Hyundai-Sime Darby Motors (HSDM) has officially launched the Ioniq 5 electric vehicle (EV) in Malaysia. Order books for the EV opened last week, and we also brought to you a first look of the uniquely-designed EV from its teaser preview at 1 Utama.
As revealed earlier, the Ioniq 5 comes in three variants, namely Lite, Plus and Max, as per the Kona Electric that was launched late last year. The Lite comes with the 58 kWh lithium ion polymer battery and rear-wheel drive, and the Plus is a higher-spec version of the 58 kWh RWD car. The Max is the range-topper with a 72.6 kWh battery and dual-motor AWD.
The prices are RM199,888 for the Lite, RM229,888 for the Plus and RM259,888 for the ultimate Ioniq 5 Max. Of course, these on-the-road without insurance prices are fully exempted from import and excise duties, sales tax as well as road tax, as announced in Budget 2022. By the way, the smaller Kona Electric’s price range is from RM149,888 (39.2 kWh) to RM199,888 (64 kWh), so HSDM has full EVs covering a wide RM150k to RM260k space.
Note that the Ioniq 5 prices above are with the standard warranty of two years or 50,000 km plus an EV battery warranty of eight years or 160,000 km. An “extended warranty and service package” costs an additional RM10k and will take the warranty to five years of 100,000 km, and include service maintenance for three years or 50,000 km. The EV battery warranty remains the same.
HSDM is offering two home charging stations, which are optional items. Choose from a 7 kW AC unit for RM6k or a 22 kW AC unit for RM7,000. Prices include “standard installation” but there may be extra charges for additional cabling and extended installation requirements. If you opt for the Max and add on the extended warranty plus the 22 kW charger, the max price is RM276,888.
“Hyundai is paving the way for affordable EV ownership. There will be more EVs in the line-up by various brands under Sime Darby Motors as we aim to lead in Malaysia’s push towards low carbon mobility with a suite of products, services and capabilities across the automotive value chain to support the country’s EV plans,” said Jeffrey Gan, MD of retail and distribution at Sime Darby Motors Malaysia.
To the specs. 58 kWh RWD cars have a 170 PS/350 Nm (125 kW) rear motor, good for 0-100 km/h in 8.5 seconds, while the dual-motor AWD gets a combined 305 PS/605 Nm (225 kW) and a 0-100 km/h time of 5.2 seconds. WLTP range on a full charge is 384 km for the 58 kWh car and 430 km for the two-tonne 72.6 kWh AWD. Top speed is 185 km/h for both.
As for charging, with a 350 kW DC fast charger, users can juice the Ioniq 5’s battery from 10 to 80% in just 18 minutes, and even just five minutes of plugging in will be able to net an extra 100 km of WLTP-rated range. Although we don’t have such powerful chargers yet, it’s good to know that the Ioniq is capable of faster charging when the hardware arrives.
Current DC fast chargers such as those on the Shell Recharge network are rated at 180 kW. At 50 kW, Hyundai says that the Ioniq 5 will replenish from 10% to 80% in 47 minutes, so expect much shorter waiting times at 180 kW DC chargers, even if it’s shared with another EV. Juicing up with an 11 kW home AC charger takes five hours for the 58 kWh and slightly more than six hours for the bigger battery. The Ioniq 5 has a CCS2 port.
Built on Hyundai’s dedicated Electric-Global Modular Platform (E-GMP) for EVs (not shared with ICE cars, like in the Kona Electric’s case), the Ioniq 5 supports both 400V and 800V charging infrastructure without the need for additional components or adapters. By the way, the Ioniq 5 can play powerbank too, with vehicle-to-load (V2L) sockets under the rear seats that can supply up to 3.6 kW to power things like electric bicycles, scooters, camping equipment, or anything actually.
Interestingly, HSDM calls the Ioniq 5 a Crossover Utility Vehicle (CUV). We don’t see a lot of crossover or SUV in the design, but perhaps they’re referring to the EV’s size. It might look like a Golf-sized hatchback in pictures, but the scale is larger. At 4,635 mm long and 1,890 mm wide, it’s 430 mm longer and 90 mm wider than the Kona Electric, a B-SUV, and the three-metre wheelbase is 400 mm lengthier than the Kona’s.
In fact, that 3m wheelbase is longer than that of a Toyota Camry (2,825 mm) and Mercedes-Benz E-Class (2,939 mm), and 20-inch wheels look natural on this body. That’s what the AWD car gets (it’s the elaborate looking set you see here, with 255/45 tyres), an inch larger than the 19-inch items (235/55) on the Lite and Plus. Boot space is a good 527 litres, expandable to 1,587 litres max.
The electric hardware is great, but what really sets the Ioniq 5 apart is its form. This EV is a faithful adaptation of the Hyundai 45 Concept from Frankfurt 2019, which was in turn inspired by the 1974 Hyundai Pony Coupe Concept penned by Giorgetto Giugiaro, hence the retro-modern look dominated by straight lines and sharp edges.
The ‘Z’ on the profile is the marque’s “Parametric Dynamics” style in action, as seen on the latest seventh-generation Elantra. The Tetris-style “Parametric Pixel” tail lamps – also found on the Staria MPV’s twin towers – are very cool, as are the flush door handles and clamshell bonnet. This is a fresh piece of design that doesn’t look like anything else on the market today.
Inside, Hyundai says that the Ioniq cabin uses eco-friendly and sustainably sourced materials. The seats are clad in an eco-processed leather that is dyed and treated with plant oil extractions from flaxseed, while textiles are derived from sustainable fibres such as sugar cane bio components, wool and poly yarns, as well as material woven from fibres made from used PET plastic bottles. By the way, the no-logo steering wheel is intentional, and not a Photoshop error.
As for kit, the Ioniq 5 is well equipped. Hyundai’s SmartSense suite of driver assist features is standard across the range, but the Lite misses out on the blind spot view monitor (camera feed, normal warning is present), Safe Exit Alert’s active door assist (warning only) and surround view camera. The Lite gets LED reflector headlamps while the others sport dual LED projectors.
As for seats, it’s fabric and electric driver’s side for the Lite, and leather with electric front seats for the rest. The Max adds on ventilated/heated front seats and heated rear seats, which are also powered (Malaysia probably doesn’t need heating, but it comes in a pack), “premium pulsation” front seats, solar roof and a Bose sound system with seven speakers plus subwoofer and amp.
The Lite and Plus have all-black cabins, but if you’re going for the Max, you can choose from full black or two-tone with dark or light grey seats. One of the two-tone options even have a dark green dashboard that’s almost black, but not.
Once again, the duty-free pricing for the Ioniq 5 is RM199,888 for the Lite, RM229,888 for the Plus and RM259,888 for the Max with the 72.6 kWh battery and dual-motor AWD. It’s an additional RM10k for the extended warranty and service package, BMW-style, and HSDM sells two kinds of AC home chargers. What do you think of this EV?
GALLERY: Hyundai Ioniq 5, US market
Tags: Sime Darby Motors
Keyword: 2022 Hyundai Ioniq 5 EV launched in Malaysia – 58 kWh 2WD Lite/Plus, 72.6 kWh AWD Max, from RM200k