Hyundai Genesis AR550 Tuned to Take on BMW M5
Hyundai is no stranger to bringing high-power projects to the SEMA Show, but the truth is that most of the cars you see in their booth would look out of place anywhere else.
That’s what ARK Performance had in mind when they set about designing the AR550 on display in Hyundai’s booth this year. Rather than coming up with an over-the-top product, ARK set about building a version of the new Genesis sedan that could be an answer to the BMW M5 or Mercedes E63 AMG.
The result is a supercharged version of the midsize luxury sedan that makes 550 hp via a supercharged version of Hyundai’s 5.0-liter “Tau” V8 that makes 550 hp. ARK also replaced the suspension for better handling and gave the car a Brembo brake kit for improved stopping power.
ARK modified a long list of components in the car including the supercharger kit, exhaust, intake, a race-spec driveshaft and high-flow catted test pipe to name a few.
But with their sights set on German luxury, drivetrain upgrades just aren’t enough. Consequently, the company also revised many of the body panels and custom diamond stitching on the seats and doors.
This isn’t just a one-off project either because ARK offers all of the parts to its customers necessary to replicate this car. It’s probably going to be a long time before Hyundai offers something to compete with the BMW M5 in its showrooms, but if you would rather not wait for that day to arrive, ARK might have a more immediate answer.
GALLERY: Hyundai Genesis AR550 by ARK
GALLERY: Hyundai SEMA 2014 Booth Cars
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Luke is an energetic automotive journalist who spends his time covering industry news and crawling the internet for the latest breaking story. When he isn't in the office, Luke can be found obsessively browsing used car listings, drinking scotch at his favorite bar and dreaming of what to drive next, though the list grows a lot faster than his bank account. He's always on <A title="@lukevandezande on Twitter" href="http://twitter.com/lukevandezande">Twitter</A> looking for a good car conversation. Find Luke on <A title="@lukevandezande on Twitter" href="http://twitter.com/lukevandezande">Twitter</A> and <A title="Luke on Google+" href="http://plus.google.com/112531385961538774338?rel=author">Google+</A>.
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