6 Reasons the Hyundai Ioniq is a Hybrid Like No Other

• They’ve Taken Worry Out of the Equation

The warranty on the car is 5 years/300,000km. That’s something some premium manufacturers aren’t even prepared to give. Plus, 300,00km over 5 years works up to an average of 164km per day. Unless you use the Ioniq as a grab/uber car, outpacing the warranty will be difficult.

And if you’re worried about the battery, there’s a warranty for that too. It’s 8 YEARS long and has no mileage limit, so you can take a 9 year loan on the car and not have to worry about it until the final year – and by then you’ll probably be looking at a replacement car.

What about the dual-clutch transmission? Well, you won’t have worry about that either. Unlike many other dual clutch designs, Hyundai separates each component, so if anything fails, the replacement cost is a lot cheaper. Using separate modules also simplifies the system, making diagnostics and repairs a lot less labour-intensive. Think of it as a manual gearbox with 2 clutches and automation rather than a complex DSG.

• It’s fun to drive

The Ioniq isn’t just a fuel-sipping C-segment entry – it’s a properly thought out vehicle. The engineers at Hyundai set the benchmark really high and actually exceeded their goals. By placing the battery underneath the rear passenger seats, they managed to give the car a lower centre of gravity than the Golf GTI’s! Pair this with the outstanding multi-link rear suspension and you have yourself a really great handling car.

We certainly felt this when we took it through a slalom at high speed. The car turns in sharply, and its electric power steering is weighted nicely, giving it a very responsive feel. The aforementioned dual clutch adds to the sporty feel.

• All the Right Materials Were Used

Hyundai made the Ioniq with a lot of thought. Material choices throughout are top notch, with leather gracing the ‘Plus’ variant’s interior and consistent quality plastics used throughout. But it’s not the cabin that was most impressive. What really ‘wow’-ed us was the use of aluminium and ultra-high strength (UHS) steel throughout the car.

The hood, rear liftgate, front beam, major suspension and brake components are all made of aluminium for 45% weight savings, while more than 50% of the car’s frame is constructed of UHS steel. This purposeful usage of material shows just how much effort was put into the Ioniq to make it the car it is.

• It Has The Right Engine for the Job

The 1.6 Kappa engine here has class-leading thermal efficiency. Unlike most modern internal combustion engines that lose up to 70% of their energy to noise, vibration and heat, this one only loses 60%.

This was achieved by separating the coolant flow of the head and block of the engine, using the Atkinson cycle instead of Otto cycle for lower pumping losses and by implementing an advanced emission gas recirculation system. The engine is also extremely smooth when transitioning between on and off modes – there’s none of that irritating judder that many modern auto start/stop systems seem to be plagued by.

• There are Premium Features

How often to affordable cars come with digital instrument clusters, autonomous braking, active cruise control and lane keeping assist? On the Ioniq, these are all available.

• It’s Great Value for Money

Naturally, people who are looking at a hybrid car are looking for something that gets good mileage. Some do it for the environment, but others certainly have financial concerns too.

But in the last ten years, we haven’t really had a hybrid that’s family-sized around the RM100,000 range. Hyundai got the pricing right by assembling the car in Malaysia and passing the savings on to the customers. For its price, no other manufacturer has been able to deliver so much ‘car’ for so little money. Finally, there’s a hybrid for the rest of us.