Hyundai Ioniq 9 review

We think Hyundai already makes the best seven-seater on the market, so why on Earth does it need another one? Well, the Hyundai Ioniq 9 – unlike the hybrid Santa Fe – is fully electric.

The Ioniq 9 is also even bigger than the Santa Fe – indeed it’s the biggest car Hyundai has ever made, being fractionally longer than a Range Rover. So if you want to carry around seven adults in comfort without burning a drop of petrol or diesel, it’s likely to appeal, but there are other options out there.

Hyundai Ioniq 9 video review

The Ioniq 9's closest rival is the Kia EV9 and the two cars shares basic underpinnings (Hyundai and Kia are sister brands). However, the van-shaped Volkswagen ID Buzz LWB might also be on your shortlist, as might the cheaper and smaller Peugeot e-5008.

In this review we’ll tell you everything you need to know about the Hyundai Ioniq 9, including how it stacks up against its key rivals for space, price, range and charging speed.

All versions of the Hyundai Ioniq 9 have a 106kWh (usable capacity) battery, but the range between charges depends largely on how much performance you want.

If you’re happy with modest acceleration (0-62mph in 9.4 seconds) the entry-level, 215bhp RWD model is a no-brainer. It’s the cheapest option and has the longest official range, 385 miles. For reference, the Kia EV9 can manage 349 miles at most.

The Long Range AWD adds four-wheel drive and increases power to 308bhp. As a result, it drops the 0-62mph time to 6.7 seconds but the official range also falls, to 372 miles.

As with any electric car, don’t expect to match the official WLTP range in real-world driving, although trips of 250 to 300 miles should be easily achievable. Indeed, during our testing in South Korea, where the temperature hovered around freezing, we drove 267 miles without charging and still had 2% of indicated battery remaining.

In the UK, we’ve only tried the Performance AWD. It has 429bhp and has a 0-62mph time of just 5.2 seconds. Like the Long Range AWD, it has an official range of 372 miles. 

Focusing on the Performance AWD (because we’ve driven it on home turf), we were very much impressed from behind the wheel. It’s 5060mm in length and weighs more than 2.6 tonnes but feels much smaller and lighter on the road.

How so? Well, the steering is light but precise enough for everyday driving, while the suspension finds a good balance between being soft enough to soak up imperfections but without compromising body control. It still feels pretty fidgety at speed though, so it’s a shame that you can have it with supple air suspension. 

We suspect the RWD version, because it’s the lightest Ioniq 9 of the lot and is available on smaller wheels, will be the best to drive, but we can’t confirm that just yet.  

The Ioniq 9 is fairly easy to thread through urban environments, but there’s no denying its size when trying to make tight turns and navigate cramped car parks.

The Peugeot e-5008 makes lighter work of such situations, while the Mercedes EQE SUV is available with four-wheel steering to help tighten the turn circle. Unfortunately, you can't get four-wheel steering on the Ioniq 9.

Being electric, the Ioniq 9 is whisper quiet around town and it remains hushed at speed. There’s a bit of wind noise to contend with but nothing that would cause annoyance. 

“I was much more impressed by the Ioniq 9's ride and handling than I’d thought I’d be. It felt much closer to luxury SUVs like the BMW X7 than mainstream rivals like the Peugeot e-5008.” – Oliver Young, Reviewer

As well as being larger than any other Hyundai, the Ioniq 9 also feels more upmarket, as you'd rightly expect given its higher price. Everything feels of a good quality, even if there’s nothing that feels quite as plush as what you’ll find in fully-fledged luxury SUVs like the Audi Q7. 

There’s plenty of adjustment in the steering wheel and seat, and you sit suitably high up, giving you a grand view of the road ahead – in fact, all-round visibility is good. There’s the option of digital side mirrors, but having to refocus your eyes on a screen to check behind you can be disorientating and it’s also an expensive optional extra to begin with. 

