Hyundai Ioniq 9 Review: Brian Byrne, Irish Car

OK, it's a cardinal rule of journalism to stay away from lots of figures, writes Brian Byrne. But in 20 years, the average length of cars sold in Europe has increased by more than 5 per cent to 4,536mm. The average width is up by more than 6 per cent to 1,844mm. Those increases might not really sound so much, but they do put flesh on what we've instinctively known: it's getting harder to park your wheels in standard spaces. 

Much of the increase is due to the mass adoption of the SUV format, with globally more than half of all cars sold being in that style. On a quick look back at the review cars I've driven this year, that's about right for this country, too. I was prompted towards this train of thought during some time recently with Hyundai's newest model for Ireland, the Ioniq 9 EV. That is a big car in the Irish context. Bigger than the latest Volvo EX90, just a little shorter than Audi's Q7.

The Ioniq 9 is longer and taller than even its Kia stablemate, the EV9, with which it shares platform, drivetrain, and a lot of the interior fitments. Wondering where it might fit in Hyundai's sales here, I looked at that Kia version, here for quite some time now. It could be worth anything between 2.5-3.5 per cent of total sales, where the Tucson compact-medium car is the front-runner. We'll see.

Sometimes I mention a car's presence as it looks on the road. The Ioniq 9 has this with a capital 'P'. Then a bit more in the particular shade of green in the review car. From the high-fronted but smoothly styled face to the rear with a very deep back window, it's a statement of intent to stand out. The hatched design of the main lights, intriguing detail of the wheel arches, and its own version of the BMW 'Hoffman Kick' flip at the rear pillars, the Ioniq 9 demands, and gets, turnings of heads. The very vertical tailgate style also differentiates it from others in the format and class, and I should note that the driver's view through the rear window is quite amazing.

The width — only the BMW XM is wider in its size space — is also immediately evident when you get in. Everybody on board, including in the rearmost pair of seats, has elbow room almost to excess. Most of all, though, they'll be impressed with the quality of the finish throughout. As it should be, of course, in a car priced at the premium end of the scale.

The dashboard styling is strong, with a wide satin-metallised crosspiece that emphasises the width quite elegantly. The unified pair of information screens are in a slightly curved unit standing out from the general dash. There are strong graphics, and the menu levels are relatively easy to manage. Buttons and scrollers on the steering wheel help with keeping distraction to a minimum. There's a double row of virtual buttons underneath to handle the climate. A star button on the steering wheel can be programmed to open the driver assist screen so that you can turn off what you don't need before you move off.

Although there's a big armrest-storage unit between the front seats, there's floor space in front of it so that a handbag, for instance, can be placed on the floor, away from the traffic-light snatch-thieves, though they're not so much an issue today because of automatic door-locking. That unit also has the phone charge pad, placed where you'll not be inclined to forget the phone when you leave the car.

The middle seats easily accommodate three adults, and for those full-passenger-load occasions, the two in the rear are easily accessed once you have mastered the flip-and-forward action of the middle ones. With the rear seats down there's a whopping 908 litres of cargo space, and with all seats in place there's still a commendable 338 litres. Lots of USB points will take care of the connection needs for all passengers.

The real test of a car like this is the long journey, and while I had it, I did one of my periodic 400+ kilometre round trips to the west. I wasn't surprised to have done it in good comfort, but what I didn't expect was how nimble this 2.5-tonne machine was on some very indifferent, narrow, and twisty roads that the sat-nav decided to direct me through. It just proved you can have a big car and not feel like you're piloting a bus. 

There's a realistic range of around 500 km, more if you haven't been driving on motorways. On my way back from the west, I took a break to charge from an indicated 15 percent and had it back up to 70 percent in the time it took me to buy and consume a safety-strategic coffee.

Although the number of cars of this size you'll see on our Irish roads is still relatively small, it's growing, and they're noticeable.

