The proper Ioniq 9 reveal happens in November.
A sketch of the Hyundai Ioniq 9’s headlights. Credit: Hyundai
In November, Hyundai will formally unveil its next electric vehicle. It’s the new Ioniq 9, a three-row SUV that uses Hyundai Motor Group’s highly competent E-GMP platform seen in the Ioniq 5 and 6. Ahead of that reveal, the automaker shared some teaser images.
Regular readers will know that Hyundai’s various design directions always have interesting names, and like the two smaller Ioniqs, the Ioniq 9 will feature “parametric pixels” in its headlamps—the blocky 8-bit look has been used to good effect on the Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 6.
E-GMP has already given rise to a big electric three-row SUV. Kia’s EV9 has been on sale for a while now and has just about matched the cheaper EV6 in terms of sales for the last nine months, despite a $54,900 starting price that’s more than $12,000 greater than the EV6’s. (American car buyers really do want larger cars, and they vote with their wallets.)
And Genesis—Hyundai’s luxury offshoot—showed off the Neolum concept at last year’s New York International Auto Show. The Ioniq 9’s silhouette shows a more sloping roofline at the rear than the smooth-but-boxy Neolum. Hyundai calls this design direction “Aerosthetic,” which it says combines aerodynamic performance and aesthetic appeal.
Hyundai’s design team was inspired by traditional Korean outfits.Hyundai
The wheels have aero elements to reduce their drag.Hyundai
As for the other details we can make out, Hyundai says the character lines on the Ioniq 9’s flanks evoke the lines of Korea’s traditional dress (known as hanbok), and there are mulitspoke alloy wheels that, based on the image, remind me of a late 1990s rally car.
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Boats have apparently been an inspiration for the interior, but we’ll have to take the automaker’s word for it, as the teasers did not include any of the Ioniq 9’s inside.
