Geely Starray Em-I vs Hyundai Inster

What's the difference?

While it has a few quirks and flaws, there is a lot to like about the Starray. For starters, the value it offers at its price point is excellent and will really put pressure on its competition. The design may lack flair, but it does have a roomy cabin with a good multimedia system, so it’s family friendly and easy to live with.

Yes, it could do with some refinement of its on-road manners and driver assistance features, but for the value it offers and the frugal powertrain, it will no doubt find plenty of buyers who enjoy its substance and not just its memorable name.

Note: CarsGuide attended this event as a guest of the manufacturer, with meals and accomodation provided.

The target market for the Inster isn't huge, and Hyundai knows it won't be a runaway best-seller for the brand. But those in the market for a bite-sized EV will find the Inster feels bigger, and drives better, than they might expect.

Geely is very proud of the Starray, of course, and the company gave a very detailed presentation on the thought behind the design - involving aerodynamics, Chinese ceramics and a video that appeared to show a Geely spaceship releasing the Starray into a barren landscape.

But to be perfectly honest, I wouldn’t know how to describe it to you. The Starrary is a very generic looking car to my eyes, at least. Of course it’s subjective, and there is a clear visual connection between the Starray and the EX5, which is nice. But it just doesn’t have any real visual impact that makes it stand out.

It’s the automotive equivalent of a blank expression. Maybe it’s because the brand is so new, but if you removed the badges, there’s nothing about the Starray that screams ‘I’m a Geely’, and it could be a car from any number of brands.

By comparison, there is a distinctive visual style to Geely’s rivals, namely BYD, both externally and internally, to give it character. Obviously the same is very much true for bigger brands like Hyundai, Kia and even Toyota.

Perhaps with more time Geely will make more of a design impact on our market, but for now it’s hard to say it really has any standout design elements.

The words small but perfectly formed appear here, with Hyundai’s insistence on not having a traditional range-wide design identity allowing them the freedom to create something unique and pretty funky here — though I do see some shades of Suzuki Ignis in the side profile.

It does look fun though, right? With the selfie ring-light-style headlights, Tetris-style rear lights, those swollen guards and the funky alloys.

And you can dial up further with the Cross variant, which gets a tougher, more squared-off look front and back - even if you’re more chance of meeting a bunyip than an Inster on your favourite off-road track.

Inside, the cuteness continues, though some of the scratchy cabin materials definitely point to the entry-level nature of the Inster.

Still, the seat materials, both the cloth and the leather, are lovely and thoughtfully coloured, and the twin screen setup is nice, too. I love the inclusion of a host of physical buttons that control the climate, stereo and the nav.

The one area the designers do deserve a lot of credit for is the roomy cabin. Too often modern electric or hybrid SUVs compromise interior space in the name of aerodynamics, but the Starray has generous interior space.

The front seats are comfortable and roomy, but more impressive are the rear seats. They not only offer good kneeroom and head clearance, but the seats themselves are comfortable and supportive. 

As for cargo space, the boot has 428 litre of space, which is on par with BYD Sealion 6, but smaller than the 507 litres offered by the MG HS. Space can expand to 2065 litres with the second row dropped to load larger items.

Despite the modest boot capacity, the Starray doesn’t come with a full-size spare wheel, or even a spacesaver, and instead you have to make do with a tyre repair kit.

In terms of the multimedia system, there’s a huge 15.4-inch display that takes up a lot of space, and does look like someone just glued a big iPad to the dashboard. Then there’s the increasingly common 10.2-inch rectangular digital instrument display ahead of the steering wheel.

While this setup is highly functional, it does add to the generic design mentioned earlier. It also lacks any meaningful physical buttons, with the key audio and air-con functions all housed in the giant centre screen.

Standard on both Starray grades is Geely’s Connected Services, which includes a voice assistant, 4G connectivity, live traffic updates for the in-built sat-nav, over-the-air updates, as well as online streaming, remote vehicle functions and access to Geely’s own app store.

The over-the-air updates are important, because it will allow the company to change the car over time. For example, at launch it includes wireless Apple CarPlay, but Android Auto won’t be wireless until an over-the-air update early in 2026.

The Inspire features a premium sound system from Geely’s own Flyme brand, and it’s impressive. The 16-speaker, 1000W system is powerful and offers good clarity, so it’s worth the extra spend on the higher grade on its own.

