MotorTrend’s Aaron Gold takes us on an adventure behind the wheel of the Hyundai IONIQ 5. The first all-electric vehicle to win MotorTrend’s SUV of the Year award.
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00:00 This is the Hyundai IONIQ 5, the first all-electric vehicle to win Motor Trend's SUV of the Year Award.
00:06 Now we know this was a decision that raised a lot of eyebrows, but our philosophy is this.
00:10 If a manufacturer says a vehicle is an SUV, then we're going to test it like an SUV.
00:15 And it's either going to stand or it's going to fall. And obviously the IONIQ 5 stood.
00:19 Now today, I'm going to take you with me on a little road trip I planned to the great outdoors,
00:24 and I'm going to show you why the IONIQ 5 was our winner.
00:27 [Music]
00:36 Design for us was very much a high point of the Hyundai IONIQ 5.
00:39 We love this retro future '80s pixelated look.
00:43 They've just executed it so well, down to every little detail.
00:47 The IONIQ 5 even has kind of an '80s hatchback shape, which is a nice change from the traditional look of an SUV.
00:53 And they've carried that theme a little bit more subtly onto the interior.
00:57 You just have this dash that goes straight across the car, no center console.
01:01 In fact, it's got a flat floor just like your mom's minivan.
01:04 And yet the displays are these two 12.3-inch LCD displays.
01:08 Very modern, very up-to-date.
01:10 But for climate control and stereo and things like that, they're still using dials and buttons.
01:16 And we really like that. Modernity with simplicity.
01:20 The IONIQ 5 uses Hyundai's Electric Global Modular Platform, or E-GMP, to its friends.
01:26 And there's a few choices here. Standard, long-range battery, rear motor, or dual motor settings.
01:31 If you go for the standard battery and rear-wheel drive, you've got 168 horsepower, 225 horsepower with the long-range battery.
01:39 This is the dual motor, all-wheel drive version, which gets the long-range battery, and it has 320 horsepower.
01:46 320 horsepower is a great number in any compact SUV, but when those are electric horses, they come on right now.
01:55 The IONIQ 5 has three drive modes. It's got an Eco mode, which helps you stretch your range as far as possible.
02:00 A Normal mode, for when you're feeling normal.
02:03 And then a Sport mode, for when you really want to unleash all the power that these electric motors have.
02:08 Now, a lot of compact SUVs, especially electrics, have little or no towing capacity.
02:12 But the IONIQ 5 can tow up to 2,300 pounds.
02:15 I've got a bike rack in the trailer hitch right now, which is great.
02:18 Which means I don't have to put the bike up top and ruin the view through my beautiful panoramic sunroof.
02:23 Now, I'm running a little low on juice, and that's actually convenient, because there's something I want to show you.
02:28 One of the key factors in our decision was how quickly the IONIQ 5 charges.
02:34 So, let's head over to the charge station, and I'll show you how that works.
02:37 In terms of range, there are a couple of different options.
02:44 The rear-drive car with a standard battery goes 220 miles on a charge.
02:48 The long-range rear-drive car goes 303 miles.
02:51 And this all-wheel-drive version goes 256 miles.
02:54 But one of the things we really liked about the IONIQ 5 is this 800-volt architecture,
02:59 which makes it one of the quickest-charging EVs you can buy.
03:02 According to Hyundai, on a 350-kilowatt charger, you can get from 10% state of charge,
03:06 which is about 25 miles of range on the all-wheel-drive car, up to 80%, which is about 200 miles, in 18 minutes.
03:13 And we verified this. We've actually seen it happen.
03:15 Even on the 150-kilowatt chargers like we're using, the charger is very fast.
03:20 That was a real factor in our decision, because with this fast-charging system,
03:23 having an electric vehicle really doesn't cramp your style.
03:26 We've got a couple minutes to talk about pricing.
03:28 The IONIQ 5 starts at $42,745 for the base car.
03:33 If you want that 303 miles of range, that's a little bit under 47 grand.
03:37 All-wheel-drive starts just over 50.
03:39 But I think we're just about juiced up, so let's unplug and go.
03:43 [Music]
04:01 One of the advantages of having a dedicated electric vehicle platform is it allowed Hyundai
04:05 to push the wheels all the way out to the corners of the vehicle.
04:09 In fact, the IONIQ 5 actually has a longer wheelbase than the full-size Palisade SUV.
04:15 That not only gives us this nice, open interior that we really like, but it does wonders for ride quality.
04:21 And ride quality's important, especially in a family-friendly vehicle, and especially on these long road trips.
04:27 Speaking of long road trips, another feature we really like is the IONIQ 5's automated driver assistance features.
04:33 With one button, you can activate adaptive cruise control and a really good lane-centering system,
04:38 which not only guides the car down the center of the lane, provided you keep your hands on the wheel,
04:43 it'll actually do automated lane changes, which is really cool if you've never experienced it.
04:49 And by the way, those automated driver assistance features are among the things that allowed the IONIQ 5
04:54 to get a Top Safety Pick+ rating from the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety.
05:00 But what really struck us was the balance.
05:02 There were vehicles in the competition that handled better, there were some that rode a little better,
05:06 but really what stood out about the IONIQ 5 was the balance between handling that makes it good fun to drive
05:12 and ride quality that you actually want to live with day to day.
05:15 Our SUV of the year testing includes off-roading.
05:24 Now, this is an area where we thought the IONIQ 5 might run into a little bit of trouble.
05:29 It does have 6.1 inches of ground clearance, but it doesn't have that big, burly look of a lot of SUVs.
05:34 But the IONIQ 5 genuinely surprised us.
05:38 It tackled all the same off-roading obstacles as any of the other compact SUVs,
05:43 and the electric all-wheel drive really came in handy.
05:46 Not only do we have power to all four wheels, but because it's electric,
05:49 we were able to apply all that torque very smoothly and very progressively,
05:53 and that is really important when you're off-roading.
05:56 Now, don't get me wrong, you're not going to do Moab in this thing,
05:59 but for the kind of off-roading a lot of people do, really rough trails, the IONIQ 5 can handle it.
06:04 That was a really pleasant surprise.
06:06 I hope my little road trip today has given you some idea of why we're so fond of the Hyundai IONIQ 5.
06:11 It may not look like a traditional SUV, but it does everything that we expect a compact SUV to do.
06:17 It's roomy, it's comfortable, it's great fun to drive, it's surprisingly competent off-road,
06:22 and the fast-charging system keeps you on the move.
06:25 And that's why the Hyundai IONIQ 5 is our 2023 Motor Trend SUV of the Year.
06:33 Well, time for a bracing bike ride into these very steep hills.
06:40 Or I could drive. I think I'll just...
06:44 I'll drive.
06:46 Hyundai IONIQ 5. The all-new Hyundai IONIQ 5.