Name: New Hyundai Ioniq 6 models and Specifications
Brand: Hyundai

168kw-premium-77kwh-4dr-auto

Entry-level RWD version has a single 225bhp electric motor driving its rear wheels. Performance is perfectly acceptable (0-62mph takes 7.4sec), although don't expect Model 3-rivalling acceleration. The official range is 338 miles.

168kW

This is the most powerful option, and it pumps out 321bhp from two electric motors. It has four-wheel drive and can officially sprint from 0-62mph in 5.1sec. It costs most than the RWD, though, and has a slightly shorter (322-mile) range.

239kW

This entry-level trim is our preferred choice, coming with all the kit you need, including electric front seat adjustment, heated front and rear seats, a 12.3in touchscreen infotainment system and a 12.3in driver’s digital instrument panel.

Premium

This flagship trim level, available from launch, has leather and tartan cloth seats, and black exterior highlights.

First Edition

Higher-spec Ultimate adds a sunroof, front Relaxation seats, leather upholstery, a head-up display and a Bose audio system upgrade.

Ultimate

Saloon

Hyundai has transformed itself from a maker of oddball hatchbacks that sold in small numbers in the UK, to a major rival to the likes of Ford, Vauxhall and Volkswagen.

The Korean firm’s Ioniq Hybrid is particularly impressive, having beaten the trend-setting Toyota Prius when we tested the cars back to back.

Meanwhile, at the extremes of the Hyundai range you find the tiny i10 city car – a four-time What Car? award winner – and the stylish yet family-friendly Santa Fe SUV.

As a bonus, all of these cars come with the reassurance of a five-year, unlimited-mileage warranty, whereas most of Hyundai’s rivals offer only three years and 60,000 miles of cover.

HYUNDAI

IONIQ 6

239kW First Edition 77kWh 4dr AWD Auto

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168kW Premium 77kWh 4dr Auto

239kW Premium 77kWh 4dr AWD Auto

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168kW Ultimate 77kWh 4dr Auto

168kw-ultimate-77kwh-4dr-auto

239kW Ultimate 77kWh 4dr AWD Auto

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Hyundai Ioniq 6

Introduction

Performance & drive

Interior

Passenger & boot space

Costs & verdict

The Ioniq 6 is priced above the BYD Seal and&nbsp;Tesla Model 3, but it does undercut the BMW i4 and <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/volkswagen/id7/saloon/review/n26282">VW ID 7</a>.&nbsp;

To keep the price respectable, we reckon you're best off going for the single-motor RWD version and entry-level Premium trim. This will get you the longest range of any Ioniq 6, along with plenty of standard kit, including heated front and rear seats, dual-zone climate control and&nbsp;wireless phone-charging. You even get a heat pump for more efficient warming of the interior in cooler weather.

Ultimate trim adds a head-up display, a sunroof, a Bose sound system upgrade and ventilated front seats, but also thousands to the price. Upgrading to the dual-motor AWD adds a lot to the price and reduces the range.

As with all electric cars, the Ioniq 6 has a very low <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/news/company-car-tax-guide/n9352">BIK tax</a> rate so it will cost much less to run as a <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/news/best-company-cars/n22605">company car</a>&nbsp;than any petrol or diesel equivalent.

Whichever version you go for, the <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/news/fastest-charging-electric-cars/n26105">maximum charging speed</a> is a seriously impressive&nbsp;233kW, which is more than a BYD Seal or Polestar 2 can accept, and almost as much as a Model 3. That means a 10-80% charge can take less than 20&nbsp;minutes in ideal conditions (and assuming you can find a fast enough charger).

<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/new-car-deals/make/hyundai">Hyundai</a> finished in an&nbsp;impressive seventh&nbsp;place (out of 32 brands) in our&nbsp;2023&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/news/reliability-survey-most-reliable-cars/n26137">What Car? Reliability Survey</a>&nbsp;manufacturer league table, above BMW and Tesla (BYD and Polestar didn't feature).

And for further peace of mind, the Ioniq 6 comes with a five-year, unlimited mileage warranty on most components, beating the four-year, 50,000-mile cover the Model 3 comes with, and&nbsp;the three-year, 60,000-miles you get with&nbsp;the&nbsp;Polestar 2. All three cars have separate eight-year warranties to&nbsp;cover their main drive batteries, though.