PRICE: €78,495. WHAT I LIKED: The style, comfort, and long-distance legs. 

Hyundai Inster review: Trish Whelan, Irish Car

Hyundai’s Inster small electric car has already made its mark in the B-segment here with 300 sold since launch last February, which is not surprising given its attractive low price of from just €19,000, good build quality, interior roominess, and the amount of equipment as standard. It all makes for a very compelling package for urban or suburban motorists or as an affordable new first car for a teenage offspring or perhaps as a second family car. 

With the robust look of an SUV, this is quite a tall car for its size, with small front and rear circular lights, rugged wheel arches with distinctive cladding, pixel-graphic turn signals, and two rows of rear small lights that turn on quite a display when you press the key fob to open the car at night. While nine exterior colours are offered, the review car looked appealing in the Buttercream Yellow Pearl colour, which turned heads. Hyundai designers and engineers have worked wonders in presenting such a tall, spacious interior courtesy of that boxy shape. 

Sizewise, the wheelbase is within 8cm of the brand’s bigger Kona, but Inster offers more headroom. The flat EV floor, flexible fold-flat seats, and high-roof SUV silhouette all deliver an impressive amount of interior space for a city car with excellent head and legroom front and rear. I was also impressed with the whole front layout, including the dash design, huge side windows which offer great visibility, the light colours of the trim and houndstooth-like patterned material that extends out from the driver’s seat over the central console flat area - but there is no central console just a pair of cupholders embedded in that space. There’s plenty of floor open space below for a bag or laptop. Front seats can be heated; folding the front passenger seat allows you to use a laptop on a mobile office desk. 

The 10.25-inch independent centre touchscreen includes navigation and car systems and you can mirror your smartphone onto the screen while the customisable same-size digital cluster screen consists of two grey dials with your digital speed shown centrally. A blind-spot camera view is displayed onto the instrument screen when you indicate a turn. A volume knob is below the central screen and there are physical shortcut buttons for media, setup, nav, and a ‘star’ favourite. It’s all very intuitive and easy to get the hang of. There are also buttons for climate control - up and down arrows for the temperature, and controls for front seat heaters. There’s a wireless charging port in the centre dash, a small space below the climate controls, a decent glovebox and a shelf above where you’ll find two small USB ports and a 12-volt power outlet in the top spec. The twist transmission selector is placed low on the steering column with an electronic parking brake and there's a satellite control for driving modes that include a snow mode. Three levels of regeneration help with range, regulated via paddle shifters. 

Rear seats are nice and high for ease of getting in and out and can slide forwards by 16cm to expand boot space from 238 to 351 litres or backwards for more rear legroom for tall passengers. These seats can also recline for more comfort. There’s a good area below the boot floor for extra storage. You can even turn the car into a handy overnight sleepover as the driver’s seat also folds flat. 

Two battery options are a standard range 42kWh or long range 49kWh, giving rated distances of around 327km/360km respectively. The standard range has a 96hp electric motor, while the long range has an 113hp motor. The charging socket is front-mounted, so you just drive up to a public unit. Charging from 10-80% takes 30 mins using a 120 kW DC charging station. 

Two trim lines are Signature (€18,995) and Elegance (€21,995), my car being the latter. While the entry-level version is well-specced, most buyers so far have opted for the top trim, getting roof rails, 17-inch alloys, a heat pump, dual LEDs, privacy glass, the fold-flat seats/rear sliding bench, rear LED lights, and exterior upgrades. Inster is ideal for navigating narrow streets and squeezing into tight parking spaces; it can go from 0-100km/h in 10-11 seconds as it has instant torque. In i-Pedal mode, you can accelerate, decelerate, and come to a complete stop using only the accelerator pedal. 

The car has a full set of driver-assist and active safety features, including adaptive cruise control. Its Euro NCAP safety rating is currently pending, but Hyundai has a strong record of building safe cars, and Inster comes equipped with a solid suite of safety features. 

