Hyundai has released the first details on a brand new model, called the IONIQ, which will be the first car ever to offer three electrified powertrain options in a single body.
The South Korea brand says that the name refers to elements of its creation, as “an ion is an electrically-charged atom“, the second part talks about “the unique offering it brings to the Hyundai range” and the Q is “acknowledging the fresh new approach of this advanced, low-emission model“.
The brand new Hyundai IONIQ is based on an exclusive platform, which was developed specifically to cope with the multi-powertrain options. It brings a fully-electric version (EV), with a high capacity lithium-ion battery, a plug-in hybrid (PHEV), combining the fuel-efficient energy with the battery power, boosting its range and cutting its CO2 emissions, and the hybrid (HEV), that uses a gasoline burner and the motion of the car to charge the on-board battery.
This isn’t the first time Hyundai uses the “I-ONIQ” name, as back in 2012 it released the first details on a concept that had a small petrol engine range extender driving the rear wheels and an electric motor. In the meantime, spies managed to capture several prototypes on camera that revealed the upcoming rival for the Toyota Prius and Chevrolet Volt.
The global launch for the brand new Hyundai IONIQ, in its final form, will be manufactured from January 2016 in South Korea. A couple of months later, the model will debut on the Old Continent, at the 2016 Geneva Motor Show, in March, and it will follow its North American debut, next spring, during the 2016 New York Auto Show.
Photo Gallery
![]()
