If you thought that the new electric sedan based on E-GMP from Hyundai was a Tesla Model 3 competition, guess again!
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2022 will be an exciting year for the fans of electric vehicles, especially if you are following Korean-made EVs. With the expectation of more brand-new EV models to be released than ever before in 2022 from all manufacturers, there will be no less than 5 new models of the highly sophisticated electric EVs from the Hyundai Motor Group. And out of the 5 new spectacular Korean EVs that will be introduced in 2022, none will be more greatly anticipated than the IONIQ 6, as the first-ever dedicated electric sedan based on the spectacular 800-volt charging architecture.
With the expected starting price of $47,000, the IONIQ 6 will truly be a bargain against its luxury electric sedan rivals such as Tesla Model S and Lucid Air.
There are quite a few reasons to be excited about the IONIQ 6, as a rare 3-box electric sedan that’s based on the showstopper concept car, which is based on the advanced 800-volt technology that you can buy for less than $50,000.
The form factor of the new IONIQ 6 is truly unique. Looking like a fastback with a hatchback, like its stablemate Kia Stinger, and Audi’s A7 5-door hatchback, it’s actually a notchback sedan, surprisingly. Although most of you from Europe would quickly write off IONIQ 6 with this information, it’s a type of car that still gets many people outside Europe excited. Although sedan has lost its glitter from a decade ago, due to the surge in the popularity of the crossovers, the genre still accounts for a large portion of car sales in places like the US, where the Toyota Camry and Honda Civic still lead in sales. Also, in the domestic market in Korea, sedan sales are still strong, where models like Kia K5 and Hyundai Grandeur, also known as Azera before it was discontinued in the US a generation ago, are always in contention to be the top-selling model. This is why Hyundai is still adamant about producing pure sedans. The IONIQ 6 embodies the vision of the company for the next generation of sedans in the electric age. And as the first of its kind, Hyundai is determined to deliver a winning product from the get-go. In efforts to improve the controversial design, to give it closer a resemblance to the Prophecy concept, which the sedan was supposed to be based on, Hyundai has postponed the launch date to the middle of the year from the early 2022 release, as it was originally planned. The improvement to the design includes the front and the rear fascia restyling, as well as the stretching the overall length by 90 mm, from the original 4,900 mm to nearly 5 meters or 196 inches, which would make the humble sedan as long as the Genesis G80 sedan, to accentuate its sleek low-slung stance.
The length of the revised IONIQ 6 is 4,990 mm (196.5 in) long! (courtesy of NY Mammoth)
And we have seen the first sign of the reassurance of the stylish final product, when we unveiled the images of the IONIQ 6 prototype devoid of any cladding for the first time, which exposed its sleek fastback profile accentuated by its voluptuous fenders, and the characteristic sloping window and beltline, complete with the classic Porsche 911 style whale tail, taken directly from the Prophecy concept. In addition, we are happy to report that the likeness of the IONIQ 6 to the Prophecy seems inevitable, as we have just discovered that Hyundai has recently registered what appears to be images of the Prophecy, as the design patent for the IONIQ 6 to the Korean patent office.
Incredibly, the drawing was nothing short of the stunning Prophecy concept itself, in its overall shape and design details. It would be unreasonable to expect the final production model of the IONIQ 6 to be exactly like the drawings, but it’s definitely encouraging to know that the final product will bear a strong resemblance to the Prophecy concept.
Design patent of the IONIQ 6 as registered to the Korean patent office.
Another fascinating finding that we have uncovered is respective to the all-important range. We have previously reported that along with the design changes, there was to be an improvement in the range of the IONIQ 6, aided by the increase in the size of the battery from 72.6 kWh of the early edition IONIQ 5, to the larger 77.4 kWh battery from the Kia EV6. The increase in the battery size alone would have improved the range by 60 km or 37 miles, as seen in IONIQ 5 comparing the ranges of the two long-range batteries. The latest IONIQ 5 with the larger 77.4 kWh battery with real-wheel-drive, was certified at 303 miles or 488 km by EPA, which translates to approximately 530 km or 330 miles according to WLTP standard. However, the Kia EV6, which is preparing for the US launch very shortly, has surprisingly earned a higher range of 310 miles or nearly 500 km from EPA, utilizing the same battery as the IONIQ 5.
We have previously explained that the top priority of Hyundai was increasing the range through improving the efficiency of the overall system, and not by just increasing the battery size, and the effort seems to be definitely paying off. Incredibly, from our sources, we have learned that the range of the IONIQ 6 could be extended to as much as 600 km while maintaining the same battery capacity and motors. If Hyundai is able to pull it off and actually release the IONIQ 6 with the range of 373 miles or 600 km, it would truly be groundbreaking. It would place the IONIQ 6 in a class above the current standard for the mainstream premium EVs, that’s set by the likes of Tesla Model 3 and Y, along with IONIQ 5 and EV6, that hover around 500 to 550 km or 311 to 341 miles.
The revised IONIQ 6's range could be extended to as much as 373-miles or 800-km.
What’s more, another piece of good news that we have obtained is that the price of the IONIQ 6 would be similar to that of the equivalent Kia EV6. This means that the starting price of the long-range rear-wheel-drive version would be as low as $47,000. This is only $2,000 more than the equivalent IONIQ 5 and stands to be an excellent deal for a large sedan as big as Genesis G80 with the styling of a 4-door coupe concept car. And if the 600 km range does come to be a reality, in combination with the vehicle’s incredible 800-volt charging system that features one of the world’s fastest charging times, it will truly be an unbeatable EV, bar any price.
One of the closest competitors to the IONIQ 6 could be Porsche Taycan which costs twice as much.
Its closest competition would be something like Porsche Taycan, which also features 800-volt charging architecture. Dimensions wise, it’s evenly matched as well, with the length of Taycan being 4963 mm with 2900 mm in wheelbase, versus IONIQ 6’s 4990 mm in length and 3000 mm in wheelbase However, where it differs greatly is the price, as the starting price of the most basic Taycan is $83,000. In its most basic form, the base Taycan comes with a 71 kWh battery, and 321 hp or 402 hp with an over-boost function driving the rear wheels. However, the Porsche’s range is only 225 miles EPA or 390 km WLTP, which is vastly shorter than that of the IONIQ 6, while giving a similar performance of 5.1 seconds 0-60 mph. The IONIQ 6 equipped with the dual-motor all-wheel-drive drivetrain that also offers 321 hp, can dash to 0-60 mph around the same time, but still offer a much higher range compared to the Taycan, as only about 55 km or 35 miles are sacrificed for the AWD functionality. The longer driving single motor rear-wheel-drive configuration offers 225 hp and can clear 0 to 60 in about 7 seconds.
Although the IONIQ 6 might not have the panache of Porsche, it definitely makes up for it in just about every other aspect, including its incredibly fast charging speed of only 18 minutes, which is even faster than that of Porsche’s 22.5 minutes
With the expected starting price of $47,000, it will truly be a bargain against its luxury electric sedan rivals.
And IONIQ 6’s Porsche 911 inspired concept car styling that might beat out Taycan at its own game, is definitely a big advantage too, all at half of the price. In fact, with such size and performance, it may even give other large luxury electric sedans such as Lucid Air, run for their money too.
With the potential of a range of up to 600 km and the concept car 4-door coupe styling to boot, Hyundai might just have another car of the year, and even the possibility of having one of the best-selling cars in its history.
WATCH THE FULL VIDEO: https://youtu.be/2a08ao-2YuU