This new model was recently crowned World Electric Car of the Year 2025. Inster is priced from €19,345; my car from €22,845. These low prices won’t hold for long.

 

Hyundai Inster Review: Brian Byrne, Irish Car

The Hyundai Inster is so good on so many levels, writes Brian Byrne. So you know just where this particular review is going now, don’t you? Well, sometimes you just know.

OK, so it’s not especially beautiful. The front end has too much going on everywhere, and could drop that faux skid plate assembly that looks like it's coming away anyway. The box-on-wheels style doesn’t allow for curves or cuddliness. But it does have that other ‘C’ — cute. And there’s a bunch of visual customisations you can personalise to your own tastes.

At the most essential level, though, Inster is a people-packager par excellence. That’s one thing about a proper angular box: it’s the most efficient shape for holding stuff. Or people, in this instance. It may be officially a B-segment vehicle, but it’s tall, wide enough, clever, and has flexible seating. When required, a couple of burly six-footers can sit in the back without banging against anything and not having to pull their knees up to their chins. Right, at the longest knee room setting, the boot gets smaller, but it will still carry a couple of stacked bags of garden compost that only seem to be sold in pairs. The guy who placed those bags was impressed with the car, though he doubted it could withstand the ravages of young children. Maybe because of the light colours of the trim, but in fact it is hardwearing and eminently washable plastic, so perhaps he wouldn't need to be so worried. If you want to carry more stuff, the back seats fold properly flat, and with the passenger seat down as well, you can have something long quite easily.

The driver’s place is very well thought out. It’s a comfortable car in which to sit up and survey all around you. Square car, square visibility, nothing in the way. A centre screen and a good digital driving instruments cluster are sized not to get in the way, either. What really appeals to me is the buttons and switches set up on the centre stack for selecting radio, maps, climate and seat heating. Along with the excellent controls on the steering wheel, this makes it one of the best and ergonomically thought-out setups I've seen for many a year. Every time I got in and had used the star 'favourite' button on the steering wheel to get to the driver assistance screen to turn off the bits that annoy me, this was my happy car.

There are two battery options, with effective capacities of 39kWh or 46kWh, giving real ranges of around 255km/311km respectively. In fact, I was getting a bit more when I made a couple of trips on old, former main roads instead of motorways. In any case, it's a quick car to charge, and for suburban and a bit of country use, it's sweet and practical. It is not a hot hatch pretence in any way; the 0-100km/h sprints are around the 10-11 seconds mark, which is par with most cars in the class, regardless of powertrain.

And then we get to the bottom line. Inster is affordable as well as all the other good things. Relatively, anyhow. So for many reasons, it has already won plaudits, including World Electric Car of the Year 2025.

PRICE: From €19,345; Review car €22,845. WHAT I LIKED: Ah, nearly everything.  

Hyundai Santa Fe is Women's World Car for 2025

Hyundai’s large Santa Fe seven-seater SUV has been declared Women’s World Car for 2025 by a panel of 82 women journalists judging the Women’s Worldwide Car of the Year, writes Trish Whelan.

 

This announcement has been made to coincide with International Women’s Day week. 

Among the 81 contenders, the winners in their respective categories were: MINI Cooper (Urban Car), Kia EV3 (Compact SUV), Audi A6 e-tron (Large Car), Hyundai Santa Fe (Large SUV), Toyota Land Cruiser (4x4), and Porsche Panamera (Performance Car). 

Here in Ireland, the new Santa Fe Plug-In-Hybrid is available in 4WD with a 1.6 T-GDi diesel engine with automatic transmission and with a road tax of €140. Prices are from €66,995-€69,995.

 

Hyundai's Inster EV drives a value proposition

Hyundai in Ireland have set a highly attractive price for their new Inster small electric car, which is now being delivered to first customers here, writes Brian Byrne. But the €18,995 starting level may not last beyond summer, according to the Irish distributor.

