The Hyundai IONIQ 5 has big shoes to fill as the first Singaporean-made car in over four decades, but it could be the best value for money EV on sale today.

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Photos: Jay Tee

SINGAPORE

There aren’t many cars that can wear the label “Made in Singapore”. Not unless your automobile was made at the old Ford Factory off Bukit Timah hill. But with prices starting at S$189,800 (at the time of writing), the Hyundai IONIQ 5 presents itself as the cheapest Singaporean-made car on sale today – because there aren’t any other cars made here.

Strictly speaking, the IONIQ 5 is two years old now. But short of Hyundai/Komoco and SP Group’s E-Mobility Pilot scheme that saw a limited number of IONIQ 5s go on sale, the car wasn’t made available to the general consumer market in Singapore. Until this year, that is.

Hyundai launched the first 100 units of the locally made IONIQ 5s back in January during the Singapore Motorshow. However in March, sales of the Singaporean-made IONIQ 5s finally began. And like the “First 100” cars, our test car was assembled at the Hyundai Motor Group Innovation Center Singapore (HMGICS) plant at Bulim Avenue in the Jurong Innovation District.

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Hyundai IONIQ 5 58kWh – The Looks

From the outset, the Hyundai IONIQ 5 is a striking-looking SUV. And a rather large one at that, measuring over 4.6 metres long and very nearly 1.9 metres wide.

According to Hyundai, the design of the IONIQ 5 is inspired by the Hyundai Pony, the brand’s first mass-produced car styled by one Giorgetto Giugiaro. He’s the man responsible for a multitude of automotive icons like the DMC DeLorean, Mk1 Golf, BMW M1, Lancia Delta – the list goes on.

Looking at the IONIQ 5, it’s not hard to see the Giugiario-inspired design influences. Just like how the horological world has Gérald Genta (the progenitor of integrated bracelets), the world of automobile design has Giugiaro. And the IONIQ 5 is a rather faithful conceptualisation of peak eighties brutalism. 

You could think of it as a retro-modern, cyberpunk-ish recreation of what an 80s hatchback would look like in the 21st century.

The IONIQ 5’s eye-catching Parametric Pixel headlamps are evocative of 80s computer graphics, with pixelated DRLs peeking from beneath the clamshell hood. Save for an air dam housed lower in the bumper, the front fascia is devoid of any vents.

Sharp, angular creases dominate the flanks of the car giving it a faceted appearance, with a shoulder line that extends to the rear of the steeply raked c-pillars. The doors also see the addition of flush handles and chrome mouldings on the side scuttles.

Round the back, the eighties theme continues with pixel tail lamps and the model designation inscribed across the pixelated centre panel. The IONIQ 5 also comes with a roof-mounted rear spoiler, 19-inch rims and satin chrome mouldings on the rear bumper.

Because of the absence of a conventional ICE powertrain – and the requisite running gear, the IONIQ 5 is blessed with short overhangs and a 3000mm wheelbase that endows it with even more cabin space. Even more so than the Kia EV6, which is underpinned by the same E-GMP platform in the IONIQ 5.

Hyundai IONIQ 5 58kWh – The Interior

While the exterior is a smorgasbord of eighties design and allure, the cabin of the IONIQ 5 is anything but. The dashboard is clean and uncluttered, with a mixture of soft-touch materials and a well-appointed mix of analogue buttons and touch interfaces. 

Ahead of the driver are two 12.3-inch screens for the instrument cluster and infotainment screen, the latter of which is a touchscreen with an intuitive operating system. The multi-function steering wheel is a two spoke affair, with four dots in place of a Hyundai badge on the airbag cover (four dots in Morse code spells “H”) and a gear selector stalk located on the right of the steering column.

Beneath the infotainment screen sits the touch panel for your HVAC controls and infotainment menu buttons, all within easy reach of the driver. Thankfully, Hyundai has thought to fit a physical volume knob for ease of use on the move, but adjusting your climate settings would demand a little more accuracy. In other words, you’d have to take your eyes off the road lest you turn on the front demister instead of toggling your fan speed.

Pesky touch-operated controls aside, there’s a satisfying tactility to every physical interface that exudes the same sort of refinement we’d find in pricier cars. The IONIQ 5 even comes with a ‘Vision Roof’, which translates to a moonroof in layman’s terms. In its “Prestige” trim, the car also comes with a slew of upgrades like natural leather (as opposed to eco-processed leather in the base model), ventilated and Zero Gravity seats with calf supports.

Because the batteries are packed low down into the floor, Hyundai’s designers have a lot of wiggle room to outfit this car with all manner of storage bins without cluttering the interior. The large centre console can be moved back and forth up to 140mm, allowing rear occupants to access to the two USB charging ports or the wireless charger.

Rear occupancy is generous, to say the least, with varying degrees of reclination and ample knee and headroom for anyone this side of an NBA player. The rear bench can be slid back and forth to expand the 527-litre boot, or folded flat to further expand your cargo capacity to almost 1,600 litres. 

It’s not a stretch to say that you would be very hard-pressed to find anyone with complaints about the amount of space that the IONIQ 5 provides.

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Page 2: Hyundai IONIQ 5 58kWh Prestige – Powertrain, Drive and Conclusion

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