A number of Hyundai Ioniq 6 specs have been confirmed by the South Korean brand ahead of orders opening for its latest fully electric vehicle later this year – and this EV's impressive range is one of the standouts.
The Ioniq 6 is the second electric car in Hyundai's new Ioniq line-up, and while we'd already seen what the car looks like, more information has now been revealed.
One of the big talking points is the additional 100km of range it has over the firm's first Ioniq family member, the Ioniq 5. Hyundai claims the Ioniq 6 will offer an estimated WLTP range of over 610km (around 379 miles).
Compare that figure to the 374 miles of the Tesla Model 3 Long Range and up to 404 miles on the Model S, and it looks like Tesla has some new competition. The Ioniq 6 will almost certainly come in cheaper than the Model S, too, and could well land around the Model 3 Long Range's $50,640 / £57,490 price bracket.
Not that Hyundai would be drawn on Ioniq 6 pricing just yet, but during an exclusive media preview, a spokesperson for the automaker did note that it will look to continue its premium affordability heritage.
And when you do come to recharge the Ioniq 6, you won't have to wait around long if you find yourself at a superfast charger, as the EV supports both 400-V and 800-V top-ups which, Hyundai claims, can replenish the battery from 10% to 80% in just 18 minutes.
An 'electrified streamliner'
Hyundai is calling the Ioniq 6 an 'electrified streamliner', which is certainly a fancier way of saying sedan or saloon. Whatever you want to call the design, there's one thing we can all agree on – it's tuned to be as aerodynamic as possible.
In fact, the Ioniq 6 has a drag coefficient of 0.21, and while that's not quite as slippery as the Mercedes EQS (which just pips it with a score of 0.20), it's the most aerodynamic car the firm has ever made.
Customers will be able to choose from two battery sizes; 53kWh and 77.4kWh, with the smaller of the two available only as RWD (rear wheel drive), while the larger battery can be configured as RWD or AWD (all wheel drive).
It's no slouch, either, with the Ioniq 6 able to zip from 0-100km/h (0-62mph) in 5.1 seconds (that's the AWD model with a power out of 239kW), ensuring it won't be left in the dust as the lights turn green.
The car's sweeping, low drag design goes a long way to delivering that increased range we mentioned earlier, while its wheelbase has been stretched versus the Ioniq 5 (both cars are built on Hyundai's E-GMP platform) to create a larger, dome-shaped interior space for passengers.
Inside the dome
Inside, you'll find the firm's 'Relaxation Comfort Seat' which can recline almost fully flat when parked up, allowing you to recharge your body as well as your car. A lot was made of the interior space during the presentation we watched, with it being billed as a 'living space on wheels' with plenty of sustainable materials used in the finishes.
There's a large central console between the front seats, providing the driver with access to all the switches they require, while the door panels remain almost button-less.
Hyundai also highlighted the fact that you can rest a laptop on the center console if you want to work when parked/charging. There's plenty of power outlets for your devices, too, with the Ioniq 6 packing four USB-C ports and one USB-A por , along with a traditional domestic power outlet under its second row of seats.
This new EV also inherits the V2L (vehicle to load) reverse charging system which we tested on the Ioniq 5, allowing you to use the battery in the Ioniq 6 to power or charge other objects – including other EVs.
You'll also find two large, 12-inch displays, one behind the steering wheel – which acts as the instrument cluster – and the second centrally positioned with touch-input support, acting as the main infotainment display. There's support for Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, plus you'll also get a Bose sound system.
To help keep drag down, the Ioniq 6 ditches the traditional side mirrors for digital cameras, and inside, the ends of the dash curve up to house the displays for the digital mirrors. Hyundai isn't the first manufacturer to employ digital mirrors, but its implementation may be among the nicest we've seen to date.
As we've already mentioned, there's no word on the Hyundai Ioniq 6 price yet, but we do know that the first vehicles will arrive with customers in South Korea and select European markets before the end of 2022.
Those in the US will have to wait until 2023 for the first Ioniq 6 to hit roads, with production worldwide significantly ramping up from next year. Hyundai expects to open the order book for the Ioniq 6 during Q4 (October-December) this year.
