What's the difference?
Hyundai's Ioniq range is nothing if not a flex in the face of Toyota.
Sure, Toyota has a dominating position in the Australian market, with its well-received range of hybrid models, but what happens after hybrid? Hyundai takes on the blocky Prius formula with not only a directly competing hybrid model, but a plug-in and a fully electric version, too.
This expansive range is as though Hyundai is trying to demonstrate it's ready for any future, near or far, and guess what, Toyota? Anything you can do; the Korean juggernaut thinks it can do better.
These cars aren't really designed to sell so much as they are offerings for early adopters, but a few years after its launch, with a host of rivals set to take it on, and an entire sub-brand based on the Ioniq just around the corner, is Hyundai's top-spec Ioniq electric worth a look? I took one for a week to find out.
This is the new Tesla Model Y L, of course, but before we even start I need to ask you a very important question.
How often, honestly, do you use all seven seats in your seven-seater? Or if you only have five seats, how often is there a human in every single one?
Rarely, if ever?
Yep, me too. So stick around, because this is, by far, the best family SUV seating layout. And one where there’ll finally be no fighting over who gets stuck with the dodgy seat.
And as a result, the six-seat Tesla Model Y L might just be among the best all-electric SUV offerings around.
Just like the Kona EV, Hyundai's Ioniq is still one of the best EV options on the market today. It strikes an excellent balance by offering significantly more range and better energy consumption than the more affordable Nissan Leaf or MG ZS EV, while providing the familiarity of the Hyundai spec and drive experience at a price only a little higher than a top-spec Prius.
Its relatively high score is a product of these factors, but also the way in which its interactivity offers the early adopters the engagement they will be searching for.
If you like the five-seat Model Y, then you'll like the six-seat L version even more. I think this the best example of Tesla's electric SUV to date, and the cabin layout just makes a lot of sense, and would suit plenty of families who don't need to squeeze someone into a compromised middle seat.
Note: The author, Andrew Chesterton, is a co-owner of Smart As Media, a content agency and media distribution service with a number of automotive brands among its clients. When producing content for CarsGuide, he does so in accordance with the CarsGuide Editorial Guidelines and Code of Ethics, and the views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author.