Meantime, it seems that 90pc of the initial 400 firm orders made 'sight unseen' in the last few months are for the higher-spec Elegance version at €21,995. The key difference between the two is a slightly larger 49kWh battery that the 42kWh on the entry car, offering a rated 360km of range.

The big surprise when potential customers see the Inster in the metal is the roominess, especially for passengers in the rear. 

Hyundai Ireland are expecting to sell 1,000 units of the Inster this year. A van version is coming towards the end of the year. 

Hyundai sets world record for highest-lowest electric drive

Hyundai have set a Guinness World Record with an Ioniq 5 by driving it from India's highest road, Umling La in Leh Ladakh in the Himalayas located 5,799 metres above sea level, to Kuttanad, Kerala, located three metres below sea level, writes Brian Byrne. The two-week trip covered 4,956km, and charging was by public fast chargers in various cities along the route.

The Ioniq 5 was charged 26 times during the whole journey, and the vehicle had only the standard 72.6kWh battery. A public slow charger had to be used only once through the trip, which cost the team an extra day.

Umling La is claimed to be the highest motorable pass in the world. 

Hyundai Santa Fe review: Brian Byrne, Irish Car

When Hyundai introduced their latest Santa Fe, heads looked up, writes Brian Byrne. And nearly everyone said: Defender. What Hyundai describe themselves as a 'radical' transformation of their flagship SUV, from the curves and flowing lines the model has had over the recent of its five generations is now all straight lines and boxy shape. A lot of it — the latest Santa Fe is big, longer, has more inside space, and is an unmistakeable presence whether you find it on the road or parked outside your neighbour's house.

It's arguable that Hyundai took their cue from the Land Rover Defender rolled out in 2019. Given the length of time it takes to develop a completely new car model, it is equally arguable that the Korean behemoth carmaker's design studio people were already on this road. Whichever, Hyundai have made it very much their own. Slab sides, half-hexagonal wheel arches, and massive 20-inch wheels dominate the profile view while up front the very individual H-shaped running lights punch out the car's identity as it comes up in the rear view mirror. The rear, and very large, tailgate is an exceptionally clean design, looking all the bigger because the rectangular tail lights are set low in the style. My review car's white with black contrasts made it a standout in my cul de sac.

Inside is a meld of big seats and dashboard, in a big space that makes this 7-seater a seriously able transporter for a family in its mature teenaged stage. Room for legs, knees and heads is generous both in the middle and rear seats spaces. The occupants will be travelling in some comfort too, because the quality and finish is up to any premium brand standard you might like to compare with. Both of those rows flip flat too, to offer a very large cargo capacity on occasions that this may be needed.

The driving instrumentation and the infotainment screen are merged cleanly in one element. The former includes the Hyundai-familiar large circles that double as screens for cameras which show the blind spots on whichever side you indicate to turn. An uncluttered digital style gives both speed and RPM, between them a choice of the information you prefer. The head-up display means you rarely bother to even look at these. Below the infotainment screen are proper knobs for heat or cool, and a mix of very usable haptic and real buttons to manage climate details. With the transmission selector on the steering column, there are two phone charging spaces on the centre console. Personally I don't like subjecting my phone to the heating involved with such systems, but I'm sure the dual setup will be popular during family travel.

There's just one powertrain available on the Irish market, a plug-in hybrid based on a 1.6 direct-injection turbo petrol and electric motor, between them pumping 265hp. A 6-speed automatic manages getting the best out of the combination, and a 9.1s potential sprint to 100km/h is plenty pokey for this big car. More to the point here, over some 550km of very mixed driving environments, I averaged 6.4L/100km. For me, that's a level of efficiency in a big car (yep, I do keep saying that, don't I?) that makes valid decision by Hyundai not to offer a diesel.

All the usual driver assist features, including the now-mandatory and intensely annoying speed and attention beeping which, by universal assent, are more distracting than useful. My tip: make the relevant settings screen the favourite on the steering wheel 'star' button, and then it only takes three taps on the screen to silence them each time you start the car. 

