Stylish designs are leaving some better-known brands in the dust

The Dakar – an annual marathon raced through Middle Eastern deserts and dunes – was handsomely won this year by Australian motorcycle rider Daniel Sanders.

‘Chucky’, as he’s known, led the field most days while fellow Australian Toby Price, twice a Dakar winner on a bike, ran out of luck this time in a race-prepped Toyota when navigator Sam Sunderland took a knock to the head.

This is the world’s toughest motor race on man and machine. Yet, some had more comfort than others with the likes of legendary racer and 1983 Dakar car winner Jacky Ickx driving 6000km to follow this year’s event in a special Desert Edition Genesis GV80.

This GV80 sat wider than the road car with 20-inch bead-rock wheels and all-terrain tyres working with an upgraded, adjustable suspension system for maximum ground clearance, better damping and greater stability on soft sand and rocks.

There was also a dedicated desert setting through the car’s drive modes for optimum drivetrain performance.

Inside was the usual array of comfort and convenience features, plus an integrated drawer system in the cargo area for full-size spare wheel, tools and emergency gear.

Not long after that special GV80 was parked, Genesis showed off the GV60 Mountain Intervention Vehicle: a snow-tracked concept fitted out with medical supplies, emergency communication and warning systems to support mountain-rescue operations in extreme conditions.

This SUV was all-electric with a vehicle-to-load system to supply power to auxiliary devices.

Now, this Genesis is the luxury offshoot of Hyundai as the Korean company looks to mix it up with premium brands such as Toyota’s Lexus, BMW, Mercedes et al.

And it’s been very proactive in the past 12 months, particularly in the design and motorsport arenas.

In December last year, Genesis unveiled the GMR-001 Hypercar (a high-performance, luxury prototype with hybrid power) to help launch the Genesis Magma Racing division, set up to compete in the WEC and IMSA sports machines series.

Then in February, the stunning Genesis X Gran Berlinetta Concept  made its global racetrack debut at Bathurst’s Mount Panorama with Ickx at the wheel, accompanied by the Genesis GV60 Magma Concept car (at the circuit where Ickx won with Allan Moffat in 1977).

All this flurry of motorsport and concept activity comes amid the  Genesis brand moving ahead with its stable of road cars: mostly SUV-style machines and generally good-looking ones, with a touch of British Bentleys about the styling.

This year, the company will open a California design studio.

That part of the world has long been most influential in vehicle design, thanks to the vibrant and forward-looking culture of the US’s West Coast.

Early last year, Genesis opened specific showrooms in Brisbane and on the Gold Coast for its current range of road-going machines: the G70, G80, electric G80, GV60, GV70, electric GV70 and GV80.

Looks like this mob is here for keeps and full credit to this Hyundai off-shoot for making a splash with eye-catching design, plus motorsport ambitions, at a time when many rivals appear to be treading water.