<h2 dir="ltr">Buying &amp; owning overview</h2>

Strengths&nbsp;Long warranty; lots of standard kit; fast charging capability&nbsp;

Weaknesses&nbsp;BYD Seal and Tesla Model 3&nbsp;are cheaper; range-topping Ultimate trim pushes the price too high

For all the latest reviews, advice and new car deals, sign up to the What Car? newsletter&nbsp;<a href="http://pages.haymarket.com/whatcar/wcar-form.html">here</a>

The entry-level RWD version has a single 225bhp electric motor driving its rear wheels. Performance is&nbsp;perfectly acceptable (0-62mph takes 7.4sec), but can't&nbsp;match the&nbsp;Tesla Model 3.

For that, you'll need to go for the more&nbsp;potent 321bhp dual-motor option. This has a second electric motor driving the front wheels to give the Ioniq 6 four-wheel drive (AWD). With a total of 321bhp, this version can do 0-62mph in just&nbsp;5.1 seconds – faster than a Model 3 RWD, if not as rapid as a the Long Range and Performance versions of that car.

We'd stick with the RWD version, though. That's partly because it's significantly cheaper to buy (more on that later) but also because it can travel farther between charges. You see, all versions of the Ioniq 6 have the same 74kWh (usable capacity) battery, but since the AWD model is heavier it uses&nbsp;electricity less efficiently.

Officially, the AWD version can do 322&nbsp;miles on a full charge, compared with 338 miles for the RWD model. However, in our tests (in cold weather) the efficiency of the RWD version pointed to a range of around 220 miles. The Model 3 Long Range managed 281&nbsp;miles in our <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/news/electric-car-best-winter-range/n24274">winter Real Range tests</a>.

The Ioniq 6 puts in a convincing performance elsewhere, though. Body lean is well contained when cornering, with plenty of grip available. While the steering is fairly&nbsp;light, the Ioniq 6 is effortless to drive, and flows down a twisty country road really nicely. Okay, it isn't as agile as a Model 3 nor as fun as a BYD Seal, but the margins aren't huge.

The Ioniq 6 is also very hushed at a cruise. There’s only a hint of wind noise around the windscreen pillars and door mirrors, with far less road noise disturbing the peace than in a Model 3 or Seal.&nbsp;

Ride comfort impresses at motorway speeds, but the relatively firm suspension and big 20in alloys means the Ioniq 6 is less agreeable in town&nbsp;than a Model 3 or BMW i4. Things never get truly uncomfortable; you just feel more of a jolt over potholes and raised ironwork.

<h2 dir="ltr">Driving overview</h2>

Strengths Quiet at a cruise; tidy&nbsp;handling; comfortable high-speed ride

Weaknesses Low-speed ride a bit lumpy; rivals are faster; real-world efficiency could be better

OUR PICK

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239kw

You’ve probably heard people say car design is dead, with more and more models looking tediously similar,&nbsp;but we’re not convinced that’s true. Take this&nbsp;Hyundai Ioniq 6, for example.

It's based on the same underpinnings as the taller&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/hyundai/ioniq-5/hatchback/review/n22944">Hyundai Ioniq 5</a>&nbsp;and shares some of that model's styling cues, including the distinctive pixel-look lights. However, the Ioniq 6 is a four-door coupé with a much sleeker silhouette.

The slippery shape means&nbsp;that, while it's a big car (almost 4.9 metres long), the Ioniq 6 is&nbsp;more about looks and efficiency&nbsp;than practicality. In other words,&nbsp;it’s for those who don’t need to worry too much about&nbsp;carrying people and luggage.

<iframe height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Ca8QypN-fYA" width="560"></iframe>

Its closest rival is the big-selling&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/tesla/model-3/saloon/review/n19010">Tesla Model 3</a>, but similar electric&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/best/executive-cars/n2004">executive car</a>&nbsp;alternatives include the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/bmw/i4/hatchback/review/n23575">BMW i4</a>,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/byd/seal/saloon/review/n26074">BYD Seal</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/polestar/2/hatchback/review/n21641">Polestar 2</a>.

So, is the Hyundai Ioniq 6 as good as those rivals – or, indeed, an even better buy? Read on and we'll tell you all you need to know.

The interior layout in the Ioniq 6 will be familiar to anyone who’s spent time in the&nbsp;Ioniq 5. That means you get the same conjoined 12.3in digital instrument panel (behind the steering wheel) and 12.3in infotainment touchscreen.&nbsp;

The small touch-sensitive buttons for the climate controls can be a little tricky to aim for when driving, but at least you aren't forced to use the touchscreen to adjust the interior temperature like you are in a Model 3, Seal&nbsp;or Polestar 2.

It’s easy to find a comfortable driving position, thanks to powered adjustment (including lumbar support) for the seat, although you might find the&nbsp;steering wheel blocks the top corners of digital instrument panel. It will depend how tall you are and how high or low you like to have your seat.