Over that aforementioned driving, more than 400km was done in a single day, a return trip from my home to the west. Much more than I would generally do even on a continental holiday trip. It was a day that proved one particular thing to me, that this latest Santa Fe is one of the best big cars I have driven in a long time.

PRICE: From €66,995. WHAT I LIKED: The untiring long distance drive.  

New Santa Fe now available in Ireland

The new generation Hyundai Santa Fe has gone on sale in all Irish Hyundai dealerships, writes Brian Byrne. The car is available in AWD as a plug-in hybrid, priced at €69,995. An entry-level version at €66,995 will be available later.

The powertrain is based on a 1.6 gasoline direct injection engine, with an EV rated range of 58km, and an automatic transmission.

The car showcases the new and strong design language from Hyundai, with a strong squared presence. It has a longer wheelbase than the previous model, and has three rows of seats. Two grades will be available. 

More details available from Hyundai dealers.

Revised Tucson on the way

Hyundai is reverting to physical controls for features such as climate and entertainment settings in the revised Tucson due in Europe next year, writes Brian Byrne.

These are part of a completely revised dashboard design for the model, which consistently features in the best-selling lists in the Irish market.

Externally there's to be a new grille styling with fewer lighting elements in the side stacks. 

Hyundai Kona review: Trish Whelan, Irish Car

Hyundai are on a major roll with their Ionic 5 and Ionic 6 electric cars being awarded World Car of the Year for the last two years and the Ionic 6 recently voted Irish Car of the Year for 2024. 

The model has previously sold over 12,000 units since launched in 2018. 

New Kona has moved up in size from the previous generation which was a small crossover aimed at families with small kiddies. 

The model has now evolved into a more stylish and larger SUV that is wider and longer than before so is aimed at larger families with teens who need more space providing them with more head, shoulder and leg room. Kona is positioned between the Bayon and the Tucson in the company’s crossover SUV line-up.  

The SUV’s sporty character is emphasised by its futuristic front design, rugged wheel arch cladding and high ground clearance. I especially liked the sharp lines at the sides that harmonise with the satin chrome moulding that travels through the belt line to swerve up to the rear spoiler, creating a contour that wraps around the entire car. The rear has a side-to-side light bar that makes the vehicle appear even wider. 

The cabin is now more stylish and a lot roomier. Comfy seats hold you in snugly and the driver’s has lumbar support. Front ones can be heated, along with the steering wheel. The dash is dominated by two 12.3-inch digital displays that merge together with beautiful graphics set against a black glass type background. The infotainment screen manages many of the car’s functions and its big suite of safety technology, and of course, Apple CarPlay/Android Auto. 

You can change the gauge style of the driver’s screen to suit your own preference: ‘Classic’ with a traditional style two-dial screen or ‘Simple’ that shows your current speed in digital numbers. 

The thick stalk gear shift control on my hybrid version was located on the lower right hand side of the steering wheel. Useful storage are a tray area below the front arm rest with adjustable cupholders, a decent glovebox with an overhead open area, and good door bins. You also get a wireless phone charger, 12v power socket and two small C-type USB ports front and rear. 

Boot capacity has grown by 30pc and is now at 466 litres. Rear seats fold flat in seconds and you don't have to remove the headrests. When folded, the boot space expands to 1300 litres. 

Drive modes are Eco, Sport and Snow. Buyers have a choice of petrol or hybrid/petrol variants. A full electric version is due this October - no spec or pricing yet. The entry-level is a 118bhp 1.0 turbocharged petrol unit. The hybrid’s 1.6 GDi direct injection petrol engine and the battery-powered electric motor work together to deliver a combined output of 141hp. The 43hp electric motor delivers high torque of 265Nm and high efficiency and also delivers really good acceleration when starting. It can do 0-100km/h in 10.9 seconds. 

