Hyundai Ioniq 5 2022 review: RWD

What does it look like? 

Hyundai has gone next level with the design on this car. Just look at the way those headlights are framed. It reminds me of Cyclops in X-Men’s glasses.

Hyundai calls it a 'Clamshell' bonnet and it helps aerodynamically, so it’s not just for show. There are some cool ridges around the base of the car and angles in the door that give it a very spacey car-of-the-future vibe.

Inside lives up to this as well, especially with the white interior on our test car. It’s all very light and bright and as my seven-year old said, “it’s just so MODERN!” 

There are leather-appointed seats and a leather-appointed steering wheel, as well as the centre storage cover and door coverings which makes it feel super premium, and it has an external stitching which is a lovely design feature.

Also revolutionary, it doesn’t have inside door handles, you pull shut the built-in panel and it’s really streamined the whole look.

There’s also a large panoramic sunroof that goes down to the back which enhances the 'light' feeling of the design. It all feels very luxe and great to drive.

And the multimedia is a light grey and white, though it comes in black, too. The light colour makes such a big difference.

My kids absolutely loved this car and I think it was mainly because of the high tech looking screens. 

What’s the tech like? 

The stars of the show are the multimedia screen and digital dash. It’s in an all-in-one thing but it houses the two areas - a 12.3 inch touchscreen on the left, and another of the same size with all your car specifics on the right.

It’s even got a blue light filter which is an amazing addition and shows Hyundai's gone that extra mile with its tech thinking. 

The multimedia uses Apple CarPlay and Android Auto which is connected with a cord, unlike other Hyundais which are wireless and sometimes are hard to get working.

It syncs to your phone’s main apps and is basically like a large phone to navigate and stream audio with. You also get an eight-speaker Bose stereo so turn that sound up, it’s good. 

I did have issues getting the climate control to work, it’s all controlled via the touchscreen, but I found it a bit fiddly and hard to use. 

How easy is it to use every day? 

For storage you’ll get two cupholders in the front, and no centre storage bin. There’s a large shelf instead which I find more useful and there’s a shelf for keys and a phone, plus a wireless charger.

You do get a larger glove box if you want to store things away and there are bottle holders in each door. 

There are power adjustable seats in both rows, and the kids were so excited they could move their seats with buttons, too.

That’s certainly a novelty in the backseat so it scored big points with them. The front seats are heated and ventilated, and the outer rear seats are heated.

Rear passengers also get their own air vents, two cupholders in the centre armrest and storage in the doors. 

Now for the electric motor. How does the charging work?

That depends on where you charge it. If you’re charging it at one of those AC outlets at a supermarket, it will take six hours to go from 10 to 80 per cent.

If you’re at a speedier 50kWh charger, it will take around one hour. And speedier still, but much rarer, a 350kWh charger takes 18 minutes. If you’re just plugging into a power point it will take 31 hours. 

The battery life is impressive, though, with a 451km range, and if you’re doing city driving that range is extended because of the regenerative braking.

When I picked the car up at the beginning of the week I had a 393km range, and I didn’t need to charge it over the seven days I drove, doing mainly suburban driving.

I didn’t even get range anxiety because the battery was going down so slowly. I averaged 17kWh/100km and when I returned the car after seven days I still had around 240km range left. 

How spacious is it?

Space wise it’s very good inside. The front seats (passenger and driver) have lots of leg and headroom and it’s wide also so you don’t feel too close together. It just feels airy inside, probably again due to the light interior and enormous sunroof. 

My children, aged seven and nine, had lots of room in the back seat and there is a bunch of leg and head room even for taller passengers.

I’m 161cm and felt very comfortable in the back seat. You’ll be able to get three car seats across if you have narrow-ish seats, I did it with two boosters and a baby capsule.  

The boot is large for this category at 527L, there’s a lot of space back there and you’ll be able to fit a double pram or sporting equipment, or suitcases.

It’s not as high as some other SUVs but is a long area. Fold the rear seat down and that number grows to 1587L. And there's a 52L compartment at the front of the car.

How does it drive?

The driving is smooth and quiet, two of my favourite features. The steering is easy to turn, there’s quick pick up because it’s an electric motor so it’s fast from the get go and it has good power to get up hills quickly.

It has that silence of an electric car which I personally love and it handles nicely. I loved driving the Ioniq this week and really found my driving groove. 

The gear selector is on the steering wheel next to the blinker, which I normally appreciate but didn’t get used to this one for some reason. I kept having to check what gear I was in before driving.

I’m sure if you drove it for longer than a week you’d get used to this feature easily. 

Parking is great in the Ioniq. It feels nimble and the steering wheel is light to turn which makes parking easy work.

There’s a high-res reversing camera with 360 degree camera view to help, and the car is a good size to fit into most parks.

How safe is it? 

The Ioniq 5 has auto emergency braking (AEB) with pedestrian and cyclist detection and also junction assist which helps prevent accidents at corners.

Plus there’s an advanced lane assist which can avoid upcoming or parallel cars at up to speeds of 145km/h. That’s pretty great. 

You also get adaptive cruise control, rear cross-traffic alert and blind spot monitoring.

There are airbags for driver and front passenger and side curtain airbags that go to the back row, plus one in the centre of the driver and front passenger. 

The Ioniq 5 has scored a maximum five-star ANCAP rating against the latest 2021 criteria.

How much does it cost to own? 

The Hyundai Ioniq 5 costs $71,500 in the RWD version, before on-road costs. It comes with Hyundai’s five-year/unlimited km warranty, with a separate eight-year, 160,000 km warranty for the battery. 

Service interval is 12 months or 15,000km (whichever comes first), and the first five services are $220 each.

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Verdict