Hyundai launches the Ioniq compact electric five-door

Zero emission motoring has just become more affordable with Hyundai’s launch of the $44,990 purely electric Ioniq. The five-door liftback, similar in size to Hyundai’s Elantra and i30, claims a “real-world” battery range of 230km and the ability to fastcharge from zero to 80 per cent in 23 minutes.

The Ioniq Electric’s 88kW/295Nm motor may not match the ballistic performance or greater electric range of a Tesla but the sticker price brings electric motoring into reach of more Australian families.

“The 2019 Ioniq makes responsive and ecofriendly electrified driving accessible to a wide range of customers and is an exciting new chapter for our company,” says Hyundai Australia chief JW Lee.

The Ioniq Electric is now Australia’s cheapest pure electric car, undercutting the far smaller $47,490 Renault Zoe. The cheapest Tesla, the Model S 75D, is $146,512 on the road.

As well as fettling the ride and handling for Australian conditions, Hyundai Australia’s team drove the Ioniq Electric over hundreds of kilometres in real world conditions to arrive at the 230km range. That meant plenty of urban use with the airconditioning on.

A commercial 100kW DC fast charging station will produce the 23-minute result. The fastest way to charge at home is with a 7kW AC station ($1995 fitted in your garage), bringing full charge in four hours and 25 minutes. Via a domestic 240V AC outlet, it takes 12 hours.

The base Ioniq Electric Elite includes a comprehensive suite of active safety gear, rear camera and parking sensors, 16-inch alloy wheels, eight-inch touchscreen with satnav, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, smart key and auto headlights and wipers.

At $48,990, the Premium version adds leather heated and ventilated seats, wireless phone charging, LED headlights, front parking sensors and glass sunroof.

Buyers not sold on the electric revolution can buy the Ioniq Hybrid with a petrol engine (77kW/147Nm) and small electric motor (32kW/170Nm) from $33,990.

The Ioniq Plug-in from $40,990 uses the same engine but has a 44.5kW electric motor and 8.9kWh Lithium-ion battery for up to 63km of pure-electric motoring.

Initial interest — from fleets, governments and private buyers alike — was chiefly on the fully electric version. Hyundai anticipates it will account for half the model’s sales.

All versions have a five-year/unlimited km warranty plus an eight year/160,000km battery warranty. Annual services for the Hybrid and Plug-in cost $265 and, given there are so few moving parts, the Electric costs $160.