Hyundai say their hybrids are well suited to urban owners who experience constant stop/start driving in towns and cities which helps with regenerative braking that charges the battery so you don’t have to. The energy stored in the battery powers the electric motor to help in acceleration, uphill driving, and low speed driving. 

A small crib was the absence of any blind spot alert on my car. I was able to get a really excellent driving position and enjoyed good all-round visibility and good feedback from the steering wheel. Parking assist features were all a great help when parking in tight spots. Hyundai engineers have worked well on road noise reduction resulting in a really quiet cabin. 

The engine is mated to a really smooth automatic transmission. For me, it is one of the best around contributing hugely to my driving enjoyment. The car switches seamlessly between its petrol engine and electric motor, but sometimes uses both. I managed to achieve a healthy 5.6L/100kms (50mpg) over a wide mix of roads. Road tax is €180. 

Trims are Signature, Elegance (my car), and N Line - the latter is more about looks than features added. New Kona is the first Hyundai to apply the new Connected Navigation Cockpit, and has Bluelink application as standard on all drivetrains. Also standard are LED lights front and rear, 16-inch alloy wheels, black side body moulding, tinted rear windows, a windscreen defog function, auto climate control, rear view camera, front and rear parking sensors, cruise control, a 12.3-inch touchscreen and 4-inch Cluster, a skinny spare wheel, and trailer package. 

My Elegance car had stunning 18-inch alloys, power folding mirrors, 12.3-inch touchscreen with Satellite Navigation and Media Centre, a supervision cluster, and black roof rails. Safety features included Hill Start Assist, Downhill Brake Control, Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist, Smart Cruise Control, Auto Hold, and Highway Driving Assistance launched with New Kona. 

Kona was awarded a maximum five star safety rating by Euro NCAP when tested in 2017. Competitors include the Toyota C-HR, Peugeot 2008 and Nissan Juke. 

Kona has a 5yr/unlimited kms warranty. 

Prices are from €30,895. My review car €36,045. 

 

Hyundai Kona hybrid review: Brian Byrne, Irish Car

This is the second new generation Kona I have reviewed since the car was launched here in the summer, writes Brian Byrne, with the reason for revisiting being the powertrain — the hybrid that runs this one is expected to be the biggest seller of the nameplate here.

Kona has grown. Longer, wider and taller than its predecessor, it comes with a longer wheelbase also and a substantially bigger boot capacity. Both of which last are likely to be much appreciated by the family buyer cohort. So will the style, which has much more visual impact than the first model, that in all honesty was kind of meh. The bonnet is high, with a streamlined but purposeful look. If the whole front looks rather EV, that's because the designers worked that version up first, adapting it later for the petrol and hybrid versions. 

The headlights styling is eye-catching and incorporated unusually in the very large wheel-arch protective moulding. There's further strength to the overall aesthetic along the profile view with more of the same protecting moulding in the style elements. There's a very clean rear and tailgate treatment, while the typography of the Kona name across the tailgate makes it exceptionally distinctive.

Inside, I appreciated the highly-integrated information displays. And the use of proper buttons, switches and knobs for the climate and volume controls is welcome — at least some of the message about over-reliance on distracting touch-screens seems to have been heard. Though technically a B-segment crossover, the car is roomy for those up front, and is also so for people in the back, providing virtually C-segment space. As somebody often challenged in getting in and out of cars easily because of their low driver door openings, I was very happy with the headroom in this one.

The review car had the 140hp 1.6 petrol-hybrid with 6-speed automatic powering the front wheels, as against the 120hp 1.0 petrol with manual gearbox in my previous Kona outing. There is also now a fully electric version which I'll get to in the new year. I found the hybrid, based on a gasoline direct injection motor along with a battery-motor drive, as smooth in operation as I could wish for even with the potential for a 6-speed dual-clutch auto to be a bit jerky. It wasn't, a credit to Hyundai's in-house transmission builders. Worth noting though is an acceleration figure of more than 11 seconds which isn't exactly trashing away from the traffic lights. (Maybe I'm just getting spoilt with the speed off the line of all the electrics I've been driving recently.)

