Hyundai Ioniq 9 review

Our opinion on the Hyundai Ioniq 9

The new Hyundai Ioniq 9 offers its own eccentric spin on the full-sized family electric car with impressive initial results. This is a big, spacious and flexible SUV with seating for up to seven, plus all the tech and safety kit you could ever want for. It also comes with a bigger battery pack than the closely related Kia EV9, and therefore delivers a greater potential range of up to 385 miles. We’ll have our final say when we drive it in the UK, but if the price and specification are right, Hyundai will be on to a winner. 

About the Hyundai Ioniq 9

If there were any doubt that Hyundai is a car company that should be taken seriously as a premium player, the fact we’re speaking about a new model that’ll start at the thick end of £70,000 and rival Volvo’s new flagship seven-seat EX90 SUV should say it all. The Ioniq 9 joins a growing band of Hyundai EVs that have shed their price-leader image to become world-leading all-electric offerings. So how does the new model shape up?

On the road, your abiding impression of the driving experience is one of supreme ease. This is a big car, yet even with its digital mirrors and rising beltline, it’s simple to place on the road. The steering is light yet accurate, and the throttle and braking calibration seem optimised for the car’s general size and performance. If you’re after ultimate driving capability in this class, the updated BMW iX is still a good distance ahead, but this is hardly a key priority at this level. Plus the BMW is strictly a five-seater. 

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The Ioniq 9 sits on Hyundai’s E-GMP architecture, so its raw figures in terms of performance and efficiency are right up there with the industry leaders in Europe. All models feature a 110kWh battery pack mounted under the floor, paired with either a single rear-mounted motor, or a dual-motor set-up with one on each axle. 

Performance, 0-60mph acceleration and top speed

The car we drove on test in Korea was the top-spec dual-motor Performance, yet despite the tag this isn’t an ultra-fast car in the way some high-end EVs are. Its 0-62mph time is rated to 4.9 seconds (or 6.2 for the non-Performance dual-motor) which is plenty when saddled with some kids, dogs and canoes on board. However the rest of the range doesn’t stack up quite so well. 

The single-motor variant that will likely be a popular option in the UK balloons this figure to 8.4 seconds, due to a relatively underwhelming 214bhp power output. When the car’s fully loaded with people and gear, we suspect this figure might leave the car seeming a little under-powered.

Overall, the Ioniq 9 doesn’t feel overly large or cumbersome, which is some feat given that the body is more than five metres long. The accurate steering and good body control add to this feeling, and help the car feel intuitive and natural to drive, rather than something that you need to learn how to drive smoothly – as some rivals do. 

Town driving, visibility and parking

The high-set driving position and big windows lead to a good view out from the driver’s seat. And while there are a few quirks, such as how the bonnet slopes down sharply and disappears from view, the Hyundai is an easy thing to pilot around crowded city centres given its sheer size. 

Views out to the side and over the shoulder are also good, but even the large rear glass on the tailgate can’t help the view out when you need to peer beyond two rows of passengers. However, the good news is that there’s an optional rear-facing camera mirror, which allows you to see what’s going on behind your rear-seat passengers. 

Parking is also a breeze thanks to a clear 360-degree camera system – with the caveat that the cameras that replace the side mirrors are a love-it or hate-it technology. While they do show a clear and vivid image on the small displays, it’s quite difficult to distinguish depth. 

B-road driving and handling

We didn’t really get the chance to try the Ioniq 9 on smaller European-style roads on our test drive in Korea, but handling seems confident, although the ride is a little firm. While no Ioniq 9 rides on comparatively large wheels for its size, its high spring rates and tough dampers can have the car and its passengers bouncing around on particularly rough surfaces. This is only exacerbated by the car’s centre of gravity being low in relation to the high seating position. 

Motorway driving and long-distance comfort

At higher speeds, overall refinement is superb; wind noise is near non-existent, thanks to the aero-optimised wing mirrors and the use of acoustically insulated side windows. The electric powertrain is also completely silent. 

The Hyundai’s battery is slightly larger than the packs you’ll find on key rivals such as the Kia EV9 and equal to the Volvo EX90’s, yielding a slightly better range of up to 385 miles on the single-motor variant. This is around 35 miles up on the Kia and matches the more expensive Volvo, although the figure drops to 329 miles when fitted with the 429bhp dual-motor set-up that we’ve driven.

Hyundai’s on the leading edge when it comes to charging, too, because the 800V electric architecture can support up to around 270kW DC fast-charging. This means that despite the huge battery pack, it’ll still be able to top up from 10-80 per cent in 24 minutes, which is about as fast as charging gets on any new EV on sale now.

Tax

All Ioniq 9s will be subject to the new VED tax regulations, which charges £195 per year, plus the additional levy for cars priced at over £40,000. This will add a further £410 per year for the first five years, bringing the total to £605. BiK has risen from one to three per cent, and will rise over the next two to five per cent. 

