From the July/August 2023 subject of Automotive and Driver.
C/D Take a look at Outcomes at a Look
60 mph: 4.3 sec
1/4-Mile: 13.1 sec @ 104 mph
Braking 70–0 mph: 182 ft
Roadholding, 300-ft Skidpad: 0.86 g
Freeway Vary: 270 mi
Right here we’re once more. After gathering the 12 months’s new EV choices for every week of intense back-to-back scrutiny, rigorous driving, and lengthy hours of charging, a Hyundai has come out on prime. Following final 12 months’s win by the Ioniq 5, that model’s new sedan sibling, the Ioniq 6, motors away with the highest prize this 12 months. Add sturdy showings by the Genesis Electrified GV70 and the Kia EV6 GT, and an image begins to type: In terms of EVs enjoying within the broad foremost swath of the market, the Hyundai-Kia-Genesis group is clearly out in entrance.
That the Ioniq 6 shares a lot with the Ioniq 5 is to its profit, however the brand new entry does extra than simply put a three-box hat on the identical platform and up the model identify by one. “Simply have a look at it,” we mentioned of the Ioniq 5 when it gained, and we may do the identical for the Ioniq 6.
Whereas the 2 siblings’ designs are dissimilar, the banana-shaped sedan is each bit as placing because the angular hatchback. We see a little bit of the first-gen Mercedes CLS within the sloping profile. Hyundai claims the Nineteen Thirties Stout Scarab as inspiration—and although that obscure machine and the Ioniq 6 are practically a century aside, when you see footage of the 2, you realize the notion is not simply one thing the designers made up.
No matter whether or not the form got here to Hyundai designers by means of a turn-of-the-millennium four-door “coupe,” a Streamline Moderne–period proto-minivan, or some sort of fever dream, its aerodynamics give the Ioniq 6 a slip-through-the-air drag coefficient as little as 0.22. We additionally prefer it as a result of it is good to see an automaker introduce a devoted EV that is a sedan (the Polestar 2 and Tesla Mannequin 3 are two others) moderately than one other mid-size crossover.
It’s not simply nicely executed—it’s a automobile we need to drive.
Beneath, Hyundai’s E-GMP platform continues to shine. This automobile comes with a single rear-mounted motor making 149 or 225 horsepower (relying on battery measurement) and 258 pound-feet of torque or will be had with twin motors that mix for 320 horses and 446 pound-feet. Most variations get a 77.4-kWh battery pack. Our EV of the Yr take a look at automobile, a dual-motor Restricted, managed 220 miles in our freeway take a look at and is EPA rated at 270 miles of vary.
Vary projections get even higher from there. The only-motor Restricted nabs a 305-mile EPA estimate, the dual-motor SE with 18-inch wheels moderately than the fancier trims’ 20s is nice for 316 miles, and the single-motor SE brought about jaws to drop earlier this 12 months when Hyundai revealed its 361-mile EPA vary estimate (although we noticed solely 260 miles in our freeway take a look at). That model additionally nets a 140-MPGe mixed determine, topping the rear-drive Tesla Mannequin 3’s 132 MPGe. (An entry-level model with a smaller 53.0-kWh battery pack delivers commensurately much less vary: 240 miles on the EPA cycle.)
When the electrons run low, the Ioniq 6’s 800-volt structure permits for recharging at as much as 235 kilowatts, making for a few of the quickest cost occasions we have seen from any mainstream EV.
As regards to pace, the dual-motor model will get to 60 mph in a brisk 4.3 seconds, though the accelerator mapping makes it really feel much less sporty than another dual-motor EVs (the EV6 GT, for one). The identical run within the 225-hp single-motor model takes 6.2 seconds. The Ioniq 6’s stable construction is imperturbable, lending the automobile real composure over lumpy pavement on probably the most difficult sections of our take a look at loop. The trip is taut and nicely damped, and the automobile stays flat and safe throughout cornering. Hyundai has additionally mastered the “whoa,” with good brake-pedal really feel and simple customization of lift-off regen through steering-wheel paddles, together with the choice of none in any respect.
Twin screens set a tone of modernity.
We will not say that Hyundai has mastered the EV soundtrack—though to be honest, nobody has. Granted, this space is one in every of private desire, and also you definitely have your alternative of spacey accompaniment, however we had been joyful to silence the noisemaker. Doing so permits the Ioniq 6 to indicate off its sound isolation.
Do not count on upscale cabin supplies at this value, though the design is ingenious, notably the smooth door panels. And the sloping roofline cuts into rear headroom even with the low-set seat cushion. Fortunately, Hyundai did not reinvent its infotainment system for electrified responsibility, and the switchgear is not completely different for various’s sake. Beneficiant console storage additional enhances livability. The trunk, although, is simply as small as you’d guess. And the frunk is not a lot compensation—that house will maintain little quite a lot of notebooks.
The Ioniq 6 is each a well-executed electrical and a automobile we need to drive. This polished EV makes few missteps because it places Hyundai’s E-GMP platform within the winner’s circle. Once more.
Deputy Editor, Critiques and Options
Joe Lorio has been obsessive about automobiles since his Matchbox days, and he bought his first subscription to Automotive and Driver at age 11. Joe began his profession at Car Journal underneath David E. Davis Jr., and his work has additionally appeared on web sites together with Amazon Autos, Autoblog, AutoTrader, Hagerty, Hemmings, KBB, and TrueCar.
