2025 Hyundai Ioniq 9 first drive: Efficient, for a big one

Only the $58,995 Ioniq 9 S is available with a rear-wheel drive powertrain. In this case, one with 215 hp (160 kW) and 258 lb-ft (350 Nm) and a range of 325 miles (539 km) from the 110.3 kWh (gross) battery pack. All other trims feature twin motor all-wheel drive, but you give up little in the way of range.

The $62,765 SE and $68,320 SEL offer a combined 303 hp (226 kW) and 446 lb-ft (605 Nm) and 320 miles (515 km) of range, and the $71,250 Performance Limited, $74,990 Performance Calligraphy, and $76,490 Performance Calligraphy Design use a more powerful front motor to generate a total of 442 hp (315 kW) and 516 lb-ft (700 Nm), and a range of 311 miles (500 km).

While a short first drive is not the best place to evaluate an EV’s range efficiency, driven day to day in Eco mode, I wouldn’t be surprised if you were able to easily exceed 3 miles/kWh (20.7 kWh/100 km). Other drive modes include Normal, which uses the front motor much more often and therefore is markedly quicker than Eco; Sport, which has quite a lot of initial throttle tip-in and will head-toss your passengers if you have any; Terrain, first seen on the Ioniq 5 XRT; and Snow.

The ride is quite firm on surface streets but less so at highway speeds over seams and expansion gaps. As you start to corner faster you can expect to encounter understeer, but since this is a three-row SUV weighing between 5,507-6,008 lbs (2,498-2,725 kg), one has to wonder what else was expected. At sensible speeds, it’s easy to see out of and place it on the road, and if you’re stuck in a tailback with a couple of grumpy children in the back, it’s a calming enough environment to keep you from being over-stressed.

Hyundai has wisely priced the Ioniq 9 between the related Kia EV9 (which also uses the E-GMP platform) and EVs from premium OEMs like the Volvo EX90, Mercedes EQS SUV, or the aforementioned Rivian.