HSDM Launches The Hotly Anticipated 2022 IONIQ 5 - From RM199,888

Hyundai-Sime Darby Motors (HSDM) has just launched one of the most anticipated electric vehicles for the Malaysian market, the 2022 Hyundai IONIQ 5 - priced from RM199,888

Hyundai's flagship EV, the 2022 IONIQ 5, is the second battery electric vehicle (BEV) introduced by HSDM, after the Kona Electric, which made its debut in Malaysia late last year.

Though we're quite accustomed to seeing high-end electric cars take the form of much larger or sleeker-looking vehicles, Hyundai's approach resembles that of Volkswagen's, where a more humble hatchback fits the bill of a perfect daily EV. Despite this, the IONIQ 5 is not a small vehicle as it is larger than a Golf, with a wheelbase that is longer than a Mercedes-Benz E-Class or a Proton X70.

Coming in at 4,635 mm long and 1,890 mm wide, it is 430 mm longer and 90 mm wider than the Kona Electric.

Built on the same platform as the Kia EV6, the IONIQ 5 packs similarly powerful performance, an electric range from 380km up to 480 km and is able to charge from 10% to 80% in just 47 minutes (with a 50-kW DC Charger). A standard 11kW home AC charger can charge from 0% to 100% in 6.1 hours.

It is offered in both rear-wheel drive and all-wheel drive – completely independent of the specification you choose.

Battery options are available in either a 58 kWh or 72.6 kWh capacities, the latter of which combined with the Max All-Wheel Drive (AWD) provides the longest range. For the 58 kWh 2-Wheel Drive (2WD) variants, you get a pretty standard 170 PS and 350 Nm of torque, while the 72.6 kWh AWD variant has 305 PS and 605 Nm of torque. 

• IONIQ 5 Lite (2WD): RM199,888

• IONIQ 5 Plus (2WD): RM229,888

• IONIQ 5 Max (AWD): RM259,888

All variants on a high-speed 350 kW charger system will take just under 18 minutes to reach 80% charge, but we do not have such facilities just yet in Malaysia, but it's good to know that it can be charged faster when faster chargers are available. 

Built on Hyundai's BEV (E-GMP Electric Global Modular Platform) architecture, the IONIQ 5 supports both 400-V and 800-V charging infrastructures. The platform offers 400-V/800-V charging capabilities as standard without the need for additional components or adapters.

Safety and Convenience

Active safety and functionality are fairly highly specified and flat across the range of models. For example, the Lite entry-level model is equipped with cloth fabric seats while the rest is laced with leather. The Lite also doesn't come with seat heating/ ventilation and the Premium Relaxation Seats but the rest do. A 12.3-inch touchscreen infotainment system is standard across all the variants, as is your usual host of connectivity options. 

The IONIQ 5 also has this feature called Vehicle-to-Load function that can supply up to 3.6kW of power to most electronic devices. This feature practically turns the IONIQ 5 into one big power bank.

Another excellent feature in the IONIQ 5 Max is its solar roof (not available in the Lite or Plus) where it can help give the car extra range. HSDM didn't state how much extra range it could provide, but a bit of digging around led us to the conclusion that it could add up to 5km daily on perfectly sunny days. 

Safety systems like Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist are common across all variants, though they vary in terms of assistance level. For example, all three variants will get Hyundai's SmartSense safety systems but the Lite variant will not be equipped with a blind-spot view monitor and safe exit alert.

Warranty

All variants come with a standard vehicle warranty of 2 years/ 50,000km and an EV battery warranty of 8 years/ 160,000km

Optional add-on packages

1. Extended warranty and service packages - RM10,000
   This package will upgrade the standard warranty to 5years/ 100,000km and service maintenance for 3 years/ 50,000km. The EV battery warranty will remain unchanged
2. 7kW AC charging station with standard installation - RM6,000
3. 22kW AC charging station with standard installation - RM7,000