The 2023 Hyundai Ioniq 6: A streamlined look equals serious range

FOUNTAIN VALLEY, Calif.—The past couple of years have seen a flurry of new electric vehicles go into production. But you’d be forgiven for thinking that some of them are a little samey as automaker after automaker releases yet another electric crossover. This makes sense—consumers mostly want crossovers, as they combine hatchback practicality and a more elevated driving position. But the sedan isn’t quite dead yet, and now there’s another electric one for your consideration: the 2023 Hyundai Ioniq 6.

The Ioniq 6 is the latest in a series of new EVs to use Hyundai Motor Group’s new E-GMP architecture. Designed from scratch, E-GMP lets Hyundai (and Kia and Genesis) build medium- and larger EVs with rear- or all-wheel drive powertrains. E-GMP battery packs operate at 800 V, which provides several benefits. The higher voltage means a lower current, which translates to thinner wiring, which reduces overall mass. And it’s capable of very rapid DC charging—just 18 minutes to get from 10 to 80 percent when plugged into a 350 kW fast charger.

Active shutters at the front let air into the car when it needs cooling and close when it’s more important to be slippery through the air.

Credit: Jonathan Gitlin

None of that will be news if you’ve read our reviews on other E-GMP EVs like the Genesis GV60, Kia EV6, or the Hyundai Ioniq 5. All three are rather good EVs, so expectations were high for the Ioniq 6.

As six follows five, it might be logical to expect that the Ioniq 6 is a larger, more expensive EV than the Ioniq 5. But that’s not the case—at $41,600, the Ioniq 6 starts at just $150 more than the boxy, angular Ioniq 5 crossover.

“We want our cars to always connect with customers on an emotional level,” said SangYup Lee, executive vice president and head of Hyundai Design Center. “Depending on the owner’s lifestyle, the way of using a vehicle will be different, resulting in a different look—much like chess pieces on a board, each one with a distinct look and functionality but part of the same family. Hyundai designs with diverse lifestyles in mind rather than with a one-style-fits-all approach.”

From this angle there’s a hint of the 1994 Lagonda Vignale concept to the Ioniq 6, and that delights me.

Credit: Jonathan Gitlin

Size-wise, the Ioniq 6 is noticeably longer than the Ioniq 5 at 191.1 inches (4,854 mm) but slightly narrower at 74 inches (1,880 mm) and much shorter at just 58.9 inches (1,496 mm) high. However, the Ioniq 6 uses a two-inch shorter wheelbase at 116.1 inches (2,949 mm). If you want to maximize your interior space, the Ioniq 5 is probably the Ioniq you want.

Instead, the Ioniq 6 is aimed at a buyer looking for something a little more elegant and who values style at least as much as practicality. It doesn’t have quite as stunning a shape as 2020’s Prophecy concept; the journey to production toned down some of Prophecy’s wilder details, and the silhouette gained some height thanks to the slab of real batteries between its axles. It has also proved to be a remarkably hard car to photograph well, at least as far as I’m concerned—it definitely works better in person than on a screen.

The detailing may be toned down, but it still contains plenty of interesting touches. Hyundai’s design team calls its lighting philosophy “parametric pixels,” which feature both in the orange daylight running lights at the front and the full-width tail lights at the back. I particularly adore the panel integrated into the rear spoiler, which houses the third brake light. But then I’m a sucker for all things polychromatic, and whatever coating or polymer Hyundai used here gets rather rainbow-y up close in bright sunlight.

Less of a whale tail, more of a porpoise tail?

Jonathan Gitlin

Less of a whale tail, more of a porpoise tail? Jonathan Gitlin

Parametric pixels abound.

Jonathan Gitlin

Parametric pixels abound. Jonathan Gitlin

Less of a whale tail, more of a porpoise tail? Jonathan Gitlin

Parametric pixels abound. Jonathan Gitlin

The rear light cluster is animated.

Jonathan Gitlin

The rear light cluster is animated. Jonathan Gitlin

The Ioniq 6 is one of the lowest-drag cars ever to go on sale. There are plenty of small details that go into achieving that drag coefficient, like these little aero devices below the tail light.

Jonathan Gitlin

The Ioniq 6 is one of the lowest-drag cars ever to go on sale. There are plenty of small details that go into achieving that drag coefficient, like these little aero devices below the tail light. Jonathan Gitlin

The rear light cluster is animated. Jonathan Gitlin

The Ioniq 6 is one of the lowest-drag cars ever to go on sale. There are plenty of small details that go into achieving that drag coefficient, like these little aero devices below the tail light. Jonathan Gitlin

The shape remains highly aero-efficient. The drag coefficient is just 0.21, compared to the Ioniq 5’s 0.29. It combines with the smaller frontal area to make this an EV that slips through the air with considerable ease.

How that translates to the all-important range number depends on the combination of battery pack capacity, the number of motors, and the size of the wheels. The entry-level Ioniq 6 RWD SE standard range uses a 53 kWh lithium-ion battery pack, which powers a single 149 hp (111 kW), 258 lb-ft (350 Nm) permanent magnet electric motor that drives the rear wheels. The SE wears the smallest 18-inch alloy wheels and has an EPA range of 240 miles (386 km).

All other Ioniq 6s come with the larger 77.4 kWh battery pack. If you need serious range from your EV, consider the Ioniq 6 RWD SE Long Range. At $45,500, it’s still on the cheap side in the context of new EVs, and its 225 hp (168 kW), 258 lb-ft electric motor will take you 361 miles (581 km) between charges, riding on 18-inch wheels.

