The Hyundai Genesis Coupe is the real deal. I drove both the 210-hp turbocharged four-cylinder Genesis 2.0T ($22,750 base) and 306-hp V6 Genesis 3.8 ($25,750 base to $31,750 loaded). The suspension is firm on all cars, really firm on the sports (track) models. Acceleration and handling range from good to awesome. Don't buy this car if you only want to look sporty. Pretender sports cars don't offer Brembo brakes. Except on just-paved asphalt, non-enthusiasts may find the ride harsh. Translation: You'll love it; your girlfriend wishes perhaps you weren't such a hard-core car nut. The four-cylinder has an appealing price but the V6 has the better, smoother engine, and a better automatic transmission (six-speed ZF vs. a five-speed). Buy either automatic and you get paddle shifters standard.

The Hyundai Genesis Coupe is not a reworked Hyundai Genesis sedan. It's much smaller (182 inches long vs. 196 inches). Instead, "Genesis" is Hyundai's code words for "rear-drive," and that's about all the two have in common other than amazing value. The back seat barely holds two people 5-foot-6; the trunk is not tall but It's deep and two can go away for a weekend with a reasonable amount of stuff.

Even if you don't buy one, raise a glass to toast Hyundai for forcing all the automakers to understand Bluetooth and a music adapter should be on every car. (Once an automaker turns it into an option, the connector costs more than your iPod or cellphone.) I had no problem hooking a couple phones to the car via Bluetooth, and connections were equally idiot-proof for an iPod, a music key, and a hard drive holding music. Unlike Ford's Sync, which uses the stupid term "user device," when you hook up an iPod, the display says "iPod." Hyundai makes it easier to see your music options because every car gets an in-dash LCD, even if it's monochrome on cars without navigation systems. That said, other automakers do a better job presenting the information on an LCD display.

The navigation option arrives this summer and prices are a bit hazy since it will be part of a package. One model gets standalone navigation and Hyundai says the price for the Hyundai-designed navigation will be right around $1,000; it's $1,250 presently on the Hyundai Sonata sedan and it's a good deal at the price. (This is not yet the fruits of the Hyundai-Microsoft R&D venture.) If Hyundai could bring navigation in for less than $1,000, that would be breathtaking, since most in-dash navigation runs $1,500-$2,100. Built-in navigation really needs to cost $500 since that's what a good Garmin portable navigation device costs. In other words, at $1,000, Hyundai navigation would be overpriced only by a factor of 2X, not 3X to 4X. In the world of auto manufacturing, that's progress.

I see two audiences for the Hyundai Genesis Coupe: under-30 men and women looking for a great deal in an all-round performance car (not just straight line performance), and menopausal males trying to regain their youth. There's not much you won't like so long as you take a reality-check test drive, bring along your significant other, and drive the Genesis Coupe on a variety of road surfaces. As with the Genesis sedan, Hyundai sets a price-performance benchmark for the world's automakers.