The Inster stretches 3825mm long, 1610mm wide and 1575mm tall, but it rides on a 2580mm wheelbase – the later being bigger than the Hyundai Venue, and almost as big as the Kona.

It has allowed Hyundai to stretch the legroom options in the backseat, which actually gives you more space than the two bigger SUVs mentioned above, helped massively by the fact the Inster's rear pew is on rails, allowing you to slide it right back, and that it reclines a fair way, too.

I'm 175cm and I found I had more than enough leg and headroom, and with the backseat in full La-Z-Boy mode, I could sit back and relax, even on a longer journey.

It's a good thing it's four seats only, though. While the Inster feels longer than it is, it doesn't feel any wider, and even in the front seat you can feel like you're in economy class when you have a passenger on board, with both of you rubbing elbows on the central armrest.

Clever storage abounds though, with hidey-holes, handbag hooks and more dotted throughout the cabin. Opt for the roof box – and wear the efficiency penalty – and you can pop another 75kg worth of gear on the roof.

Also cool is the fact the backseats fold completely flat in the entry-level Inster, upping the storage possibilities. And in the top-spec Cross, the front seats fold down, too, allowing for fairly long items to be stowed. Though why you would need the driver's seat to fold flat is a bit of a mystery, unless you're looking to turn your Inster into an immovable storage container.

Apparently in Korea you can option a mattress that slides over all four seats, but I can't see that taking off here.

The official storage numbers are 280L and 1059L, and the small boot is helped along a little by underfloor storage where you can pop your charging stuff.

The Inster is available as an entry-level model, which comes as a Standard Range for $39,000 before on-road costs, or an Extended Range for $42,500. It then steps up to the Inster Cross, which is $45,000.

For perspective, the Geely EX5 is considerably bigger, and will travel further on a charge, for $40,990 before on-road costs. Then there's the Chery E5, which is now  $39,990 plus on-road costs.

Anyway, the Inster nabs 15-inch wheels, dual 10.25-inch screens (one for the multimedia, another for driving info), a six-speaker stereo, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, cloth seats, two V2L connectors, a wireless charging pad and rain-sensing wipers. The equipment list for the Extended Range is the same, but it rides on 17-inch alloys.

Stepping up to the Inster Cross scores you a unique and off-road-inspired look, but also leather trim inside, a unique design for its 17-inch alloys, heating and ventilation for the front seats and heating for the steering wheel, some extra safety kit and practicality perks, and the option of a sunroof or an exterior roof storage box, the latter of which seriously eats into the driving range.

There is no mechanical difference between the Starray Complete and Inspire. Geely has developed a new naturally aspirated 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine that pairs with an electric motor for a combined output of 193kW.

Power is sent to the front wheels only, with no all-wheel drive option. 

There are three driving modes - Pure, Hybrid and Power - with the former able to lock the car into EV-only driving, while the latter is able to combine the electric and petrol engine for maximum performance.

Even so, Geely’s 0-100km/h claim is only a modest 8.0 seconds and has a limited top speed of 170km/h, which is fine for Australian conditions.

The Hyundai Inster Standard Range kicks off power proceedings, with a single front-mounted electric motor producing 71kW and 147Nm.

Next is the Extended Range, which shares its outputs with the Inster Cross. Here, the front-mounted motor’s outputs have been ticked up slightly, now producing 84kW and 147Nm.

Those aren’t big numbers, but then neither does either Inster feel particularly slow or underpowered. 

The electric motor is powered by an 18.4kWh lithium-iron phosphate battery, which provides a claimed EV-only range of 83km, which is good for a PHEV but no longer class-leading, with some now pushing into triple digits.

Thanks to the hybrid assistance, fuel consumption is rated at just 2.4L/100km, on the combined cycle. It’s worth noting that both of those figures are to the WLTP test cycle, not the more generous Chinese testing protocol.

With a 51-litre fuel tank and the 83km EV mileage, Geely claims a total combined driving range of 943km. However, as always, we must point out that it is not really possible to achieve that 2.4L claim once the battery is depleted.

One handy feature of these plug-in hybrids with the bigger batteries is the vehicle-to-load or V2L functionality, which allows you to draw power from the battery to power small electrical devices, such as laptops or camping equipment.

