Korean premium car brand genesis has recreated a ute and left the door open for a production version.
In the latest issue, images of the planned electric car from the luxury brand Hyundai were published Car & Design magazine and re-shared by Anh Ðinh Hoàng on Instagram, along with a sleek people mover and a hydrogen fuel cell SUV.
“An electric pickup? Why not?” Luc Donckerwolke, Chief Creative Officer and Chief Design Officer of Hyundai Motor Group, told the magazine about the genesis of the concept.
“Then we scrapped it because we had to focus on other projects. Maybe in the future, who knows.”
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The unnamed concept was reportedly conceived with the US market in mind, although in hindsight it was perhaps for the best that Genesis didn’t pursue the project due to declining sales of the Tesla Cybertruck and the discontinuation of the electric Ford F-150 Lightning.
Rather than using unibody construction like all other Genesis products, the ute concept is reportedly based on a “chassis based on two side members” for better off-road capability, the magazine says. This suggests it was a body-on-frame vehicle, a first for the brand.
Although Genesis has never produced a small car, this concept is recognizable as a product of the brand due to distinctive design features such as two-line lighting front and rear (and for the side indicators) and a comb-shaped grille area.
In this concept, the grille area opens to reveal a front storage compartment – a less practical alternative to the storage space under the traditional hood of the F-150 Lightning.
There are flared but smooth fenders, as well as a curved windshield that connects to a fairly flat roof and an abrupt (and therefore conventionally plain) rear window.
Inside, there’s a rounded, minimalist dashboard and the apparent lack of a center console.
Mr Donckerwolke has previously thrown cold water on the idea of a Genesis-branded ute, even after the luxury brand confirmed it would put into production a model like last year’s X Gran Equator off-road SUV concept.
“I’m not sure (a ute) fits the brand,” Mr Donckerwolke told Australian media Daily Sparkz in November 2025.
“We have a lot of other things to do. And I think basically we’re focusing more on high performance and GT (Grand Touring) models.”
Mr. Donckerwolke, who admits to personally owning and driving a Ford F-150 Raptor, said he believes introducing a utility vehicle at this time poses a risk to the brand’s carefully cultivated “athletic elegance” image.
“We need to make sure we don’t dilute the brand with something more useful,” he said.
However, the design chief stopped short of a definitive “never,” leaving a glimmer of hope for those dreaming of a Korean rival to the Ford Ranger Raptor or a luxury trailer trailer.
“I’m not saying it won’t happen,” Mr. Donckerwolke acknowledged.
“But I’m saying we have so many other priorities now… I don’t think this is the right thing for Genesis (right now).”
These other priorities include a new flagship electric SUV and sports cars.
This leaves the Hyundai and Kia brands within the Hyundai Motor Group to offer ute offerings.
Hyundai already has the Tucson-based Santa Cruz unibody ute in markets such as the US and will launch a body-on-body ute there before 2030, as well as another co-developed with General Motors in Latin America. In contrast, Kia already has a body-on-frame ute in the Tasman.
So far, only a handful of luxury brands have offered utes.
Cadillac offered the Escalade EXT for several generations, but recently ruled out any plans to return to the segment. Lincoln offered the F-150-based Blackwood, which was a flop, followed by the slightly more successful Mark LT; and Mercedes-Benz used the Nissan Navara-based double-cab X-Class, which was discontinued after less than three years.
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