design team – Michmutters

Hyundai Ioniq 6 electric car first drive

Like a stone worn smooth by the sand and sea, the Hyundai Ioniq 6 is shaped by its environment.

Promising to exceed the claimed range of any sub-$100,000 electric car, the Ioniq’s distinctive silhouette helps it slide through the air with minimal resistance – and onto shortlists for electric car customers.

The arching silhouette of its roofline helps the Ioniq claim aerodynamic efficiency that is not only the best in its class, but among the best of any car on sale. Only the lowest-drag version of Mercedes’ EQS electric car can claim to be slipperier.

Drag coefficient data is rarely the subject of bar-room bragging.

But people will boast about an electric car with more than 600 kilometers of range, particularly one that does not rely on an enormous battery to do so.

The Ioniq 6 offers the same 77.4kWh battery and choice of rear-wheel-drive or all-wheel-drive electric propulsion as the hatchback-shaped Ioniq 5.

While the boxy Ioniq 5 offers 481 kilometers of range, Hyundai expects the aerodynamic Ioniq 6 to claim 610 kilometers of range using the same test format.

It also expects the new car to be a sell-out success in Australia when it arrives next year.

While we don’t know exactly how much the car will cost, it’s likely to be a similar proposition to the Ioniq 5. That car is offered locally in relatively limited numbers priced from $69,900 plus on-road costs, suggesting the Ioniq 6 should start from less than $80,000 on the road. Range-topping versions will be closer to $90,000 drive-away.

We sampled the Ioniq 6 in camouflaged pre-production form at Hyundai’s Namyang proving ground in Seoul.

The banana-shaped roof is no less arresting in the metal, particularly when surrounded by conventional-shaped hatchbacks and SUVs at the Korean giant’s proving ground.

It’s much more familiar on the inside, where Hyundai’s design team has stayed in safer territory.

Though crude prototype plastics make it impossible to assess the quality of its interior, time in the back seat reveals that its slightly shorter wheelbase and dramatically swept roof result in less rear passenger room than the Ioniq 5.

Twin 12-inch screens curve across the dashboard in front of you, a familiar and effective if less-than-revolutionary combination for Hyundai fans. The brand took a note from Tesla’s book by keeping physical buttons to a minimum but dedicated climate controls are a victory for common sense.

Powered by twin electric motors with 239kW and 605Nm of combined power, the all-wheel-drive Ioniq 6 feels like it can match a claimed 0-100km/h time of 5.1 seconds.

Effortlessly brisk and near-silent when accelerating, the Ioniq 6 has no problem getting its power to the ground.

Special Pirelli tires developed for the new model trade ultimate cornering grip for reduced rolling resistance necessary to maximize its long-range potential.

We didn’t have the opportunity to assess the car’s cornering characteristics but a short drive on public roads showed that the Ioniq 5 is a refined machine, with a quiet motor, smoothly managed energy harvesting and well-controlled road noise.

We can’t say whether that slippery body reduces wind roar – low-speed running in a canvas-clad prototype isn’t the right test environment – but can confirm the digital mirrors work well, even if your eyes need an extra moment to re -focus.

Accurate steering and well-modulated brakes work in its favour, and we suspect slightly tauter suspension than the comfort-focused Ioniq 5 delivers improved cornering control.

A full verdict will have to wait until we’ve had a chance to assess the car on local roads but early indications are that the Ioniq 6 backs up its intriguing looks with clever technology, giving electric car customers an impressive new option.

HYUNDAI IONIQ 6

PRICE About $90,000 drive away

ENGINE Twin electric, 239kW and 605Nm

RANGE About 600 kilometers

0-100km/h 5.1 seconds

FAST CHARGERS

Hyundai has built a high-performance Ioniq 6 pitched at enthusiasts. Powered by the same 430kW/740Nm motors found in Kia’s EV6 GT, the machine promises three-second 0-100km/h sprints, along with sideways fun made possible by clever torque vectoring. The Ioniq 5 is first in line to receive Hyundai’s go-fast “N” treatment, but we wouldn’t’ be surprised to see the sedan get special attention, too.

Cadillac Lyriq: review, pricing, specifications

This is the car that will spearhead a new assault on world markets for the famed Cadillac brand.

The Lyriq electric SUV will form the foundation for a Cadillac return to Europe and other markets – potentially including Australia.

A mid-sized SUV similar in size to BMW’s X3 and Audi’s Q5, the Lyriq’s a handsome looking thing in the metal. It has a long bonnet, muscular haunches and daring detail work on the headlamps, grill and tail lamps.

The door handles fold flush with the door panels – much like Tesla’s Model Y – and the cabin is dominated by a huge curved digital screen that houses a driver display and center touchscreen.

Bright chrome highlights lift the cabin and there’s an abundance of storage space, thanks to the fact that there’s no transmission tunnel running through the center of the vehicle.

Second-row passengers will find more leg and knee room than they would in a mid-size German luxury SUV, while the read load area is a decent size.

It’s on the road that the Lyriq impresses, though.

A 250kW rear-mounted electric motor moves things along swiftly and silently, although there’s not the brutal launch off the line that you’d feel in a Tesla Model Y.

Once you’re on the move, though, there’s an impressive surge at most speeds when you floor the throttle.

The venue for our brief test drive was GM’s huge Milford Proving Ground outside of Detroit and we put the Lyriq through its paces on a variety of surfaces designed to replicate public roads. That included large bumps and dips, a simulated rail crossing and some sweeping, high-speed corners.

The Cadillac impressed with its composure, setting well after larger bumps and sitting flat through corners, even when confronted with broken, corrugated bitumen.

Precise steering and reassuring grip add to the driving enjoyment, although you can feel its considerable weight shift when it is asked to change direction in a hurry.

Cadillac claims the Lyriq is good for a range of 500km, although that may come down once the more realistic WLTP standard for range is applied.

In the US, the Lyriq starts from $62,990 in rear-drive form. A dual-motor version will launch early next year with roughly 370kW of power for just $2000 extra.

GM won’t confirm whether the Lyriq will be available in right-hand-drive but it would appear likely, as it seems the most logical fit for a Cadillac rebirth in European and international markets.

The president of GM International, Shilpin Amin, says designing vehicles for either left or right-hand drive is “much more simple” on an electric vehicle platform.

“Because of how efficient it is to build it upfront with left and right-hand-drive markets in mind no longer do you need the volumes to justify it. You can actually do it pretty efficiently at all volumes for markets around the world,” he says.

That is encouraging news for Aussie Cadillac fans.

Christian Soemmer, managing director of GM strategic markets, alliances and distributors, says the brand has “ambitious goals” in overseas markets, including Australia.

“We want to grow our international scale. Australia and New Zealand is an absolute key pillar of that region. We are always looking into more opportunities,” he says.

Cadillac will lead GM’s transformation to a leading EV maker, taking the fight to Tesla.

It will not launch any new petrol vehicles after 2026 and will become EV-only by 2030.

Cadillac interior design manager Tristan Murphy said the shift in focus to electric cars gave the design department an opportunity to reimagine the once-storied brand.

“I think it was a good opportunity for us to take a step back and say OK as we move forward into the future what do we want Cadillac to be? It was a chance to reinvent it,” he says

The design team was also mindful of its duty to honor the heritage of the badge.

“I don’t want to say it’s retro by any means but there are some retro cues because there are some things in our history that we want to hold on to. There are these little winks and nods at our history because that is something that an EV Start-up company doesn’t have,” he says.

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