Depreciation

All high-end EVs are suffering from heavy depreciation, and the Ioniq 9 will likely be no different. The closely related Kia EV9 is worth 63.3 per cent of its original value after five years, which is slightly higher than the average EV SUV and much higher than the 47 per cent that standard SUVs average. 

The key styling element that links the Ioniq 9 to other Hyundai EVs is the Pixel graphic that’s visible across the car’s nose and tail. The front lightbar is purely for show, with the main headlights integrated into a black gloss panel across the lower bumper. 

Towards the back, the body tapers and ends in a sharp cut-off, with the leading edge lined in ice cube-like lighting elements. It might lack the Kia EV9’s more harmonious design, but you won’t miss it driving by – and nor will your neighbours. 

Interior and dashboard design

The Ioniq 9’s interior is extremely versatile, with plenty of clever storage solutions that will easily swallow all the paraphernalia of a young family. Up front, the car’s bespoke platform is clearly obvious, because the dashboard is separated from the centre console, leaving a flat floor between the front seats. The dash has lots of storage, including a clever shelf above the glovebox, plus two central cubbies that can swallow phones or tablets and come with three USB-C charge points just above. 

The centre console also has a wireless phone charger and a relatively shallow central cubby that can also be opened from the second row. Yet the relatively shallow console space is for a very good reason, because there’s an additional sliding drawer underneath, which is accessible from the middle row. The console itself can also be slid back and forth by up to 190mm for maximum flexibility.

Materials and build quality

Build quality seems very good at first glance, with lots of soft-touch materials where you want them and none where you don’t. This is, first and foremost, a family car, so the largely light-coloured interior options will need to be able to withstand the battering they’ll get from everyday family life, and by and large so far they seem able to do so. 

There are a few odd or interesting additions, depending on how much you’re into ‘digitised faux marble’, and some of the silver glossy materials across the facia are rubberised for no obvious reason. 

Infotainment, sat-nav and stereo

In terms of tech, the dual 12.3-inch screen set-up is one we’ve seen before from Hyundai and it’s easy to navigate, without feeling too simple. The driver’s display has a reasonable amount of personalisation, but doesn’t feature the clever blind-spot camera view that we find useful on other Hyundai models. 

This is likely due to the digital side-view cameras, which feed a clear and accurate image to two high-resolution screens mounted on the door cards. Whether you like them is down to personal taste, and while there are benefits such as good night vision and no worries about condensation on cold mornings, it can be difficult to gauge depth when merging into other lanes. 

The main touchscreen incorporates wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, but the embedded navigation system is also very good, and has accurate traffic information and easy-to-follow instructions. If, however, you’re after that cutting-edge feel of a much larger screen, Hyundai is starting to lag behind rivals that offer brighter displays and more functionality. There’s plenty of physical buttons and controls, though, plus a chunky head-up display. 

The boot capacity is an impressive 610 litres with all three rows of seats in place, and there’s a small underfloor storage area for the charging cables. Drop the third row and the volume jumps to 1,321 litres, and the second row also folds down, unlocking a truly van-like level of space. 

Dimensions and size

While the Ioniq 9 might have a similar footprint to its key rivals, its use of interior space is definitely best in class. This is thanks to Hyundai’s designers pushing the windscreen forward as much as possible, creating the car’s somewhat eccentric styling. Hyundai’s decision to design its EVs in an eclectic manner is on full display here, with the Ioniq 9’s look diverging from the Ioniq 5’s and 6’s quite dramatically. 

Driving position, seats & space in the front

Hyundai will offer the Ioniq 9 with seven and six-seat configurations, with the second row optionally configured with captain’s chairs. There’s enough room between them for kids to make their way to the third row without needing to move the seats, but they slide forward with the press of a single button for better access. 

Seats & space in the back

The room in the second row is vast, with additional storage cubbies, plus two more USB-C ports. The third row is a little tight, but the space can be opened up a little by sliding the second-row seats forward. 

Boot space

The boot capacity is an impressive 610 litres with all three rows in place, and there’s a small underfloor storage area for the charging cables. Drop the third row and the volume jumps to 1,321 litres, plus the second row also drops, unlocking a truly van-like level of space. 

Hyundai’s reliability record is typically very good, however its EVs haven’t generally been as strong. Whether this is down to bugs in the new-generation platforms, or something more sinister we can’t say, but the very strong warranty and roadside-assistance packages should alleviate too much stress. 

In terms of safety, the Ioniq 9 is on track for a full five-star rating, but we’ll have to wait until it’s officially tested in Europe for a full result.

Buying and owning

For now, the Ioniq 9 feels like an extremely polished and capable family EV that will satisfy your needs as a hauler and be kind to your tax bill. Putting the firm ride to one side, it’ll be a hard car to overlook if you’re in this part of the market. However, how long it holds that lead in this fast-moving space is another question. 

Hyundai Ioniq 9 pictures

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