Genesis became its own brand in late 2015, officially stepping out as Hyundai's luxury division. Looking back through the eyes of history, it appears that decision was a successful one. As of August 2023, the South Korean company officially surpassed one million vehicles sold globally.
We'd love to tell you exactly what vehicle that was, but sadly, that information is unavailable. We contacted Genesis in hopes of getting some details, but a company spokesperson said there wasn't specific info regarding the special machine. For that matter, there isn't even general information, and the company didn't celebrate the millionth machine's birthday with any pomp and circumstance. Apparently, they're too busy building new cars to enjoy some cake.
Gallery: 2022 Genesis G80 3.5T Sport First Drive Review
We do know that the milestone occurred in August. In a press release, Genesis confirmed 1,008,804 vehicles sold on the world stage since the company's formation. The vast majority – 690,177 to be specific – are to customers in its home market of South Korea. The remaining 318,627 are in other markets, led by the United States at over 225,000. Curiously, the best-selling Genesis vehicle thus far is not an SUV, but the G80 sedan. Of course, the luxury brand launched with the G90 sedan in South Korea and followed up with the G80 in 2016. The G70 sedan arrived just a short time later, and that's how it stayed for a while.
It took Genesis four years to finally enter the SUV fray with the GV80 in early 2020. The GV70 followed late that year, with the all-electric GV60 rounding out the primary lineup. Of course, we now have electrified versions of the GV70 and G80 in the mix, and with the influx of models in the last three years, Genesis sales have increased substantially. Whereas it took the company over five years to sell half a million vehicles globally, the other 500,000 sales were clocked in just two.
"Genesis has been taking audacious steps to create original experiences for customers since launch, achieving remarkable growth along the way," said Global CEO Mike Song. "Our brand will continue to build distinguished luxury experiences that have never been seen before."
On that front, we've seen spy photos of a facelifted GV80 in the works. The GV80 Coupe Concept that debuted earlier in 2023 is headed to production, and every new Genesis model introduced beyond 2025 will be purely electric.
