2025 Genesis G80 3.5T Sport Prestige First Test: Looks and Comfort First

We’re fans of the Genesis G80’s compelling design, excellent build quality, and generous feature content. One of the main reasons it sits midpack in our rankings of its class, though, is performance. A more efficient or better-driving G80 (preferably both) almost certainly moves up in our luxury midsize sedan pecking order.

Enter the 2025 model, updated with fresh styling and tech that includes an impressive OLED display and LED cabin lighting. Do the changes make the G80 Sport Prestige model any more appealing? Is this year’s 3.5T AWD a more capable challenger in the class?

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Dropping the (Undramatic) Hammer

Of the 2025 G80 3.5T AWD’s athleticism, we can say generally it doesn’t stray far from what the model has done in the past. MotorTrend has tested the third-gen platform multiple times—for its 2021 debut, again the following model year for the introduction of the Sport Prestige package—and each time results have been about the same.

Which is to say this G80 with Sport Prestige is as competently quick as past versions. We got our best launch in Sport+ mode with stability control off and launch control on. This holds the engine at 2,300 rpm before releasing the brake, permitting a takeoff that is decidedly businesslike, quiet, and straightforward.

A best sprint to 60 mph in 5.2 seconds is identical to the 2021 but a couple tenths of a second slower than the 2022. The same happens in the quarter mile, with the 2022 G80 registering a slightly swifter and faster 13.4 seconds at 106.4 mph relative to the 2025. In its competitive set, the less powerful but lighter Audi A6 Quattro is also in the same realm, an example we tested darting to 60 mph in 5.0 seconds and turning in a 13.5-second pass in the quarter mile.

The G80 3.5T AWD is objectively quick, but the car has never felt especially fast, and that’s true for the 2025, as well. Even though 375 hp and 391 lb-ft of torque is both generous and appropriate for the class, power delivery is mostly uneventful and the sensation of speed in a straight line somewhat elusive, even in Sport and Sport+ modes.

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Looks and Comfort First

That “feeling” is important, because the G80 3.5T AWD has never really nailed athletic performance like some other Genesis models (the G70, for one). Sport is in the model’s name, sure, and the sedan’s running gear even gives away its performance aspirations. This AWD features a staggered 20-inch wheel setup, with 245-wide Pirelli P Zero All-Season tires up front and wider 275 tires at the rear. It’s a good look, right?

Except that the G80 could probably use additional rubber up front to combat its limit understeer. Additionally, turn-in is quite blunt. It doesn’t help that this version of the car is some 100 pounds heavier than earlier versions. The rear-wheel steering is still useful in supplementing agility, but a heavy car is a heavy car.

For as hefty as it is, body motions are well controlled. The standard adaptive dampers shine most in Comfort mode, though, delivering a sophisticated and luxurious ride. Off-corner acceleration was spirited but not fast. Gearshifts are smooth, but in manual mode and at the limit, the eight-speed automatic wants a higher gear.

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Increasing Thirst

This G80’s mass is almost certainly impacting fuel economy, as well. Efficiency has been worsening each year since the third generation was introduced for 2021, when it returned 18/26 mpg city/highway and 405 miles of driving range. Even though they both have 19.3-gallon fuel tanks, the slightly quicker, way lighter 3.0-liter 2025 A6 Quattro travels as far as 482 miles on a tank, sipping fuel at a rate of 22/30 mpg.

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Carbon-Fiber Emotional Center

The performance of the Sport Prestige might not be hyperathletic, but the G80 is still a looker. The sedan’s exterior design remains distinctive in the class, this year gaining a revised grille, bumpers, and headlights. Inside our test car, the Sport Prestige’s standard Nappa leather with quilting front and rear is sumptuous, and Genesis uses an unconventional matte-finish carbon-fiber trim that looks like a soft material from a distance. All of it makes a great first impression, and build quality is top notch.

There are bells and whistles, too. The 3.5T model comes with power-folding side mirrors, logo puddle lamps, heated and ventilated front seats, heated rear seats, a massaging driver seat, a power rear sunshade, and 18-speaker Bang & Olufsen premium audio. Soft-closing doors are standard with the Sport Prestige model, as well.

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Living With It

The new 27-inch combination driver display and infotainment touchscreen replaces the dash’s previous gauge cluster cowl and 14.5-inch central screen. It’s lovely tech, though we wonder if it could’ve been integrated in a more fashionable way. Just beneath it, the center stack and center console are better executed, now sort of flowing into each other. Color us disappointed Genesis didn’t think to redo the console’s dual knob arrangement—it’s still confusing. More than once we grabbed for the infotainment controller when we wanted the gear selector.

On paper, passenger space and cargo capacity are roughly average for the class, but the G80 still feels roomy. We prefer the interior’s four-seat configuration because the rear middle armrest is essentially a back-row center console, complete with a decent sized storage cubby. The trunk comes with elastic floor netting (for securing things), and the 3.5T is standard with a hands-free power trunklid.

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Is the 2025 G80 AWD 3.5T Worth It?

Our test car had the $6,750 Sport Prestige option, plus $650 worth of Capri Blue exterior paint and a $30 NFC card for locking, unlocking, and starting the car. Retail pricing came out to $79,930, which may seem like a lot. That’s until you realize a similarly equipped 2025 A6 Quattro will set you back some $81,940. A Mercedes-Benz E450 4Matic with similar specs starts closer to $90,000.

That might be the biggest reason of all to consider the G80 3.5T Sport Prestige, how much bang for the buck the car delivers. It’s a largely easygoing, stress-free way to get around, and if grunt is needed, there’s a good amount on tap. It’s excellent at everyday luxury, includes many standard features, and is as gorgeous as any big sedan out there.

Our G80 AWD 3.5T comes up short on balanced athleticism, though, partly due to a preference for looks over function. It drives like a big and heavy luxury sedan with a sport package and not like a better sorted sport sedan. It’s not much of a dynamic rival for the segment’s best, and increased curb weight over the years seems to have only made the G80 less competitive. Hybridization could do this powertrain a world of good, though remember that there is a fully electric version available. This year’s subtle tweaks make the ICE G80 a better car, but more ambitious upgrades must be made if Genesis ever hopes to topple the E-Classes of the world.

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