A dealer took a 2017 Genesis G90 in as a trade-in and then decided to auction it off. It was stated to have an oil pressure problem, which indicated it needed a new engine. No one even came close. It just sat there week after week, waiting for someone to take it home.
Nobody wanted it until the dealer made an offer and this guy came along. Sam took a risk, offered half the original price for the seven-year-old sedan and soon had it delivered to his home.
He bought the car for $12,100 plus a $500 auction fee, which is less than half the price of a Genesis G90 of similar age and mileage currently available on the used car market. Described as a budget luxury sedan, the 2017 model has covered 65,085 miles (104,744 kilometers) in the seven years it spent on the road before its owner decided to trade it in.
It was a running car, although the advert stated that it had a low oil pressure problem. In one of the photos Sam saw in the for sale ad, the digital instrument cluster was shown with the engine running and not a single warning light was on. That must have been one of the reasons he decided to buy the car. However, an engine with low oil pressure can cause serious damage.
Photo: Samcrac |
The first thing he checked on the Genesis G90 when it was delivered was the engine oil. The level, texture and color seemed fine, and the car seemed to drive perfectly. But the dream ended abruptly when Sam stopped at a red light. The low oil pressure warning light came on on the dashboard. However, it disappeared when the car was moving again, and reappeared at the next stop. All signs pointed to a potentially faulty sensor.
Sam googled the problem and found countless threads discussing the issue. It was something the Genesis models had problems with sooner or later.
The hot topic in forums and the recall that affected over 28,000 vehicles
The Genesis G90 is powered by the same twin-turbocharged engine as the Kia Stinger. It is a 3.3-liter V6 that produces 365 hp and 460 Nm of torque in the GT version. An eight-speed automatic transmission transfers the power to the rear-wheel drive. This is enough for acceleration from 0 to 100 km/h in 4.4 seconds.
The engine was the subject of a recall by Hyundai Motor America earlier this year. The recall affected 28,439 vehicles in the full-size G90, mid-size G80 and sportier G70 series that were assembled in South Korea between June 2016 and September 2021.
Photo: Samcrac |
Back then, the Genesis G90 line also featured a 5.0-liter V8. The V8 produced 420 horsepower. However, that’s not the case with the Genesis sedan that Sam bought after trading it in for half the original retail price.
The defective sensor can be replaced at the dealer for over $3,000
On a Kia forum, someone said the service charge $3,400 to replace the faulty sensor that indicated low oil pressure. The sensor should be located under the intake manifold.
The repair may not really be worth it if you are sure that there really isn’t a problem with the oil pressure. If he wants to sell the car, he probably won’t be able to convince the customer that the warning light on the dashboard is nothing to worry about. Sam plans to sell the luxury sedan, so he needs to fix the problem.
Photo: Samcrac |
He understands why the repair is so expensive once he starts moving parts out of the way to get to the supposedly bad sensor. He even has to grind down a tool to get into the tight space on the way to the sensor. Only $80. That’s how much he paid for the sensor. But he also paid an extra $120 for the fuel injector, which he ripped off during the process. So that makes a total of $200, which is a far cry from what the dealer would normally charge for the repair.
Now Sam starts the engine to see if it works. The first attempt is a failure. Smoke comes out from under the hood because he forgot to connect the coolant hose. But then everything seems to be fine. On the first drive, at the first stop, there was no sign of the annoying warning on the dashboard.
The car is equipped with impressive equipment that reminds Sam of the Lexus LS. When it was new, Genesis sold this model at a starting price of $68,100. Now the new Lexus LS 500 starts at $80,685, while the base version of the Genesis G90 costs $89,200. The Asian brand offers a 3.5-liter twin-turbocharged engine instead of the previous 3.3-liter unit.
