The Hyundai Ioniq 9 Is the Electric Road Trip Car of the Future, If There Is a Future for EVs

Electric vehicles are in for a bumpy ride in the United States.Sales continue to grow, but at a slower pace than was forecast a few years ago. Making matters worse is the expected rollback of federal government incentives for electric vehicle purchases and production by the incoming Trump administration.Several automakers, including Ford, Rivian and Tesla, have already delayed or eliminated new models to meet the market better, but others appear undeterred.One of them is Hyundai. It has a new factory outside Savannah, Ga., that will soon start building its largest and most ambitious electric model yet.It has a driving range of up to 335 miles per charge. Courtesy HyundaiThe Ioniq 9, which made its public debut at the Los Angeles Auto Show, is a three-row SUV with seating for up to seven passengers and an aerodynamically efficient body designed to stretch the most out of its battery pack.It has a rounded nose and a rear tapered like a boat tail that gives it what Hyundai calls an “aerosthetic” look. Slim side view mirrors are designed to cut through the air and in countries that don’t require mirrors, it will replace them with tiny cameras and video screens inside the cabin. Unfortunately, the U.S. is not one of them.Hyundai also eliminated external antennas by incorporating the Ioniq 9’s various receivers into the tailgate glass, the windshield header and the dashboard to keep the exterior surface as sleek as possible. Cooling vents at the front of the vehicle close when not needed to streamline it even more.Equipped with a 110.3-kilowatt-hour battery pack, Hyundai estimates that the Ioniq 9 will be able to go 300 miles between charges with all-wheel drive and 335 miles with rear-wheel drive, which is impressive for a mainstream vehicle its size.The second row captain’s chairs recline and have leg rests. Courtesy HyundaiThe Ioniq 9 is being built with the Tesla-style charging plug and can use its Supercharger stations, plus any others with an adapter. Hyundai says it will take just 24 minutes to fill the battery from 10% to 80%, which is the recommended limit for fast charging a battery. More than that and the cells can be damaged, hastening their loss of capacity over time.Even with the relatively short stops in mind, the Ioniq 9 has a few features to make them more pleasant for passengers. A six-seat layout is available that comes with individual captain’s chairs in the second row that are heated and cooled just like the front seats. All four also recline like easy chairs and have footrests and massage functions to facilitate cat naps. Hyundai has a version with captain’s chairs that can swivel to face the third row. As with the side mirrors, U.S. safety regulations won’t allow them, even if they are only meant to be used when the vehicle is parked.Since it’s an electric car, you can leave the climate control system on all the time in the lot without annoying anyone nearby or filling the cabin with fumes. The Ioniq 9 has an independently controlled rear climate zone that can be used efficiently when camping in the vehicle with the seats folded flat. Just imagine gazing at the stars through the vehicle’s panoramic sunroof on a hot summer’s night with the air conditioning and audio system on full blast. It’s a new type of glamping. If you prefer the traditional style, the Ioniq 9 is rated to tow a trailer camper that weighs up to 5,000 pounds.Without emissions to worry about, the cargo area can be used for climate controlled camping. Courtesy HyundaiPricing hasn’t been announced and it is probably still up in the air, given the state of EV affairs. Hyundai fast-tracked its Georgia factory to qualify it for the current $7,500 federal tax credit on EV purchases but that is likely the first incentive that will be cut or eliminated.A starting price in the mid-$50,000 range is a good guess, but it has a few more months to figure it out as the Ioniq 9 isn’t scheduled to go on sale until the first half of 2025.

The Hyundai Ioniq 9 Is the Electric Road Trip Car of the Future, If There Is a Future for EVs

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