Genesis has made massive strides in the luxury car market, putting the Big 3 – Audi, BMW, and Mercedes – on the alert. It’s a reminder that Genesis, while they’re a much younger marque, isn’t here to mess around, and they make some pretty fine luxury cars for the money. However, they are now looking to expand their horizon into the one area they’ve yet to conquer – performance. Recently, I was invited by the kind folks at Genesis to the Nürburgring Nordschleife for the launch of Magma, their new performance-focused sub-brand. While I was there, they also brought me to the unveiling of Genesis’ new Nordschleife Track Taxi.
This is a big deal, as it’s going to be a long, multi-year commitment by Genesis to keep these cars running as Track Taxis. Crucially, it’s a way for Genesis to promote their credentials as both a luxury brand and a (now more serious) performance brand, too. It’s a massive concerted effort from the brand, which even included bringing along the one and only Jacky Ickx. For those who’ve not read up on their motor racing history, he’s a six-time 24 Hours of Le Mans winner, as well as having a pretty successful run in Formula One. Not to mention, Jacky Ickx has extensive participation in sports car racing around the globe, with a career spanning nearly 40 years.
He was there at the press launch event for the new Genesis Nordschleife Track Taxi, and it was really fascinating listening to him share his past experiences racing on the Nürburgring, where he entered his first Grand Prix back in 1966. If you want to experience Genesis’ Track Taxi too, you can! The cost of a seat is around 120 Euros per seat, and if there are three people going together, it’ll cost around 180 Euros. This ought to give you the opportunity to go around the Nürburgring Nordschleife at full speed as a passenger, with an experienced and highly skilled professional driver at the helm. The bookings for this are already open as well, starting on June 21st.
More Than Just Your Regular Genesis Limo
The Genesis Track Taxi itself, at first glance, appears like a seemingly innocent-looking G70. Granted, it’s been dressed up in vibrant orange paintwork, which seems to now be the official colourway for Genesis’ Magma performance sub-brand. However, there’s (much) more than meets the eye. The Genesis G70 Track Taxi here has been slightly modified. It’s not too much of a surprise really, given that Genesis – as well as its parent company, Hyundai – does a lot of testing, as well as extensive research and development on the Nürburgring Nordschleife, anyway.
Apparently, prior to going into production and being sold in your local showroom, Genesis puts around 10,000km worth of testing on the Nürburgring Nordschleife for every single one of their models. With that in mind, Genesis, as well as their engineers and test drivers, have spent a lot of time analysing each corner, section, and minute change in elevation, hoping to best maximise performance from each car. Although, as a luxury car first and performance car second, a typical road-going Genesis – such as the G70 – is not geared to take on the Nürburgring Nordschleife day-in, day-out, so a bit of aftermarket assistance is needed.
One of the modifications made to the G70 Track Taxi includes mounting additional brake ducts to keep its massive anchors cooled, as it braces the many challenging corners of the Nürburgring Nordschleife. These should help lead more air from the front bumper grille to the front wheel arch. On the subject of cooling, extra heat shielding was added to the transmission fluid cooling lines to prevent the G70’s 8-speed automatic gearbox from overheating.
Not Your Granddad’s Old Genesis G70
Besides that, for maximal traction, the Genesis G70 Track Taxi was fitted with a set of super sticky and track-ready Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tyres – 235/35 ZR19 in the front, and 265/30 R19 in the rear. To aid these tyres, Genesis has modified the suspension set-up as well, which included fitting a set of KW coilover kits (with passive dampers). In addition, Genesis has lowered the G70 Track Taxi’s ride height by around 25mm on both axles.
On top of that, another slight tweak was made to that aforementioned 8-speed gearbox, but this time around, it’s through software updates, not hardware. Specifically, Genesis has recalibrated the transmission to suppress the automatic downshift at kick-down. Aside from this, they’ve allowed the transmission to upshift further up in the rev range, closer to its redline. Likewise, when you swap the gearbox to manual-shifting mode, there’s now a gear shift indicator that’ll light up in the gauge cluster.
