SUV with off-road muscle & posh interior – I can’t wait to drive it

THE Hyundai motor group makes cars and tanks.

Like, proper 16-wheel battle tanks with self-loading cannons and armour that’s 850mm thick.

So it knows how to do off-road.

And it knows how to do luxury.

So we’re pretty sure this Genesis will have the minerals to take on Range Rover and Mercedes when it hits the road in 2028.

It’s called the Genesis X Gran Equator.

It’s not electric. Because that’d be no good in the desert. You’d need a really long charging cable.

It’s a range-extender. It has a petrol engine which charges a battery which then feeds two e-motors, one on each axle, to drive the wheels.

So it’s electric all-wheel drive.

Chunky tyres bolted to beadlock wheels help it to bite into any surface.

Yet the body is pebble-smooth and sophisticated and the cabin is awash with quilted leather.

There are no IMAX-sized display screens in here, just lots of old-school buttons and dials. Everyone has their own sunroof. Or tank hatch.

Everyone has grab handles in the centre armrests. We like it a lot.

We caught up with Genesis design chief Luc Donckerwolke as he previewed two cars at the New York Auto Show — this luxury off-roader and the firm’s 2026 Le Mans racer.

Beauty of the empty space

He said: “It’s clear that we never do show cars as showbusiness. Every show car that we do has an intent to eventually be produced.

“Neolun is going to be our flagship. But at the same time there is a possibility to bring another vehicle in our line-up which will have more off-road capability.

“We would not do a G-Wagen because that is anchored in tradition from Mercedes. We certainly don’t have the DNA of a Jeep or a Range Rover.

“So this car has the design DNA of a Genesis, transporting our brand values of luxury and hospitality into the car.

“We are living in an era where design is oversaturated. Every car you have design elements where you can make three cars out of one. We don’t need that. Everybody is free to have their own identity. But at Genesis we are living in the purity, we are reducing, we are what we call the beauty of the empty space. It is not overwhelmed. It is not extroverted.

“This car has such incredible proportions that we don’t need to put a lot of make-up on it.

“If you have a pig, you need a lot of make-up. We are working to make sure we don’t have a pig at the start.”

Genesis has already confirmed that range-extenders are part of its hybrid strategy.

Hyundai’s military division Rotem builds K2 tanks for South Korea, Poland and the Middle East.

Donckerwolke said: “We do eight-wheelers, we do tanks, we do a lot of things.

“So it all depends on which competence we want to use from which brand of the group.”

Hurry up and build the thing and gimme the keys.

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