Genesis has given the GV60 a mid-life update and a much cheaper way in. The new entry model, the Advanced RWD, lands in Australian showrooms in June at $88,300 before on-road costs. The old base car, the dual-motor Lux AWD, cost $103,382. Genesis has taken more than $15,000 off the price of getting into a GV60, and it did it by taking out a motor.

One motor, not two

The Advanced RWD does exactly what the name says. It drives the rear wheels through a single electric motor making 168kW and 350Nm, where the old Lux AWD ran two motors for 234kW and 605Nm. On paper that is a clear drop in outright power. In practice, 168kW in a car this size is plenty for school runs, highway merges and the daily commute, which is what most GV60s actually do. The cars that needed the dual-motor punch were always the exception.

You lose power, you gain range

Here is the part Genesis would rather you focus on, and it has a point. The Advanced RWD pairs an 84kWh battery with the more efficient single-motor layout to claim up to 561km of range. The old Lux AWD, with a smaller 77kWh battery and two motors to feed, managed 470km. That is roughly 90km more range for $15,000 less money. The 800-volt platform carries over, so a 10 to 80 per cent DC charge still takes about 18 minutes. Range up, charging speed unchanged, price down is a rare combination.

The rest of the update

The updated GV60 also gets a 27-inch OLED display across the dash, revised driver-assist technology and work on ride comfort and cabin quiet. A hotter Magma AWD performance variant sits above the Advanced RWD, though Genesis has not confirmed its price yet. The GV60 now reads as two clear choices rather than a stack of similar AWD trims: a sensible long-range RWD car, and a performance flagship for the buyers who want it.

Cartell Assessment

Dropping a motor to drop a price is usually a downgrade dressed up as a deal. This one is not. A rear-drive electric SUV with 561km of range and an 18-minute fast charge is the right car for almost everyone shopping at this money, and the AWD badge was mostly buying traction that a Sydney or Melbourne owner uses a handful of times a year. The honest catch is brand reach. Genesis still sells through a small studio network, and that matters more on an $88,000 car than the spec sheet does. Against a BMW iX3, the Genesis now wins on price and on range. It still loses on the number of places that can service it.

AU Outlook

The Advanced RWD arrives in June, so the wait is short. Watch the Magma AWD price when it lands, because that is what tells you whether Genesis is chasing volume or just trimming the entry point. And watch BMW. The iX3 arrives this year as the obvious cross-shop, and an $88,300 Genesis with more range is exactly the kind of number that forces a rival to sharpen its own.