Is this Hyundai’s EV5 equivalent?

Hyundai’s next electric car could be an electric mid-sized SUV similar in concept to Kia’s EV5. Certainly this well-concealed prototype is more upright in body style than the Ioniq 5. It is thought that this is the new Ioniq 4, based on information emanating from China. Evidently there is also an ICE-power version of the same thing under development. 

The model will likely go head to head with Kia’s EV5, which is more compact than the Kia EV6, the Ioniq 5’s cousin. The more conventional SUV shape of the EV5 apes that of the seven-seat EV9.

This new EV from Hyundai is likely to sit between the Ioniq 5 and Kona Electric. Spy images that turned up on Korean and Chinese forums show a compact- to mid-sized SUV that’s taller than the hatch-like Ioniq 5. The shape mimics that of electric SUV rivals like Tesla Model Y and BYD Atto 3.

It is likely that the new Hyundai will be similar underneath to the EV5. It is thought to use Hyundai-Kia’s lower-cost N3 eK platform derived from its petrol-powered vehicles. That’s instead of the E-GMP electric vehicle architecture used by bigger EVs in the group. 

Whether or not it features the new front-wheel drive mechanicals underpinning the Kia EV3 (400 volt electrics) or the more expensive 800 volt rear-drive version from the Ioniq 5 is unclear.

The spy shots do show similar alloy wheel, side mirror and interior door handle designs to the Ioniq 5. There’s also the ‘Parametric Pixel’ motif on the rear of the passenger seat.

Hyundai recently injected $US1.1 billion into its Beijing Hyundai joint-venture with BAIC Motor to accelerate its electrified vehicle sales in China. The Ioniq 4 would appear to be its first foray into the mass-market EV sector in China.

Presumably the Ioniq 4 will be sold globally like the Kia EV5. The latter is made in and exported from China to certain global markets like Australasia. The US and Europe get a Korean-made model. It may also be the case that Ioniq 4 is a China-only variant.