This is Hyundai’s idea of a hybrid BMW M3 rival

Nowhere in the press material explaining the new Genesis New York Concept will you find the word ‘Hyundai’.

Yup, Genesis, like Infiniti (posh Nissan) and Lexus (deluxe Toyota) before it, is being jettisoned from its Korean Hyundai mothership and making its own way in the luxury saloon world. This concept (guess where it's been revealed...) is hopefully the sort of car we’ve got to look forward to.

It’s a hybrid sports saloon, teaming a 242bhp turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine with an eight-speed automatic gearbox and rear-wheel drive. Exactly what electric propulsion Hyund-… sorry, Genesis has used, or the range it offers, has been kept secret. The focus here is supposed to be all about those looks.

It’s the work of the man who drew the Lamborghini Murcielago and Gallardo, plus the little Audi A2 city car and today’s Bentley Flying Spur. Luc Donckerwolke is the scribbler behind the Genesis, having moved across from the VW Group in late 2015 to head up the Genesis design studio.

Hyundai and its sister outfit Kia has form in pinching talented designers from Audi and the like – Kia’s design boss Peter Schreyer was responsible for the Mk4 VW Golf and the original Audi TT.

Perhaps it’s the freedom to go a bit wild and not bother with pesky heritage that’s magentising some of Europe’s handiest designers to work for the Koreans. What we like about this Genesis is that, well, it looks different. It’d be harsh to accuse it of dripping with copycat Jaguar cues, or being covered in BMW or Audi tributes. The New York Concept looks pretty handsome to us, especially that wheelarch vent-cum-beehive detail behind the front wheel.

The cabin’s just as devil-may-care, feature a racy steering oblong, the defacto luxury car MEGA-SCREEN for a dashboard, a 21-inch 4K curved display, no less. Oh, and a greater rev counter than even one of Donckerwolke's Lambos.

Simple question, really. Like the look of Genesis’s future?