The Ioniq 9's 12.3in touchscreen is curved towards the driver to make it easier to see and reach. Android Auto and Apple CarPlay are standard, and there’s also Hyundai’s Features on Demand (FOM) service, which allows you to download upgrades from an online store. You can also use apps to watch YouTube or Netflix when parked.

It’s a very similar infotainment system to the one in the EV9, and the operating system is more intuitive than the one in a Peugeot e-5008 or VW ID Buzz LWB. 

All versions come with front and rear parking sensors, and if you upgrade to mid-range Ultimate you’ll also get a 360-degree camera. 

"I didn’t get on with the Ioniq 9's optional digital door mirrors, which project a live feed from the sides of the car on to small screens. It’s much harder to judge distances than with proper mirrors." – Will Nightingale, Reviews Editor

Given that the Hyundai Ioniq 9 is slightly longer than a Range Rover it probably won’t shock you to learn that it’s enormous inside. Two six-footers on the third row will enjoy loads of head room and a broad padded armrest.

Leg room is remarkably generous, as long as whoever is in the second row hasn’t slid their seat all the way back on its runners, something they’d have no reason to do because of the space.

In short, third-row passengers are far better catered for than in a Peugeot e-5008. Indeed, space is roughly on a par with the Kia EV9, if not quite as outrageously generous as it is in a VW ID Buzz LWB.

That second row is a three-seat bench as standard, but if you go for range-topping Calligraphy trim you can have two individual chairs instead, making the Ioniq 9 a six-seater. If you do that, you can opt for swivelling seats, making it easier to lift youngsters into child seats and allowing your second and third row passengers to face one another. There’s also a luxury reclining armchair option.

With seven seats fitted and in use, the Ioniq 9's boot space can hold your weekly shopping or a few carry-on suitcases, plus there’s some underfloor storage for the charging cable. You can press some buttons to fold down the third and second rows to create a vast, van-like load bay.

There’s more storage under the bonnet – a respectable 52 litres in AWD versions and 88 litres in RWD models. That’s enough for a few bags of shopping or a couple of soft bags. Or you can stow the charging cables there if you’d prefer.

Interior storage impresses too. There’s a huge cubby under the armrest between the driver and front passenger, which can be accessed by passengers on the second row as well as those in the front. In fact, the whole centre console can be slid back and forth by as much as 190mm to make it easier for those in the back to reach it.

“My family loved the Ioniq 9 in six-seat configuration because they had so much room to stretch out and feel comfortable. It’s a shame this option is limited to the most expensive trim.” – Oliver Young, Reviewer

The starting list price for the Hyundai Ioniq 9 sits between that of mainstream rivals, like the Peugeot e-5008, and luxury SUVs, like the Audi Q7 and BMW X7. It leans on the higher side of that range but slightly undercuts the closely related Kia EV9 on list price (although PCP costs are very similar). 

The Ioniq 9 trim range starts with Premium, and it gets you plenty of kit, including 19in wheels, heated front and rear outer seats, a heated steering wheel, powered tailgate and wireless phone charger. We’d stick with this trim to keep the price as reasonable as possible. 

Ultimate gets 20in wheels, as well as a head-up display (HUD), a panoramic sunroof, Bose premium sound system, ventilation for the front and rear outer seats and much more, but it’s a big step up in price. Calligraphy is a smaller step in price and kit, getting 21in wheels, suede roof trim, Napa leather on the seats and a two-tone leather steering wheel.

We can’t tell you how reliable the Ioniq 9 will be yet but we can tell you that Hyundai came a respectable tenth out of 31 brands in the 2024 What Car? Reliability Survey.

Likewise, the Ioniq 9 has not yet been tested for safety by Euro NCAP.

As with all Hyundai car models, the Ioniq 9 comes with a five-year unlimited-mileage warranty on most components, with eight years’ cover on the battery (capped at 100,000 miles).

"Many families will understandably want to wait for the Ioniq 9's Euro NCAP safety rating to be published. I’m also interested to see which safety aids will be fitted to different trim levels." – Will Nightingale, Reviews Editor

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