The car has a full set of driver assists, though with very annoying associated beeps and bongs. Every time you start the car it takes ten swipe-or-tap actions on the screen to turn off the most irritating ones. The lane-keeping assist can be paused by a button on the steering wheel, but there's an 'attention' gizmo operated by a camera on the steering column that beeps angrily if you take your eyes off straight-ahead for even a couple of moments. I tried covering it with black tape so as to avoid delving through the menus every time I started the car, but then every kilometre or so it multiply beeped and flashed up a warning 'camera obscured'.

All that said, Kona was still my personal category choice in the recent Irish Car of the Year 2024 awards in association with Continental Tyres. It didn't win the category, but Hyundai Ireland are no doubt happy enough that their larger Ioniq 6 won both its category and the overall award.

PRICE: from €35,795. WHAT I LIKED: Surprising space in good style. 

Hyundai Ioniq 6 is 2024 Irish Car of the Year

Joe Rayfus, Chairman of the Motoring Media Association of Ireland (MMAI); Sarah Hayes of Hyundai Ireland; and Tom Dennigan of awards sponsor, Continental Tyres; with the winning car.

The Hyundai Ioniq 6 electric car is the 2024 Irish Car of the Year in association with Continental Tyres, writes Trish Whelan. The award was presented at a ceremony in the Conrad Hotel in Dublin, the result of voting by members of the Motoring Media Association of Ireland (MMAI), who hosted the event.

It is the fourth time in four straight years that an electric vehicle has been voted the Irish Car of the Year, the oldest and most reputable automotive award title in Ireland.

The MMAI brings together 35 of Ireland’s most experienced motoring journalists, who individually assess each new car model that is launched in Ireland each year. MMAI chairman Joe Rayfus congratulated Hyundai Ireland on taking the coveted award. "What more concrete proof can there be that the era of electric motoring is truly here?" he said, adding that electric models have gone fully mainstream and luxury.

Tom Dennigan of awards sponsor Continental Tyres described the Ioniq 6 as being at the forefront of automotive design. "I am sure that our Irish Car of the Year title will be a huge boost to the nameplate’s profile with Irish motorists who are considering making the move to electric.”

Earlier in the event, the Irish Car of the Year category winners were announced.

Irish Small/Compact Car of the Year: MG4 EV

Irish Small/Compact SUV of the Year: BYD Atto 3

Irish Medium SUV of the Year: Renault Austral

Irish Medium/Large Car of the Year: Hyundai IONIQ 6

Irish Large SUV/MPV of the Year: Nissan X-TRAIL

Irish Luxury Car of the Year: BMW i7/7 Series

Irish Performance Car of the Year: BMW M2

In the Irish Van of the Year awards programme for 2024, the Ford Ranger Raptor took the category award for Irish Commercial SUV of the Year, while the overall Irish Van of the Year 2024 in association with Continental Tyres award was given to the Mercedes-Benz Citan. 

Andrew Johnson and Gerard Rice of MG Motor Ireland with the award for the MG4 as Irish Small/Compact Car of the Year.

Sarah Hayes of Hyundai Ireland accepting the 2024 ICOTY award from Joe Rayfus MMAI and Tom Dennigan of Continental Tyres.

Jeanne McGann, Head of Marketing & Communications, Nissan Ireland, with company MD Seamus Morgan and the category prize for the Nissan X-Trail Irish Large SUV of the Year.

New Kona EV goes into production

Hyundai has begun production of the electric version of the new generation Kona, writes Brian Byrne. It is expected to be on sale in Ireland in October.

The car is being produced in its Czech Republic plant, and the company expects to produce 21,000 units of the EV there in the first year.

