Again, the Germans have seen their midsize sedans sell just as good, if not better than the pre-Great Recession days whereas the 2 Japanese RWD midsize sedans have seen their sales fall precipitously, even w/ newer and better regarded models.
Sure, there are some buyers who opted for the R-Spec instead of a V6 Japanese b/c they really wanted a V8.
But just b/c there's a price differential w/ the V6 Genesis - doesn't mean that other buyers looked at the Japanese and decided to pocket the diff.
It was the same thing when the LS400 was launched - at a price less than a loaded E Class.
There were some E Class buyers who switched for more room (and reliability) and there were some S Class buyers who decided to save the $$.
And even today, the LS460 is over $12k cheaper than a S550 - so there still remains a large price differential and people/the auto press still sees them as competitors.
And again, why would the Genesis/R-Spec be priced the same as the Japanese when it doesn't offer a luxury brand/dealer network and all the costs associated w/ it?
As well as being a
new entrant (which was why Toyota bargain-priced the LS400 even w/ the luxury
badge and dealer network).
I guess we'll see - it won't be too long and I venture that we'll see a dip in GS sales (or else Toyota will up the incentive spending to keep sales up).
As for the R-Spec, it was kinda a joke.
The 1G Genesis wasn't developed to be a sports sedan and the R-Spec just firmed up the suspension a bit and did nothing w/ regard to adding power, really sporting the suspension and doing other things like having better bolstered seats.
Now that the 2G Genesis has a somewhat variable suspension setting, including one for
Sport - that pretty much does what the R-Spec did.
If Hyundai does come out w/ an R-Spec or whatever they decide to call it - it will much more like a proper performance trim/line.
