Genesis GV80’s inline-six could power the Hyundai pickup truck

MANILA: The much-awaited and highly-anticipated Genesis GV80 finally came out in the flesh even less than a couple of weeks ago. The South Korean luxury SUV features an inline straight-six turbocharged diesel engine that is capable of generating 278 PS of maximum power and a peak torque 600 Nm. Moving ahead, we could see the same engine powering the Hyundai's pick-up truck. "(For) this engine, we can have so many applications. (Hyundai) also make commercial vehicles and so on, so this engine will be out there for quite some time", said Hyundai R&D chief Albert Biermann while speaking to Car Sales.

Also, the turbodiesel will sit under the hood of many other vehicles to make up for the cost that has gone in its development. However, whether or not it will make it to other vehicles without the Genesis badging is remains a mystery for now. "We have not finally decided yet", said Biermann when asked about the same. The two major rivals that the Hyundai's pickup truck will compete with are the Mercedes-Benz X 350 d, and the Volkswagen Amarok 3.0 TDI. The German pickup trucks pack in 258 hp/550 Nm and 258 hp/580 Nm under their hood, respectively.

In case the Hyundai pickup truck gets the Genesis GV80's turbodiesel, it will outclass two German rivals with its 278 PS of maximum power and a peak torque 600 Nm. While the world is, slowly and steadily, moving away from diesel-fed engines as they start to become a thing of the past, the South Korean automaker has persisted with a diesel-motor for the Genesis GV80 and is keen on equipping its upcoming vehicles with the same. "It just makes the smoothest power. We developed the car from the beginning – the new platform (which will underpin the next G80 sedan) was already considered with that engine", added Biermann.

But, it is not just the diesel engine that Hyundai has been working hard on, as the South Korean automaker is also pushing the limits in developing new hybrid, mild hybrid, PHEV, pure EV, and fuel-cell powertrains. However, as for the Genesis lineup, the automaker won't be rolling out any hybrid models and is aiming at launching pure EV models only.

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