Otherwise, however, aside from these modifications, the Genesis G70 Track Taxi remains mostly the same as its road-going counterpart. There’s a 3.3-litre turbocharged V6 petrol engine, which is good for 370PS and 510Nm of torque, as well as a top speed of 270km/h. Crucially, it has an all-wheel drive system, too. Unfortunately, while the G70 is a popular model for Genesis in the UK and throughout much of Europe, it’s not sold with this specific powertrain here in the UK. Nonetheless, it is the most performant engine available for the G70 (in overseas markets), which is a fitting pair when you’re thinking of tackling the Nürburgring Nordschleife.
An Exciting And Sporty Future For Genesis
On paper, it might not sound like a huge amount of power, but when the stars align, this Genesis G70 Track Taxi rips through the Nürburgring Nordschleife at the speed of light. It’s worth mentioning that the track surface was dry when I went out on the Green Hell. Anyone who knows this track knows that even a tiny bit of dampness could severely compromise traction between the bitumen and your tyres, so this ought to help. Plus, to my pleasant surprise, while the G70 Track Taxi “only” has 370PS – compared to the 500 to 600+ that I normally see folks drive off with onto the Nordschleife – those subtle, yet highly consequential, modifications made a huge difference.
It coped shockingly well with how difficult the Nürburgring Nordschleife typically is to drive through, even at slower speeds, which could still be quite scary and testing. The driver that piloted me around was superb, given the exceptionally high level of performance and pace they were able to extract from what is basically a (highly) souped-up executive saloon. It’s impressive to see just how fast you can run through the Nürburgring Nordschleife with “only” sub-400hp, when the driver is this good, and the car is this well set up. More so, with a car this heavy and laden with creature comforts, like its plush leather seats, and a generous amount of niceties.
All in all, this entire event was an exceptionally good demo for Genesis to get their name out there. But most importantly, it’s made for those folks who might’ve previously been dismissive of the brand – assuming they’ve even heard of it, in the first place – to get a ride in a Genesis and see just how much they’ve been missing out on. It might even convince you to shortlist a Genesis the next time you’re saving up for a well-rounded luxury car. At the very least, it was a rather fun experience, so if you’re interested, check out the Genesis Track Taxi if you’re ever passing by the Nürburgring Nordschleife.
FAQs For The Genesis G70 Track Taxi
For those really interested, here are some frequently asked questions about the Genesis G70 Track Taxi, for easier reference:
1. How and when can you book a Genesis Track Taxi?
Use Genesis’ online booking tool (check this link here) to book your seat. However, given how inundated these track taxi experiences normally are, it’s best to book far, far in advance to make sure you’re able to secure a seat in good time.
2. How much does a seat in the Genesis Track Taxi cost?
The G70 is a four-seater, so minus the driver, it can take up to 3 passengers at a time. Just bear in mind that you’ll have to be at least 14 years old to take part. As for pricing, it’s 120 Euros for the co-pilot seat, 160 Euros for the co-pilot seat and one of the rear seats, or 180 Euros for the co-pilot seat and both rear seats. So, to make the most out of your money, consider bringing along some friends with you.
3. How long is the entire ride in a Genesis Track Taxi?
Once all the paperwork is in order, you’ll be briefed on your experience and what you’ll be going through. From there, you can hop in and go for a ride in the G70 Track Taxi. Given that the Nürburgring Nordschleife is around 20.8km long, and you’ll be doing one lap in the Track Taxi, the entire ride should be between 8 to 10 minutes long. Of course, this is highly dependent on track conditions – traffic from other cars, incidents on track that may cause delays, weather conditions, etc.
4. How can you find the Genesis Track Taxi?
You can find the Genesis Track Taxi at “In der Stroth L93 – Neue Nordschleifen-Zufahrt, 53520 Meuspath”. Just type that into your Google Maps, and it should guide you there.
