Top electric cars : N°08 the Hyundai Ioniq

What is that? Sounds “environmental” …

Hyundai Ionic. As you can see from the slippery teardrop shape, this is a competitor to the Toyota Prius. But it is also a competitor to the Nissan LEAF. And even a competitor to the VW Golf GTE, all at once. But not everyone is at the same time, in the same car.

Can you explain in one sentence?

Here it is: Ioniq is designed to accommodate three different engines; You choose what suits your life best. How is that?

I agree. Well, what are the engines?

Let’s start with the pure electric vehicle, titled the fictional Ionic Electric Vehicle. In the photos, it is the one with the soft gray nose instead of the grille, the silver bumper, and the copper-colored lightning instead of the blue in the hybrid versions. Because copper = electrical wires, you know.
The interior calls for those touches, as it’s a relentless blaze of harsh gray plastic. Build quality and ergonomics are not an issue, but the materials themselves are from this old Korean hatchback rack.

The car drives its front wheels with a 118 hp and 194 lb-ft electric motor that draws juice from a 28 kWh lithium-ion polymer battery hidden under the rear seats. In Eco and Normal, this means 0-62 mph in 10.2 seconds. The stated maximum range is 174 miles – a competitor to the modified Nissan LEAF and BMW i3 models.

Double tap the Drive Mode button and you’ll enter Sports Mode, which lights up virtual instruments and slams Red Bull into the drums. Maximum torque can reach 217 lb-ft, and Ioniq’s time drops from 0-62 mph to 9.9 seconds. maximum speed? 103 mph. Don’t worry Elon, there’s not much Slightly Silly mode here, let alone Ludicrous.

Is it good?

Everything is fine, without feeling like you are moving forward with an EV game. Even in sports mode, the Ioniq Electric doesn’t have a 0 to 30 mph zip code for the Nissan Leaf. It adapts well to traffic and this should annoy the Volkswagen Golf Bluemotion at the world’s most troublesome traffic lights GP, but the ‘fit’ is as generous as the performance praise. Quiet, however – there’s no moan inside and silence on the outside that it makes a tron-like sound as you turn to fend off pedestrians.
Regular paddles are deployed on the steering wheel to determine severity of regenerative braking – I found Level 3 of 4 the best compromise for extracting the batteries without twisting the rider against the seat belt.
Although the car claimed fully charged when it got in, the estimated range was only 129 miles. Hmmm. It was a moderately hot day with the air conditioner on. After 47 miles of freeway work on the A and Highway (barely its comfort zone), the computer promised 83 miles remained. So this appears to be true, at least.

And it’s not a lead pudding in the corners, either. Well, the center of gravity doesn’t look as low as Hyundai engineers claim (sound is less than the Golf GTI), but it’s lightweight and easily lightweight for anything. Most of the little guards throw it at him. As long as it’s not held back by Hyundai’s usual twisted steering, which is helped by a gigantic tangle of rubber bands hidden in the steering wheel. Seemingly.

Poor cabbies. It does look like a bit of an Uber chariot.

Yes, because it looks like a Prius. Or at least Prius when it was nice. But the original idea of ​​a Toyota powered by gasoline and electric has taken over the modern common car market in the city center, so this is what the Hyundai Ionic Hybrid should aim for.
Choose from two versions: the Standard Edition full hybrid and the additive edition. Okay, I’d say choose, but if you want the wall socket version with taller electric feet, wait until 2017. The standard Hybrid is now available, with prices starting at £ 1,985.
This is amazingly aggressive pricing, which makes the entry-level version around £ 4,000 cheaper than the equivalent Toyota Prius. A lot of tools are standard. Then the news gets better.

Go on …

The main reason you should prefer the Ioniq over the Prius is the gearbox. Mainly because, unlike Toyota’s CVT gimbal, it has one. Toyota says economies of scale, solid reliability, and superior efficiency make the CVT the natural choice for its hybrid cars, but the new Hyundai kids decided not to bother with the logic of 20 years and have given the Ioniq Hybrid a dual-clutch gearbox.
South Koreans also rated it as a 96% more efficient propulsion system thanks to its ridiculously low internal friction. Good news for the 1.6 liter 103 hp engine, which matches Toyota’s world record for thermal efficiency of 40%.
In fact, it’s not much of a competition, as having traditional gears on board make the Ioniq much more intuitive and responsive. Acceleration requirements are met with minimal movement. With 103 hp from the four-cylinder engine and a total system power of 138 hp, it’s good from 0-62 mph at 10.8 seconds and 115 mph.

But I’m not buying a hybrid to get that excited.

exactly. All of this would be in vain if the heavy-duty gearbox undermined those precious fuel savings. Well, I drove the Ioniq Hybrid about 40 miles and took advantage of time and time again (everything is relative) from the novelty of the throttle movement that actually translates, averaging 64, 2 mpg. Not so bad. Better than I specified in my last Prius, for example. Hyundai claims 79 g / km of CO2 emissions in combined cycle.
The transmission between the electric motor and the motor is smooth and nearly silent, but it can still be very difficult to make progress without the engine running. You will need to release this plug-in next year.

Sounds like the new hybrid of choice.

As for the engine, yes, and the price for sure. But you can see where the corners are cut. There’s questionable trim and cramped rear seats sacrificing some upstream space for this roof line.
For a car that can live or die as easily as it swallows, uh, unstable back passengers, this is not good news. I think we’ll still be very chubby for the Ioniq Hybrid in general, given its less cumbersome ride and pre-eminence. Either way, the Prius no longer has that cab on its own.