- Anthony Crupi, Mediaweek

NEW YORK In a near reprise of its year-ago marketing strategy, Hyundai Motor America today said it would unveil the latest incarnation of its Genesis marque in a two-spot Super Bowl buy.

The automaker will air its first two TV ads for the 2010 Genesis coupe during Super Bowl XLIII, running an ad in both halves. Each 30-second spot will feature Formula-D champion Rhys Millen opening it up on a 12-turn road course, allowing Hyundai to position the sports coupe as a turbocharged performance machine.

“Genesis coupe is Hyundai’s most dynamic performance car ever,” said Joel Ewanick, vp of marketing, Hyundai, in a statement. “So many elements come together in these advertisements that showcase the Genesis coupe’s design and performance that we know it will cast a halo over the entire brand.”

Last year’s two-spot buy for the Genesis luxury sedan marked Hyundai’s return to the Super Bowl for the first time since 1989. As was the case a year ago, the new Genesis coupe spots were created by Goodby, Silverstein and Partners.

To date, Hyundai has sold 5,127 Genesis units, which carry a base sticker price of $32,250. A fully-loaded sedan tops out at $42,000. Pricing for the Genesis coupe has not been announced, although Korean market pricing puts the new model in the low- to mid-20K range.

The Super Bowl buy comes as Hyundai looks to put the brakes on what has been an industry-wide sales slump. According to the automaker, November sales plummeted 39.7 percent, while total units sold in the first 11 months of 2008 (377,705) dropped 10.2 percent versus the same time a year ago (420,522).