Genesis may not be a well-known car brand, but its parent company is. Genesis is the luxury brand of Hyundai, and its goal is to make Hyundais that are as luxurious as a Lexus or a BMW is. The GV80 is Genesis’s first SUV, and it’ll be coming to the states soon. Here’s how safe it could be.

No safety ratings yet

Because of how new it is, no safety agencies in the U.S. has had a chance to crash the GV80 into a wall and see how safe it is. That said, Hyundai isn’t new to the SUV game, and Hyundai has produced some pretty good SUVs already. While the GV80, according to Genesis, can seat five people, there are options to upgrade that to seven. 

Based on that fact, there are several Hyundai SUVs that the GV80 can be compared to in terms of its construction and safety. Genesis says that the GV80 is a mid-size SUV, and as such, it should be comparable to Hyundai’s Santa Fe and Hyundai’s Palisade. 

Hyundai’s safety scores

According to the IIHS, or Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, both the 2020 Santa Fe and the Palisade are extremely safe SUVs. Both Hyundai SUVs were given the highest award for safety that the IIHS has, which is the Top Safety Pick+ award.

This was thanks to three main reasons. For one, both Hyundais performed well in their crash tests. In almost every single crash test category, the IIHS gave the two Hyundais a “Good” rating, which is the highest rating. The only exception was in one minor area in the Santa Fe. That area had to do with the passenger’s head and neck during a crash. In that area, the IIHS gave the Santa Fe an “Acceptable” rating, which is the second highest rating possible.

The second reason is because Hyundai offers the safest headlights that’s available. Many automakers don’t offer very safe headlights, so the IIHS doesn’t award those cars with a Top Safety Pick+ award. But because Hyundai has those headlights for both the Santa Fe and the Palisade, they got that coveted award. 

The last reason is due to how many smart safety features that both SUVs have. Hyundai offers a lot of smart safety features as both standard and as options. These smart safety features are very vital in helping prevent or minimize crashes and accidents. 

The other major safety agency is the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, or NHTSA. The NHTSA hasn’t given the Palisade a safety rating yet, but it has done its tests on the 2020 Santa Fe. The NHTSA agrees with the IIHS on the Santa Fe. The Santa Fe received 5 out of 5 stars for its overall safety.

How safe can the GV80 get?

As Genesis said in its press release, “safety is not an option,” it’s simply mandatory given how many smart safety systems that Genesis is putting on the GV80. These smart safety features include: an even smarter adaptive cruise control system, forward collision warning and automatic emergency braking, blind spot monitoring, a rear cross traffic alert, and a driver drowsiness detection system. 

Genesis details how different the GV80’s safety tech will be compared to what’s currently on the market, but it’s not currently known how safe they are in the real world. However, given the advanced safety features that Genesis is offering as standard, and given the great safety ratings that its siblings has, it would be surprising if the GV80 got poor or simply average safety grades. 

The GV80, much like the Palisade, is Hyundai’s attempt to break into the larger SUV market of America. Certainly, Hyundai has done everything it can do to ensure that the GV80 impresses customers, just like Hyundai did with the Palisade.