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There’s a lot to like about this SUV, made in Georgia. Jonathan M. Gitlin – Oct 31, 2025 1:19 pm | Story text Size Width * Links * Subscribers only Learn more When Hyundai’s E-GMP platform for electric vehicles arrived on the market, it cemented the Korean automaker’s place as one of the leaders of its industry. And in the absence of an influx of Chinese EVs, the Ioniq range of cars, crossovers, and SUVs is about as leading-edge as you’ll find in showrooms right now, particularly mainstream brands. The first of the E-GMP cars was the Ioniq 5, which looks like a 1980’s hatch scaled up to the midsize crossover segment. Now made in the US, it has been a firm hit—and at the beginning of the month just got a hefty price cut, to boot. A midsized sedan followed, but these are a less common sight here given American car-buying tastes. Those tastes shaped the Ioniq 9, though. The underlying technology might hail from Hyundai’s Namyang R&D center in South Korea, but the Ioniq 9 is the result of that technology expressed through the tastes of suburban America. Not so much the exterior styling, though. The hood is too low, the corners are more rounded, and it’s generally a less-threatening shape than the average domestic three-row SUV. The family resemblance to the smaller Ioniq EVs shines through via the lights—”parametric pixels” in corporate design language—that frame the front and rear of the car. Sailing yachts were an inspiration to the design team, which shows up in the boat tail that continues, fairly or not, to evoke Range Rover vibes when I see it. But then, looks are subjective. If an Ioniq 5 seems surprisingly spacious from the inside, the Ioniq 9 is positively cavernous—185 cubic feet (5,239 L) in total, although some of that is occupied by the seats and center console. It’s available with a bench seat for the middle row, but as with our first drive back in May, our test car was the fully loaded Performance Calligraphy trim, which instead opts for a pair of captain’s chairs in the middle row. These do make entry to the third row a lot easier, although as with most three-row SUVs, there’s not really a vast amount of legroom back there. Even with the third row in use, the 21.9 cubic feet (620 L) of cargo space behind them should be sufficient for a weekly grocery run. Drop the third row—with the push of a button or two in the Calligraphy, for this trim includes power motors for all three rows—and that increases to 46.7 cubic feet (1,344 L), which should be enough room for even larger dogs, or plenty of luggage for that Griswold-style vacation road trip. Family vacation? Actually, I think the Ioniq 9 would make a fine road tripper. The interior is thoughtful when it comes to things like storage or power, with six 100 W USB-C ports spread around the cabin. The 110 kWh battery pack is good for a range of 311 miles (500 km), or as much as 335 miles (540 km) for the entry-level single-motor version. The highway assist is part of Hyundai’s latest suite of advanced driver assistance systems and is now capable of executing lane changes when directed by the driver. The native NACS charge port at the rear means all of Tesla’s v3 Superchargers are potential power-up locations; these will take the battery from 10–80 percent state of charge in 40 minutes. Or use the NACS-CCS1 adapter and a 350 kW fast charger (or find one of Ionna’s 350 kW chargers with a NACS plug) and do the 10–80 percent SoC top-up in a mere 24 minutes. With this most-powerful Ioniq 9, I’d mostly keep it in Eco mode, which almost entirely relies upon the rear electric motor. When firing with both motors, the Calligraphy outputs 422 hp (315 kW) and more importantly, 516 lb-ft (700 Nm). In Sport mode, that’s more than enough to chirp the tires from a standstill, particularly if it’s damp. Low rolling resistance and good efficiency was a higher priority for the Ioniq 9’s tire selection than lateral grip, and with a curb weight of 7,319 lbs (3,320 kg) it’s not really a car that needs to be hustled unless you’re attempting to outrun something like a volcano. It’s also the difference between efficiency in the low 2 miles/kWh range. Life with the Ioniq 9 wasn’t entire pain-free. For example, the touch panel for the climate control settings becomes impossible to read in bright sunlight, although the knobs to raise or lower the temperature are at least physical items. I also had plenty of trouble with the windshield wipers’ intermittent setting, despite the standard rain sensors. At $74,990, the Ioniq 9 Calligraphy comes more heavily specced than electric SUVs from more luxury, and therefore more expensive, brands and should charge faster and drive more efficiently than any of them. If you don’t mind giving up 119 hp (89 kW) and some options, all-wheel drive is available from $62,765 for the SE trim, and that longer-legged single motor Ioniq 9 starts at $58,955. Although with just 215 hp (160 KW) and 285 lb-ft (350 Nm), the driving experience won’t be quite the same as the model we tested. Jonathan M. Gitlin Automotive Editor Jonathan is the Automotive Editor at Ars Technica. He has a BSc and PhD in Pharmacology. In 2014 he decided to indulge his lifelong passion for the car by leaving the National Human Genome Research Institute and launching Ars Technica's automotive coverage. He lives in Washington, DC.
