[shubhamAT]

It's been first time in my life that I have ended up ditching a product I so longed to buy. When I first saw Camaro in 2011 in Houston, I promised myself this is the car I will own if I ever work in the USA. Come August 2013. Visa stamped and tickets booked. Having built the Camaro 2LT scores of time on the Chevy website what car to buy wasn't even a concern. I had even bought a 1:18 scale model of the same. Until; While searching for Camaro V6 landed me on a Camaro vs Mustang link.
Hmm, few hours on the web and Ford mustang customizer, Camaro was gone, enter Mustang. I had built myself (on the site) a White V6 with Black Stripes, Glass Roof, and some other options. Having changed my mind once, I thought of doing some more research on V6 cars under $30K. Soon the 2013 Genesis Coupe Track became a close
contender to the Mustang. Team-BHP thread proved to be a key point in getting the credentials for the GC established. Thanks to Raj1008 and Maddy42 for their inputs.

Test Drive
I did test drives on 2 occasions driving the GT and 2.0T back to back the second time. More details on my first impressions can be found here.

Having TDed a CLA 250 and Mustang earlier I was sure that my first car in the US will be a Genesis Coupe, 2.0T Premium or 3.8GT was to be decided. It was a tough choice since I wanted to save some money, but eventually gave in to the lure of a V6.

Purchase
I had been receiving quotes from East/South Bay Hyundai Dealers and all were within couple of hundred of dollars, so i decided to purchase from the closest one; Hanlees Fremont Hyundai. My Sales Rep, Jojo was very patient all the 3 times I did TD and did not pester me by calling me to check when i am going to buy the car. I had arranged finances through
my credit union over email so i did not have to because of the Shutdown. The only thing I did not do was to haggle much, reason was that I wanted to buy the car on my Anniversary. Also, having shifted to a new
team in another country I had lot of other check boxes to tick, so wanted to close this asap. Overall, buying experience was pleasant. All the standard accessories were part of the sticker price so nothing came free for me, except for a car perfume and a Genesis key chain (that Jojo paid for).

Delivery
Took the delivery after 4 days. Meanwhile, I had already purchased the insurance and dropped my Rental where Jojo picked me up. She
had already had the car prepped up with full tank regular gas. Spent about 30 minutes understanding some of the remaining paperwork and waiting for them to find the 2nd key of the car. They had to order another one for me, eventually. Before driving off, Jojo gave a demo of the features of the car.

At the Fremont Temple

Being all by myself, there was no one to call, no laddus, no ribbons. Just me and Genny. In typical desi style I did buy Kaju Barfi from Lovely Sweets (all of which was my post dinner sweet for next week) and went to the Fremont Temple. Did not do any puja though, just went to say Thanks. OT: AT the temple, there was another cars being "Vahan Puja-ed".
Good to see people still following the Indian customs.

Driving the Genesis Coupe 3.8 GT
Green! Go!! Don't do a 60 on 40. Brake!!!. Objects in rear view mirrors are cars (driven by sane people). That Rush. Now I have some clue what it will be like to drive a true sports car like a GT-R. P.S: I don't drive over the posted limit, just that I reach it much earlier.

Torque/Power Curves for the 3.8 GDI

For the price the thrill I am getting is a steal. I should mention that the car doesn't go crazy when I depress the gas pedal to its first 10%.
This is a benefit when driving in stop-and-go traffic or in parking lots.
Car pulls up from any speed to any speed without any effort even with 3 Pax on board.

Amazing acceleration and power apart, the car is also well planted. Having driven on Niles Canyon Road, CA-17, CA-1 and La Honda Rd/CA-84, Genny really shines on curves. Steering is also quite responsive once your hands
provide the extra effort needed to turn it.

It's not really ground hugging and has just enough clearance to clear a standard curb by an mm. The ride is firm if not harsh, and it does make you feel every crest and trough.

Car comes with paddle shifters which are available in normal D mode also. I use them often to engine brake. Even though the transmission is 8 speed, the car shifts to 8th one at 60mph. I don't have a benchmark but shifts appear to be quick. It also has a sport mode which is engaged by pulling the shifter towards the driver. The shifter can then be moved to +/- or paddle shifters to change gears. There is no fully manual mode available though. The shifter and steering wheel double as gym-in-car and provide a much needed workout. On the whole this car is quite bulky and has a more muscle character to it than sport. It is noticeably wider than a 3 Series or a Civic and has a bit large turning radius coupled this with long
doors, I find that Parking this in crowded lots requires little more care.

Genny compared to Civic and older Accord

Interior and other points

Genesis boosts of very well put together interiors with good, if not premium, materials used. Dash has a soft touch feel to it and all the buttons, levers and handles feel solid.

• Grand Touring comes with a GPS Navigation, heated ORVMs, rear parking sensors, auto dimming rear view mirror, heated front seats.
• There is a very good 8 speaker (advertised as 10) sound system by Infiniti/Harmon with Sirius XM.
• Bluelink.
• TPMS but it only indicates that one of the tyres is under-inflated, not which one.
• The center console has a touch screen based interface which is intuitive to use.
• Steering has controls for media player, cruise and voice.
• ORVM, Window and Lock/Unlock buttons are bit unconventional in orientation. These face the driver rather than the ceiling and are palms width away from the steering wheel. I find them much comfortable to use than the ones that are in other cars (closer to your lap i.e.)
• Both driver and passenger get individual control for: 2-Way Heated Seats, Vanity Mirror Light and Pin Lights. Both pin lights turn on when the door is opened and slowly fade away.
• Glove box and Trunk also get lamps but the storage unit between the front seats does not have any light.
• There are separate cigarette lighter and 12 V power sockets for convenience.
• GC also has an auto window up/down feature which lowers/raises the window by an inch as soon as the door is opened/closed. This is probably to form a tight seal to reduce noise.
• For a 3.8 the cabin is surprisingly quite when cruising at highway speeds.
• It also boosts of a proximity key based entry and Start/Stop button for engine. Fob also conceals in it a conventional key for emergency use.
• Windscreen washer activates the spray and wipers with a single pull.
• There is a auto headlight mode which toggles between LED Daytime Running Lights and Projector Head Lamps. Full beam is through another seat of lamps. When the car is switched to full beam fogs lamp turn off (Don't know why?).
• There are red coloured courtesy lamps on the inside of both doors and the illuminated door sill has a blue hue in consistence with other buttons and instrument cluster.
• Trunk is large enough to accommodate 1 carry on and 1 check-in baggage. The opening isn't wide though. If more space is needed rear seats can be folded (they don't split).
• Rear seats have i10 like leg space but poor headroom due to the sloping roof. Good for people under 5'8".
• 6 Airbags: Front, Side and Curtain
• ESC/TCS with a 3 Way Stability control switch.
• Power driver seat with adjustable head restraint and lumbar support. Fronts seats are really comfortable and serve the touring tag well.

Center Console



Electro-Chromic Mirror with Compass and Bluelink Buttons


Standard Size Check-In Luggage sits comfortably with room for more


Courtsey Lamps are provided on both sides


Glove Box


Fancy Gauges


Request Button to Lock/Unlock


Fob with Key

A place for Sun Glasses


Power Driver Seat


Climate Control


Navigation in Night Mode


Pin Lights


Boot Space one can live with


Genesis on the Door Sill


Parking Sensor Display

Phew! Its been only 1000 Miles with the car and I don't have any more to say. Hope you guys find this note useful.

[GTO]

Thread moved from the Assembly Line to the Initial Ownership Section. Thanks for sharing!