The Genesis G80 Magma Might Have A 500bhp V6

It was only last week that Genesis, the luxury offshoot of Hyundai, debuted its new ‘Magma’ high-performance sub-brand. It was announced in a slightly odd way, with one new concept car that looked pretty much production ready, the GV60 Magma, lumped in with a series of previous concepts that were retroactively grouped under the Magma name.

The one that piqued our interest most was the G80 Magma Special. Based on the G80, a mid-size executive saloon, this was a quick rebrand of the G80 Performance concept that was shown off at an event in Dubai last year, which Genesis confirmed would go into limited production for the Middle Eastern market.

Alongside a claim of “improved driving performance,” this was the only information we got from Genesis on the mysterious saloon. Now, however, Korean Car Blog has reported some further rumoured details on the car which, if true, suggest that Genesis is taking the whole performance thing rather seriously.

According to the rumours, the Magma takes the standard G80’s 3.5-litre, 375bhp twin-turbo V6 and ups power to somewhere around 500bhp. Any further powertrain details are unconfirmed, but we’d bank on the Magma keeping the regular G80 3.5T’s eight-speed automatic and all-wheel drive. 

It certainly looks the part with wide arches, lots of slashes and louvres in the bodywork, lowered suspension and a carbon fibre lip spoiler, as well as the bright orange paint that Genesis has chosen to be Magma’s signature colour.

The bad news is that your chances of getting hold of one are very slim: Korean Car Blog also reports that only 20 G80 Magmas will be made, all for the UAE market.

While the G80 Magma might be the first production performance car from Genesis, it seems likely that the electric GV60 Magma will be the first to be offered in any mainstream capacity: while just a concept for now, it looks pretty much production-ready and could hit showrooms with enough power to match or beat the related 641bhp Hyundai Ioniq 5 N.

Last year’s GV80 Coupe Concept, which Genesis has now grouped under the Magma brand, is already hitting production in some markets, although it’s unclear whether a production high-performance version is to follow. The 1000bhp hybrid X Gran Berlinetta Concept, meanwhile, which was unveiled as part of the Vision Gran Turismo programme, is almost certainly destined to remain a flight of concept car fantasy. Shame.

On a somewhat related note, Genesis recently announced former F1 driver and six-time Le Mans winner Jacky Ickx as a brand partner, although it’s not clear if he has any say in the dynamics of the brand’s future performance offerings. We certainly hope so.