Kelley Blue Book’s Best Buy Awards are designed to highlight the best SUVs, cars, trucks, and minivans that you can buy right now. Kelley Blue Book looks at hundreds of vehicles, test drives them, and compares them with one another. With years of automotive experience among the Kelley Blue Book evaluators, it’s impressive that a newcomer to the compact luxury market has taken home the Best Buy Award. The 2022 Genesis GV70 is Kelley Blue Book’s Compact Luxury SUV Best Buy of 2022.

The 2022 Genesis GV70 is Kelley Blue Book’s Compact Luxury SUV Best Buy of 2022

If you want a luxury midsize SUV, the 2022 Genesis GV70 is the way to go. The 2022 Genesis GV70 is one of the smaller midsize luxury SUVs. That might make it even more appealing to those torn between something small and something big. Kelley Blue Book loves its “handsome styling and sporty attitude, an ample amount of standard equipment, and remarkable technology and safety features, all at a competitive price.” The 2022 Genesis GV70 starts at $42,045 for the cheapest model, the 2.5T. The other model is the 3.5T Sport, which costs $53.645.

In addition to its style, Kelley Blue Book notes that the 2022 Genesis GV70 has a commanding presence and an outstanding interior. The GV70 boasts a “futuristic yet highly functional” interior with a 14.5-inch touchscreen, a “stunning 3D gauge cluster, and clean lines.

This compact luxury SUV has a plethora of safety features

The 2022 Genesis GV70 has a turbocharged 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine that makes 300 hp and 311 lb-ft of torque. It comes standard with all-wheel drive. You can also opt for a 3.5-liter twin-turbocharged V6 engine that makes 375 hp and 391 lb-ft of horsepower.

Add to all that the fact that the 2022 Genesis GV70 has adaptive cruise control, forward collision warning, and lane-keeping assist, and you have an award-winning SUV. It also comes with a hands-free liftgate, a 14.5-inch touchscreen display, and a wireless smartphone charging pad. In addition to that, it comes with eight airbags.

The GV70 faced stiff competition

The 2022 Genesis GV70 was up against some pretty tough competition when it came to determining which luxury SUV would be deemed the best. It had to face down the 2022 BMW X3, the 2022 Audi Q5 (which was last year’s award-winner), and the 2022 Mercedes-Benz GLB.

It isn’t price alone that pushed the Genesis GV70 to the top. After all, the 2022 BMW X3 price starts at $43,700, the 2022 Audi Q5 is a mere two grand more at $45,600, and the 2022 Mercedes-Benz GLB price starts at $38,600. No, it’s all the other things that the Genesis GV70 offers, like safety, a streamlined approach to engine options, and a clean yet luxurious styling that adds by not taking away a single thing.

The 2022 Genesis GV70 is certainly worthy of winning Kelley Blue Book’s Compact Luxury SUV Best Buy of 2022. If you’re in the market for a small luxury SUV, you’d be well-served to check out the GV70.