Standard Range cars get a 42kWh lithium-ion battery, producing a driving range of 327km. The Extended Range and the Cross get a bigger 49kWh battery, increasing the range to 360kms. Now, that roof box. It does look cool, but you’re going to really need to carry stuff to choose that option, given it increases energy consumption by 25 per cent, reducing the Cross’s range to just 293km.

When it comes to charging, the Inster is set up for 120kW DC fast charging, or 10.5kW AC charging - provided you have that much power available at home, as most wall boxes are more like 7.1kW.

The good news is Geely gave the Starray a different ride and handling tune to what it offers in the Chinese market. The bad news is it’s the European tune.

Australian and European roads couldn’t be more different, with ours offering more potholes, bumps, dips, cracks and other imperfections that require more compliance than what’s needed for Europe’s typically smoother, less wrinkled roadways.

It means the Starray feels too firm for our back roads, but equally lacks body control at times too, so it’s not the most enjoyable SUV to drive on a winding country road. Around town the ride can get busy at times, but overall it feels better at lower speeds.

Just as importantly, the powertrain does a nice job in both conditions. It offers reasonable performance for this type of SUV, feeling slightly off the mark and effortlessly swapping between the electric motor and petrol engine.

We drove in EV mode initially and noticed the battery drained significantly in a short period, raising doubts about its ability to go 83km. However, as we switched to hybrid mode, we’ll have to reserve judgement and give Geely the benefit of the doubt when it comes to EV range.

Long story short, if Geely is serious about winning over Australian buyers, investing in local ride and handling tuning would help elevate the Starrary from just another imported SUV to something more memorable.

Honestly, the impact electrification has had on vehicles in this class is staggering.

It wasn't so long ago that these micro cars were fitted with underwhelming petrol engines, four- or five-speed gearboxes and all the noise-deadening technology of a tin of beans.

As a result, they were cute, but painful. It always felt like you had to wring their neck to get the most out of them, and when you did, they were loud, buzzy and annoying.

But the Inster is none of those things. While not ludicrously powerful, the electric propulsion offered, and the nature of the way it's produced, feels ample in the little Hyundai, with the acceleration smooth, silent and easy,

It's also just generally quiet. Hyundai says it has double-sealed the doors, used thicker glass and fitted full underbody coverings to reduce the NVH - or noise, vibration, harshness - levels, and all of that, combined with the peace and quiet of an electric motor, have created a mostly blissful cabin experience.

The ride and handling hasn't been through the full Hyundai Australia ride and handling calibration of old. Instead, it's undergone the brand's more modern approach, which is to take the best componentry from what's available overseas and then build the Aussie-spec cars from there.

Either way, it all works pretty well here. Only really big bumps clang into the cabin, with the Inster otherwise riding well over all of the road surfaces we encountered.

The point, I guess, is that it's a drive experience stuffed full of happy surprises. The ride, the acceleration and the refinement are all well up on what you might expect from a city car.

The Hyundai Inster is yet to be crash tested, but does arrive with a solid safety offering including seven airbags, as well as active equipment like a auto emergency braking (AEB), rear cross-traffic avoidance, lane keep assist, and active cruise control.

The Cross ups the equipment a little more, including a surround-view monitor, blind-spot monitoring and front parking sensors.

As Geely and many other new brands are learning, it’s easy to launch a new model into Australia, but it’s a whole different story to deal with the aftersales care - servicing, warranty, etc.

“We want to ensure every day with Geely is a good day,” said Li Lei, CEO of Geely Australia.

To that end, Geely has partnered with some of Australia’s biggest dealer groups to quickly expand to 47 dealers in less than 12 months. At the same time it has built two Parts Distribution Centres in Australia and has 135 service venues, to ensure if anything does go wrong with an owner’s car it can be fixed and returned as soon as possible.

Geely is offering a seven-year/unlimited kilometre warranty for the Starray EM-i, along with an eight-year warranty of the battery pack. 

Servicing is annually or every 15,000km, whichever comes first, and with Geely’s Hybrid Assured Service Pricing you will pay $1932 over the first five years.

If you take up that offer and service with Geely, the company will also include seven years of roadside assistance too.

The Inster delivers super long service intervals, requiring a trip to the service centre every two years or 30,000kms, but each service is priced at $655. A Toyota Yaris Cross, for perspective, will see you visit the service centre twice as often, but each visit will only cost you $255, or $510 every two years.

The Hyundai warranty is five years/unlimited kilometres, while the high-voltage battery is covered for eight years.