AN INSIDE LOOK AT THE 2022 HYUNDAI IONIQ 5

They say diamonds are a girls best friend but for me!?! Make it diamond cut 20 inch rims and my heart is YOURS!

I test drove the all-electric compact SUV Hyundai IONIQ 5 for a week and was pleasantly surprised by the overall feel of the car, from the outside in… and so were STRANGERS !!!! But… I’ll get to that in a second. The 2022 IONIQ 5 not only has quick charging speeds (10% to 80% in 18 minutes with a DC charger) but it retains it’s charge pretty well. I’d love to test our the retention in the winter months because The IONIQ 5 boasts a battery temperature system implemented to reserve as much range as possible when temperatures begin to dip below 0 degrees Celsius. I’d love to test drive this vehicle in the winter to really see just how much the battery performance is affected by drastic temperature changes and if this system really does what it says. With a pretty modest range sitting at 488km, The IONIQ5 is just the beginning of the over 20 battery powered vehicles Hyundai plans to bring to the market by 2025 and I’d definitely say they’re hitting the ground running with this one!

Some background — my first car ever was a 2014 Hyundai Accent and let’s just say when the breeze blew… I felt it and I felt like I had to be at the mechanics getting something fixed more often than I’d like. Thank goodness for Hyundai’s pretty extensive warranty! OBVIOUSLY…. the IONIQ 5 and the Accent are in completely different leagues and are virtually incomparable but that didn’t stop me from having some reservations when hopping into the drivers seat with them being from the same OEM. I won’t lie — my original experience made my eyes wander to what could be but now… I’m definitely looking in the rearview at what once was.

Let’s start with the exterior/interior of the vehicle because personally… that’s what catches my eye before I event put my foot on the ‘gas’ per-say. If futuristic was the goal… the IONIQ 5 passed the vibe check. The geometric yet sleek cut of the SUV and the intricate rims DID it for me and apparently it DID it for strangers too because the way they were at stop lights rolling down their windows and breaking their necks just to get a glimpse of the SUV… it had me absolutely 100% feeling myself!

FAVOURITE FEATURES

Speed & Agility

The IONIQ 5 goes from 0 to 100 in about 5 seconds but somehow it feels like way less time than that. Some of my favourite features include the ‘come here’ feature where after pushing a sequence of buttons on the key fob, you can engage the vehicle and have it either reverse or move forward with the tough of a button from OUTSIDE the SUV! Such an amazing feature when you have a dingbat (those who park close to your car and often leave you with a ding) park WAY to close and you have to play Tetris with your body to get into your car. No more!!! You can also use this feature if you couldn’t park all the way into your spot because you needed to get some things out of the trunk and once your done… you want to move it just a touch. I love features that take real life into consideration!

Thanks for lookin’ out

Now, I’m not typically a fan of anyone telling me what to do… ever 🤣 HOWEVER I was tickled to see the IONIQ 5 intuitively ask me to take a coffee break after a long winded drive. Not kidding. First of all, can my tea and hot chocolate lovers STAND UP?! Not all of us like coffee Hyundai… haha! But to be honest, I find it’s a handy feature and love that the vehicle takes notice when you’re not driving as directly as you should be and prompts you to make a pit stop.

I loved the d-shaped steering wheel! Another beautiful feature is the digital gauge cluster + infotainment making one long 12.3’’ screen. The fact that you can change themes is SUCH a nice touch! There are 3 different driving modes with a secret mode MADE for us Canadians — eco, normal, sport and…. SNOW mode. The traffic reporter in me is loving this mode because folks usually forget how to drive when 2 snowflakes hit the pavement

Final Thoughts

IONIQ 5 or ICONIC 5? It’s the latter for me. I love the open concept of this ride. You’re on cloud 9 driving this vehicle and passengers seem to be up in the clouds right there with you. The user interface is pretty seamless and Hyundai checked off a lot of the boxes and I’m personally a big fan!