Looking Back: 2023's Most Surprising New EV Was a Funny Little Car From Hyundai

A fastback left stranded halfway between retro and futuristic styling, also halfway between pretty and not quite so, the Ioniq 6 was also the second model to be underpinned by the brand’s new E-GMP (Electric Global Modular Platform (E-GMP).

Maybe it won’t win a beauty pageant. But the streamliner body style brought along the lowest drag coefficient in the entire Hyundai lineup: 0.21. Fighting less against the wind brings better range. But we’ll get to that in due time.

About two years prior, Hyundai had debuted the Prophecy Concept EV. It was the concept car that started it all, previewing the Ioniq 6 in terms of design. Clean, simple lines, a single-curved aerodynamic profile, and carefully drawn contours make it look clear and emotional.

The model with the streamlined silhouette is 191.1 inches (4,855 millimeters) long, 74.0 inches (1,880 millimeters) wide, 58.9 inches (1,495 millimeters) tall, and sports a wheelbase of 116.1 inches (2,950 millimeters). All these numbers translate into more than decent space on board. Yet the descending roofline and tilted rear windshield, plus the coupe body style compromise the headroom.

Cameras play the part of conventional mirrors and enhance aerodynamics as well, and so do the auto-flush door handles. There is this elliptical wing-inspired rear spoiler with a winglet at the rear, which brings some Porsche Carrera RS vibes from the mid-1970s. The Active Air Flaps round up the intelligent aero pack.

Yet there isn’t much space left for nostalgia and retro design, because there are the futuristic parametric pixel rear lamps back there, mirroring the signature parametric pixel front Matrix LED lamps.

The Ioniq 6 also received something that no Hyundai had revived before: a new flat-type ‘H’ emblem, that all new models were set to inherit. The model rides on either 18-inch alloy wheels with 225/55 R18 tires or 20-inch alloys with 245/40 R20 tires.

Hyundai went all the way in terms of sustainability. They put recycled pigment paint from end-of-life tires to the cladding on the fenders, bamboo charcoal pigment paint for the Digital Green Pearl, and so on. Inside the cabin, there is the eco-friendly process leather, seats are wrapped in recycled PET fabric, Bio TPO covers the dashboard, while there is Bio PET fabric covering up the headliner. The floor carpet is made from recycled fishing nets, and customers can also choose mats made of the same material.

They did the same in terms of technology. There are Digital Side Mirrors on board, playing images captured by the outside cameras. The speed-synchronized lighting modifies the interior lighting depending on the speed, while there is an interactive LED steering wheel. Driver and front passenger sit in Relaxation Seats.

Hyundai reduced the number of physical buttons down to minimum. Therefore, there aren’t any buttons in the slim door panel. Various functions are controlled via the integrated EV controller with a glossy black screen. The driver gets all the necessary information on the 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster. The 12.3-inch touchscreen displays Navigation.

Customers can go for one of the two battery pack options and one of the two powertrains. The Standard Range is equipped with the small 53-kWh battery and is powered by an electric motor, which generates 149 horsepower (151 PS) and 258 lb-ft (350 Nm) of torque in a rear-wheel drive setup.

The Long Range can be specced with rear-wheel drive, 225 horsepower (228 PS) and 258 lb-ft (350 Nm) or with all-wheel drive, 321 horsepower (325 PS) and 446 lb-ft (605 Nm) of torque.

The 77.4-kWh battery allows Long Range RWD to drive as far as 316 miles (509 kilometers) on a single charge, while the Long Range AWD can travel for 316 miles (509 kilometers) when the car sports the 18-inch wheels. The 20-inch wheels make the range significantly drop all the way to 305 (491 kilometers) and 270 miles (435 kilometers).

The Ioniq 6 got five-star safety rating from Euro NCAP. And it wasn’t just any five-star rating. The car got the best-in-class award in 2022 in the Large Family Car category, meaning that it was the safest in its class.

Furthermore, it received the Top Safety Pick+ from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety in the US. It’s got seven airbags, including a driver’s seat center-side airbag, plus the eCall function.

The Ioniq 6 continues its successful march through the industry. It has been named finalist for the 2024 North American Car of the Year, racing against the Honda Accord and Toyota Prius/Prius Prime. It already won the World Car of the Year Award in 2023, but it looks like it is used to piling up awards.

The model, which rolls off the production line at the Asan plant in South Korea, starts at $42,450 in the US, but at the opposite end of the lineup, pricing is quite hefty for the all-wheel drive, large-battery variant: $53,650.