The all new 2021 Genesis G80 sedan broke cover earlier this year, and it immediately caught our eye. Its new face, swooping roofline, and overall good looks made a sparkling first impression. Of course, what’s underneath the fabulous sheetmetal matters too, and today we finally know what kind of fuel economy the all-new mid-size luxury sedan will offer.
Two engine choices will be on offer when the new G80 finally reaches U.S. shores. Even though power figures are still under wraps, the EPA-estimated fuel economy gives us our first good idea of how the newest entrant in the luxury mid-size sedan segment will stack up against its competition. Both engines will come with an eight-speed automatic gearbox as the only transmission option. The smaller engine is a 2.5-liter turbo four-cylinder that returns 23 mpg city, 32 mpg highway, and 28 mpg combined in the rear-drive G80. Opting for all-wheel drive with the turbo four drops those figures to 22/30/25 mpg. In case you were wondering, the ’21 four-cylinder G80’s figures better those of the old G80’s entry-level V-6, a non-turbo 3.8-liter unit by several miles per gallon in both rear- and all-wheel-drive forms.
The larger engine is a 3.5-liter turbocharged V-6 that gets 19/27/22 mpg (city/highway/combined) when paired with rear-wheel drive and 18/26/21 mpg if power is being sent to all four wheels. Tellingly, the old G80 was offered with a slightly smaller, 3.3-liter turbocharged V-6., and despite the new six-cylinder’s extra capacity, it is nonetheless more efficient than its smaller predecessor when installed in the 2021 G80.
What about the G80’s more contemporary competition? Well, the current BMW 5-series offers a plethora of engine options including a 2.0-liter turbo four that nets 25/33/28 mpg (city/highway/combined) when powering the rear wheels. That’s slightly better than the G80’s four-cylinder, rear-drive offering. BMW’s six-cylinder offering also gets better MPG than its Genesis equivalent, returning 22/30/25 mpg.
However, the G80’s four-cylinder numbers are exactly the same as the 2020 Mercedes-Benz E-Class’s and only one mpg down on the Audi A6’s. The six-cylinder Audi and Mercedes variants are better at sipping fuel than the G80’s V-6. Fuel economy alone is not what makes a great car, of course, so while the G80 falls slightly behind the segment’s heavy hitters, we can’t wait to get our hands on one to see any other areas in which it can really bring the fight to Audi, BMW, and Mercedes.
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