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Skip Barber School adds the powerful Hyundai Genesis Coupe

The Skip Barber Racing School has added the venerable Hyundai Genesis Coupe to its stable of high performance cars for use on track. Skip Barber’s students will use both the 3.8 R-Spec and also the 3.8 Track versions of the rear-drive sports coupe in their training. The Genesis will join the Porsche 911, Lexus IS-F and Mazdaspeed 3 at the School’s multiple locations.
At the Skip Barber Racing School students study both front and also rear drive sports cars. The idea is to be able to master the different driving dynamics each type of these two common drivetrains offers. The Hyundai Genesis Coupe is an ideal training vehicle for the portion of the programs that require a rear-drive car that can be made to over-steer. With 348 horsepower, the Genesis has more power than a BMW 335i, Mustang, or Camaro with a V6 and is one of the most powerful rear-drive coupes in the world with a V6.In past years the school had an excellent relationship with Mazda which supplied MX-5 Miatas, Mazdaspeed 3s, Mazda 3 sedans, and the nimble RX-8, rear drive sports car. Although an excellent handler, and capable of being forced to over-steer, the RX-8 was so low in torque that it had to be modified in order to induce practical over-steer. The Genesis Coupe may not need so much help to get the tail out.Commenting on the new addition to the program, Steve Shannon, vice president, marketing, Hyundai Motor America said “We’re thrilled to give more driving enthusiasts the opportunity to pilot our Genesis Coupe high-performance rear-drive models in an exciting-yet-controlled learning environment with the respected Skip Barber program. Our exciting 348-horsepower Genesis Coupe R-Spec and Track models can now be experienced to their full potential on world-renowned racing circuits like Lime Rock, Laguna Seca and Road Atlanta. The proven durability of the Genesis Coupe in such a rigorous daily instruction environment is also sure to impress Skip Barber Racing School students and instructors alike, all while making students better drivers.”Some Torque News authors are graduates of both the Skip Barber Driving School and Racing School, including this author. Like most graduates, our staffers that have been lucky enough to experience the program agreed that the lessons learned are hard to get in any other setting. The Hyundai Genesis should make an excellent addition to the high performance fleet at Skip Barber.Author’s note – Torque News and the author have not received any free items, classes, or compensation for its writers from the Skip Barber Racing School or its affiliates. Classes were paid for out of pocket by the participants.