Forwards visibility is hampered slightly by the wide windscreen pillars, and your rearward view is badly compromised by the Ioniq 6's unusual rear styling. However, all trims come with front and rear parking sensors and a rear-view camera as standard to help out with tight manoeuvres.&nbsp;

You can also opt for digital door mirrors, which replace&nbsp;the traditional&nbsp;door mirrors with cameras and two small screens showing the rear view. We wouldn't bother, though – they're&nbsp;expensive and it's more difficult to judge distances than with a conventional mirror.

The 12.3in infotainment touchscreen is responsive and the graphics are fairly sharp. Some of the icons are a little small and fiddly to use on the move, but you do&nbsp;get some helpful physical shortcut buttons. Overall, it's a better system than the one in the Polestar 2, but less impressive than the Model 3 and BMW i4's.

The Ioniq 6 fails to stand out for interior quality.&nbsp;The door panels are made from hard plastic, so even though they have a&nbsp;rippled effect to stop them feeling too cheap, the i4, Polestar 2 and even Model 3 are more upmarket inside and have more soft-touch plastics in their interiors.

<h2 dir="ltr">Interior overview</h2>

Strengths Comfortable seats; good infotainment system

Weaknesses Interior quality doesn't impress for the price; some visibility issues; gimmicky digital door mirrors

The Ioniq 6 is a solid, stylish choice with hushed road manners

Whether you’re sitting in the front or rear seats, you'll find lots of leg room in the Hyundai Ioniq 6. Head room is rather less generous, though, and much of the blame lies with that swooping&nbsp;roofline.

Head room is particularly poor if you go for top-spec Ultimate trim. It adds a sunroof, lowering the height of the ceiling even more. Don't get us wrong – six-footers will fit in the back, but they'll need to slouch to keep their heads off the ceiling.&nbsp;There isn’t much space for feet under the front seats, either.

More positively, there’s an abundance of storage space dotted around the interior and the huge rear doors make getting in and out surprisingly easy.

Higher-spec Ultimate trim also adds Relaxation&nbsp;front&nbsp;seats, which fully recline so you can lounge in comfort while the battery is being topped-up.&nbsp;Either way, the rear seatback&nbsp;splits in a 60/40 configuration&nbsp;rather than the more practical 40/20/40 split you get in some cars, including the BMW i4.

The saloon boot has a relatively narrow opening, but there’s enough space inside for seven carry-on suitcases. That trails the 10 cases that fit in the two boots of the&nbsp;Model 3, but matches the Ioniq 5,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.whatcar.com/kia/ev6/estate/review/n23462">Kia EV6</a>&nbsp;and Polestar 2.

There’s some further storage&nbsp;under the bonnet for the&nbsp;charging cable, but that's about all you'll fit under there – particularly in the AWD version. There's RWD has a slightly larger front boot.

<h2 dir="ltr">Practicality overview</h2>

Strengths Lots of leg room; some under-bonnet storage

Weaknesses Limited rear head room; small boot opening

premium

ultimate

first-edition

We can see why you'd be seduced by the Hyundai Ioniq 6's swoopy, streamliner looks, and if you buy one you'll be getting a very good all-round electric car. It's just a shame it doesn't stack up better for efficiency and interior quality. For the best value and the longest range, you'll want the single-motor RWD version and entry-level Premium trim.

<h2>What we're looking for:</h2><ul><li>Sufficient range between charges to fit in with most people’s lifestyles – and in the real world, not on some far-fetched official test </li> <li>Quick charging times and compatibility with the most ubiquitous types of public charging points </li> <li>Priced to be within the grasp of more than just the privileged few </li> <li>As with any car, ride comfort, practicality and ownership costs can’t be ignored</li></ul>

We define an electric car as one that runs purely on battery power and has no tailpipe to puff out nasty chemicals.

The best of the breed offer sufficient range between charges to fit in with most people’s lifestyles – and in the real world, not on some far-fetched official test cycle.

Electric

<h2>What we're looking for:</h2><ul><li>Effortless long-distance capability</li> <li>Strong standard specification</li> <li>Low running costs</li> <li>Comfortable driving position</li> <li>Comprehensive yet easy-to-use infotainment system</li></ul>

Executive cars are often the choice of company car drivers, so factors such as CO2 emissions (which govern your monthly tax bill) are just as important as cruising refinement for those long motorway journeys, a plush cabin and (whisper it) the image of the badge on the bonnet.

The good news is that there are options for all budgets and tastes.

NEW REVIEWS:

Hyundai Ioniq 6 review

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