Asked if the Gran Turismo would be powered by a version of the brand's 5.0-litre V8, Donckerwolke played down those chances, instead saying the company was looking towards alternative powertrains for its future models.
"As much as I like to drive V8s I believe electrification is going to be a main element," he said. "Like the powertrain of this [GV80 concept] having a range-extender fuel cell for an electric vehicle or an electric powertrain is a great source. Hyundai and Genesis are being pioneers of fuel cell technology, being the first company that has put fuel cell technology in production and on sale, it's the way to go."
Those comments were backed up by similar sentiment from Genesis global boss Manfred Fitzgerald, who made no secret of his desire to focus on alternative powertrains to try and further differentiate the brand from its rivals that have a heavy focus on internal combustion engines (ICE), especially in performance cars.
"I stated once that alternative propulsion systems are at the core of this brand and I truly believe that," Fitzgerald said. "If you look at that and you look down the road at what is going to happen with the electrification of vehicles, performance will not have that dominant role anymore because it's a level playing field. So the ICE dominances of performance, that's going to go away."
He added: "The customer will be going by other things. That will be the brand, that will be the design, that will be connectivity, that will be the future hallmarks of brands."
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