Perhaps that’s a good sign: A few minutes in the Hyundai Ioniq 5 left us wanting more time behind the wheel of the brand’s new EV. But the press event’s schedule was compressed, allowing us just a quick ride around town. A formal review will have to wait.
But here’s what we found.
First impressions: It’s just as striking looking …
My wife and I agreed that we'd love to buy an Ioniq 5/Kia EV6/electric car for our next family vehicle if it wasn't for two big factors:
I hear you on the charging network but, as I found driving down to South Florida, it wasn't bad. I'm eager to see where we are in just a few more years.
And you'd look good in an Ioniq 5.
I've seen a few of these driving around town and I love the look. I hadn't seen one up close until last week and it was much wider than I thought, in a good way. Looking forward to a more substantial review whenever y'all get your hands on one.
I'm a fan. I see more of the Kia version around, but prefer the Hyundai's looks. If there's anything that I don't like is the nonsense that it starts at 40 large. Good luck getting one for under 60.
Article about US sales of EVs thru July 2022
Tesla = 260,000 units (the undisputed leader)
Ford = 30,000 units and the Lightning truck really isnt any of those sales
Hyundai = 15,000 and Kia = 14,000 sort of a combined 29,000 units
The article calls the Koreans the "quiet leaders in EV sales" I have to agree.
David S. Wallens said:And you'd look good in an Ioniq 5.
Well, that's the only justification I need to buy one.
In reply to thatsnowinnebago :
I've been seeing them multiply in recent weeks on the roads around here (north of Orlando). And I second you on how wide they are. Didn't realize how big they are until I saw one charging at a local gas station.
I saw one near JG's house. It looks striking out in the wild.
I got to sample one from our local press fleet recently along with another writer (We borrowed it to go look at another interesting vehicle: a 90's JDM Land Cruiser Prado. It was about 30 miles away.). Some quick thoughts:
-It looks great. Definitely unique compared to just about everything else out there. And yes, the wheels look like they were cribbed from a mid-90's Chrysler, but I dig them.
-Interior was fantastic. Great fit and finish, seats were comfortable, and the packaging gave the car an airy feeling. Accent lighting at night made the thing feel like something from Star Trek.
-It's like a plus-sized hatchback. Didn't really feel like a CUV in any way.
-It's not slow by any means. It gets up and goes without issue. Range was decent as well.
-It handles great, and it LOVES the highway. Just loafs down the road in comfort. Nice and quiet, too.
-Stopping power was incredibly good. It handled the twisties very well. Has a slight tendency to kick the back end out in spirited driving when you push it to the limit, which made it extra fun.
Overall, it's a decent electric transportation pod that still remains comfortable and engaging to drive, and it is easier on the eyes than a lot of other EV's. I'd consider one as a daily driver if you're in the market for an EV.
Those wheels are just so amazing. And 5x114.3 to boot!
They're popping up around here too. I need to swing by the Hyundai showroom to check one out. Hyundai/Kia are doing some interesting stuff right now.
That first picture looks vaguely Aztec-y, if you squint a little. Threw me off. I like the color more than I like the body lines, it's a little gratuitously geometric for my taste but it does it well. The wheels are an eyesore.
All that being said, we're committed to an electric future and this has a lot more going for it aesthetically than the rest. I hope to never have one but at least it's unique.
When it comes time to replace the QX4 I want to replace it with something electric- but whatever it is will have to be able to handle bad gravel/dirt roads and be AWD to ensure it can make it to our cabin. I like the look of these- but it just looks too low and made purely for driving on paved roads.
In reply to Ashyukun (Robert) :
Maybe it's pseudo-lancia delta integrale looks translate to dirt road performance too?
Ashyukun (Robert) said:When it comes time to replace the QX4 I want to replace it with something electric- but whatever it is will have to be able to handle bad gravel/dirt roads and be AWD to ensure it can make it to our cabin. I like the look of these- but it just looks too low and made purely for driving on paved roads.
Something like this with AWD and Rivian-esque ride-height control would be great. I envison a dial with autocross at one end and offroading at the other.
Ashyukun (Robert) said:When it comes time to replace the QX4 I want to replace it with something electric- but whatever it is will have to be able to handle bad gravel/dirt roads and be AWD to ensure it can make it to our cabin. I like the look of these- but it just looks too low and made purely for driving on paved roads.
Keep in mind those are 20" wheels with a 255/45-20 tire, which means they're 29" in diameter. That's a couple of inches larger than the tires that came on my XJ when it was new. So they've probably got more ground clearance than you expect, because the whole car is just plain bigger than it looks in pictures.
Smooth underbodies are great for aero but also happen to be good for rough roads - no exhaust systems hanging down to catch rocks, for example. Looks like it's got 6.1" of ground clearance, a QX4 has 8.3".
Dimensionally, it's a CR-V that's been lowered about 2 inches and given rad 80s style.
Excited you got a peek; really looking forward to a more thorough GRM review.
This is way up at the pointy end of modern cars I'm excited about. I think they look rad (and I think people are using that word frequently and correctly), and the fact that they're bigger than you expect in person means they actually make sense for the DD role for me, I think.
Earlier this year the Aging Wheels guy on YouTube did a video on the Ioniq5: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Vm_ASm2zfs He and a friend did a 1200 mile road trip in one. I was impressed with how quickly it recharged.
I'd have to color match the trim if I were to get one:
There are spy photos surfacing of a Hyundai Ioniq 5 N model in prototype form! 500+hp and looking proper.
https://thekoreancarblog.com/2022/07/29/hyundai-ioniq-5-n-pre-production-model-spied/
https://www.edmunds.com/car-news/2023-hyundai-ioniq-5-n-spy-photos.html
https://insideevs.com/news/530250/hyundai-ioniq5-n-spy-photos/
I hope that other manufacturers start investing in smaller electric performance cars.
I do hope the wheels haven't changed out. Pretty sure the ones I've seen around locally have the wheels in the opening pic, but when I went to configure on the website all trims just showed a super boring five spoke.
Keith Tanner said:Ashyukun (Robert) said:When it comes time to replace the QX4 I want to replace it with something electric- but whatever it is will have to be able to handle bad gravel/dirt roads and be AWD to ensure it can make it to our cabin. I like the look of these- but it just looks too low and made purely for driving on paved roads.
Keep in mind those are 20" wheels with a 255/45-20 tire, which means they're 29" in diameter. That's a couple of inches larger than the tires that came on my XJ when it was new. So they've probably got more ground clearance than you expect, because the whole car is just plain bigger than it looks in pictures.
Smooth underbodies are great for aero but also happen to be good for rough roads - no exhaust systems hanging down to catch rocks, for example. Looks like it's got 6.1" of ground clearance, a QX4 has 8.3".
I'd definitely want higher? profile tires on it- my experience has been that lower-profile tires like that just aren't fun on really rough gravel/dirt roads like we have to deal with. Raise it up a bit, give it a wider band of rubber between the wheels and the ground, and AWD and it should work.
Interestingly, when I looked around earlier in the summer to see what options I might have, the Volvo XC40 looked like the best option- and it just has .8" more of ground clearance.
I hope this thing is so successful they make a 7/8 scale version. At 67% of the price (7/8 ^ 3)
I just want a cheap EV hot hatch dammit.
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