The more expensive Ioniq 6 powertrain and trim combinations provide an interesting look at how both wheel size and single- versus twin-motor powertrains affect efficiency. If you stick with the RWD powertrain but go for the $47,700 SEL or $52,600 Limited, those cars come with 20-inch wheels and a range of 305 miles (491 km)—a 15.5 percent reduction in range compared to 18-inch wheels.

Hyundai says that 85 percent of buyers will want the 20-inch wheels.

Jonathan Gitlin

Hyundai says that 85 percent of buyers will want the 20-inch wheels. Jonathan Gitlin

The relatively small frunk makes sense when you realize there’s a motor and some power electronics that live between the front wheels.

Hyundai

The relatively small frunk makes sense when you realize there’s a motor and some power electronics that live between the front wheels. Hyundai

Hyundai says that 85 percent of buyers will want the 20-inch wheels. Jonathan Gitlin

The relatively small frunk makes sense when you realize there’s a motor and some power electronics that live between the front wheels. Hyundai

A cutaway showing the Ioniq 6’s rear drive unit.

Hyundai

A cutaway showing the Ioniq 6’s rear drive unit. Hyundai

This is what an E-GMP battery pack looks like if you cut away some of the surrounding car.

Hyundai

This is what an E-GMP battery pack looks like if you cut away some of the surrounding car. Hyundai

A cutaway showing the Ioniq 6’s rear drive unit. Hyundai

This is what an E-GMP battery pack looks like if you cut away some of the surrounding car. Hyundai

Keeping to the SE trim and its 18-inch wheels but instead opting for the $49,000 Ioniq 6 AWD adds a second motor to the mix. This adds 100 hp (74 kW) at the front axle for a combined total output of 320 hp (239 kW) and 446 lb-ft (605 Nm) and a range of 316 miles (509 km)—a 12.4 percent reduction compared to the single-motor version on the same size wheels.

Adding both motors plus big wheels provides the biggest range hit, but the 270 miles (435 km) that the AWD SEL ($51,500) and Limited ($56,100) achieve is still longer than I like to drive in a single uninterrupted stint.

None of that will be news to regular readers, though; we talked to the car’s designers last June, found out its EPA range estimate in January, and published pricing in February. We’ve even examined how the Ioniq 6’s different interior lighting combinations could cheer you up or otherwise enhance your mood.

The main thing we couldn’t tell you until now is what the Ioniq 6 is like to drive and live with. Ars visited Hyundai’s US headquarters in Orange County in January to get some seat time in AWD Ioniq 6, and it was apparent rather quickly that this EV provides quite a different driving experience from its more upright Ioniq 5 sibling.

A single unit combines the main instrument and infotainment displays. You can see Apple CarPlay running on the right side.

Credit: Jonathan Gitlin

It’s not quite as sporty an EV as the Prophecy might have led us to expect—that will probably appear in a souped-up Ioniq 6 N version in time. But it’s certainly a more engaging car to drive than the crossover, in part thanks to a lower center of gravity but also the driving position and, to some degree, the feedback through your butt and the steering. The ride was a little firm rebounding from bumps but hardly bone-shakingly so.

With 320 hp and a curb weight of 4,616 lbs (2,094 kg), the fully loaded Ioniq 6 felt quick but not particularly fast. Putting the car in eco mode means it turns off the front motor except for pulling away at low speed, which gave a fair demonstration of the acceleration difference between twin- and single-motor powertrains. (In terms of driving dynamics, the reduced mass over the front axle in the RWD Ioniq 6 should be quite noticeable, but we still need to drive that version to say for sure.)

You can rapidly switch between increasing levels of lift-off regenerative braking with the steering wheel paddles. This means that the Ioniq 6 will accommodate all EV driving styles, from die-hard one-pedalers who will enjoy the strong retardation in max regen mode to devotees of coast and glide who will thrill at the way the tiny drag coefficient lets the car keep its momentum going.

It’s not flashy, but it is functional.

Credit: Jonathan Gitlin

I prefer to mix and match. One pedal is great for traffic or attacking a mountain road, but otherwise, I prefer to coast whenever possible, with high regen used to slow for corners. A long pull on the left paddle brings this setting; a long pull on the right one turns regen all the way off. But even in that setting, the Ioniq 6 has a clever trick—if you’re coasting along and a car in front slows, the radar will use regenerative braking to slow you to match. Not every EV offers this system, but I appreciate it in those that do (which includes BMW and Mercedes, as well as Hyundai).

Over the course of a couple of hours driving and about 100 miles (160 km)—a mix of highways, city streets, and some Southern Californian canyons—we averaged 2.9 miles/kWh (21.4 kWh/100 km). (I was sharing the car with another journalist, and with limited time to test the car, we had more to test than just maximizing driving range.)

Just as I prefer the Ioniq 6’s driving experience to the Ioniq 5’s, I feel the same about the two cars’ interiors. The Ioniq 6’s interior is not particularly avant-garde, but it is well-arranged, with easy-to-reach controls and minimal blind spots. The infotainment system is intuitive to use and easy to connect a phone to, though it uses the touchscreen as an interface. But there are dedicated physical controls for some functions on the center stack below the screen. There’s a single USB-A and four USB-C ports, and Android Auto and Apple CarPlay are standard but require a wired connection.