Chicago Auto Show 2009: Hyundai Reaches In, Grabs Right Hold Of Your Heart (Hyundai Genesis Coupe)

So that’s what a design masterwork looks like.  Ah.  And it was designed in Irvine, California?!?!  Why Hyundai, I do believe you’ve outdone yourself on this one.  And apparently, I’m far from the only one—the Hyundai Genesis has just won the 2009 Canadian Car of the Year award as determined by the Automobile Journalists Association of Canada.  There’s a design team that should ask for a nice, fat raise in pay.

But you didn’t come here to read my blathering on about how astoundingly gorgeous this car is.  Chances are good you’re doing enough of that yourself.  So while there’s a tiny bit more wordiness after the jump, there’s also a nice gallery. Click right this way, won’t you?

I’ve read some people say that the one thing they think spoils this car is that they feel the interior looks cheap. To those people, I’d say that photos can often be deceiving, and this car really needs to be seen in person to appreciate its true glory—it’s at least twice as sexy as these photos imply.  The seats…oh, I absolutely adore how they wrap around you.  Everything about the interior feels solid and confidence-inducing, down to the seat slider handle not being a chintzy plastic piece that feels like it’s going to break off in your hand (as seems to be the case on a few other cars at the show).  To be honest, the cheap awfulness of the interiors on Merc C-classes from a couple years ago?  This is leagues above that, and yet it still costs less in today’s dollars than those C-classes did when they were new!

Here, take a look.  We’ve thrown in the Rhys Millen Racing drift car for good measure, too, because at CarEnvy.ca, we aim to please. :)

[Photos: Joe Lucente]