It’s no secret that I’m a big fan of the Hyundai Geneses sedan, although I have to say that I was a little concerned when I first clapped eyes on the coupe version. You see, its big brother offers tremendous value for money in the luxury automobile market. It’s as stylish and prestigious looking as any number of well known premium brands, and yet its price point makes it affordable for just about anyone. It’s true to say that the vehicle has taken the industry by storm in winning several automotive awards, and has now firmly planted Hyundai in the companies to watch category.

However, to me, the coupe version simply doesn’t create the same effect, at least from a visual standpoint. Now don’t get me wrong, it’s a good looking sports coupe but it simply doesn’t ooze the class and luxury of its four door sibling, so why would it carry the Geneses nameplate?

Well, let’s back up a little, and revisit the sedan. The four-door Geneses was a groundbreaking vehicle for Hyundai. It propelled the company into a completely new realm of automobile production, that of a high-end vehicle manufacturer, and for that reason the Geneses nameplate fits perfectly.

Now let’s look at the coupe version again. It’s said to be the replacement for the company’s Tiburon lineup and yet, it’s actually much more than that. You see, the Tiburon was often looked upon as a youngsters’ ride, and with good reason. They were reliable, relatively inexpensive to insure and quite reasonably priced. It was the cool looking Hyundai which the college and university students could actually afford to drive.

However, whilst the new Geneses Coupe is available as an affordable 2.0L turbo 4 cylinder base model (Starting at $24,495), which could be viewed as the replacement for the Tiburon, the company has also released a 306hp V6 GT version, and that’s what I received as my test vehicle.

Now this vehicle is just as groundbreaking as its larger brother. In fact, I’ll sum the car up in one simple sentence...”It’s the launch of the Korean muscle car era”.

Honestly, 306 ponies in a rear-wheel-drive coupe weighing 1537kgs is simply awesome. Now I know that we journalists make use of that word quite freely nowadays but on this occasion, it’s the only word which truly fits.

It’s as if Hyundai has gone out to create the Asian answer to the Ford Mustang. Yes, you can purchase both vehicles for a reasonable price, if you plump for the more basic models. However, journey to the other of the spectrum, and the high-performance models which are available, and the Geneses 3.8L GT slots in quite nicely.

The previous top of the line Tiburon boasted a 2.7L V6 172hp motor and reasonably impressive performance. However, once you add another 136hp to this and place it in a bang-up-to-date modern platform, things start to take on a whole different perspective.

Now I’ve driven the 2.0L version of the Geneses Coupe already. In fact, I’ve driven both of them on the track, so I can appreciate the difference between the two. Whilst the 2.0L offers a stylish and sporty package at a still affordable price, the GT aims itself at perhaps the older, and hopefully wiser generation of sports coupe fans. I say that because the 3.8L GT can only be described as a little tail-happy, therefore I wouldn’t recommend the GT for an inexperienced driver, but for the enthusiast out there who enjoys a spirited automobile, this car comes out a winner.