The petrol-only and petrol-hybrid versions of the latest Kona was launched here earlier this year.

Two versions of the electric Kona are being offered, with 377km and 514km ranges. No Irish prices are yet available. 

Hyundai Kona N-Line Review: Brian Byrne - Irish Car

As a brand, Hyundai is the fifth-biggest car company in the world by units sold. But that's not the whole picture, writes Brian Byrne. Put Hyundai and its sister Kia brand together and combined they are in second place with 6.8 million cars sold in 2022 behind the top maker Toyota's 10.5 million.

That might not seem to have much relevance for an Irish local review of the new generation Kona. But it does show the automotive muscle this South Korea carmaker has developed in a relatively short number of years. Particularly in the crossover and SUV spaces. Today it has, along with its Santa Fe large SUV, an Irish best seller in the compact Tucson, and Hyundai's own second-best selling model here, the B-segment Kona crossover. The new generation Kona has the potential to build the brand's strong performance here quite a distance higher.

The new Kona has grown. Longer, wider and taller than its predecessor, it comes with a longer wheelbase also and a substantially bigger boot capacity. Both of those last are likely to be much appreciated by the family buyer cohort. So will the style smarts. From a fairly run of the mill crossover design, the new Kona's designers have given it much more visual impact. Though sitting lower to the ground than its predecessor, this one looks serious business. The black and N-Line trimmings on my review car inject even more styling 'wow'.

The bonnet is high, with a streamlined but purposeful look that emphasises the Hyundai logo sitting on the curve above a full-width thin LED strip ... that last is only on the N-Line, by the way, but certainly adds something to the overall effect. If the whole front looks rather EV, that's because the designers worked that version up first, adapting it later for the petrol and hybrid versions. 

The headlights styling is eye-catching to say the least, making the most of the amazing flexibility that LED technology allows. Sculpting along the profile of the car adds further strength to the overall aesthetic, and the very clean rear and tailgate treatment was buzzed up in my review car with N-Line bumper and tailpipe elements. The typography of the Kona name across the tailgate is exceptionally distinctive.

N-Line also spiced up an already punchy interior design with thin red detailing, and red stitching on the upholstery. The driver feels well looked after with the highly-integrated information displays. And the use of proper buttons, switches and knobs for the climate and volume controls is both welcome and suggests to me that carmakers are finally hearing the message about over-reliance on touch-screens.

The car feels roomy for those up front, and is so in practice for people in the back, providing virtually C-segment space in a B-segment car. I was very happy with the headroom for myself getting into and exiting the car, as regular readers will know I'm often challenged here.

The new Kona comes at the moment with two powertrain options, 120hp 1.0 petrol with manual gearbox and 140hp 1.6 petrol-hybrid with automatic — both are 6-speed. The N-Line review car only comes in petrol-manual, which was another change from the majority automatics I seem to have been driving this year. Though the shift-prompts, which I never go with anyway, indicated changing that would keep things quiet as well as optimise economy, the engine characteristics encouraged higher revving through the gears. That did bring in some noise, but not unpleasantly so. At highway speeds in cruise mode the Kona hums along quite peacefully. The manual shifts are clean and precise.

I've briefly driven the hybrid, and like how it goes. There will be a fully electric new Kona in October. Hyundai Ireland expects that two-thirds of sales will be hybrid.

The car has a full set of driver assists, though as in the Ioniq 6 I reviewed recently, there's a surfeit of beeps and bongs associated with them. Every time you start the car it takes ten swipe-or-tap actions on the screen to turn the most irritating of them off. I'll say no more except that a current global clamour about these will likely force Hyundai-Kia to listen to yet another message.

Beyond that, this is yet another excellent addition to a portfolio of models that, taken all together, show how to go from being a maker of cheap and not always cheerful cars to being a highly respected quality brand. 

PRICE: From €30,885; review car €34,395. WHAT I LIKED: No longer run of the mill. 

Review: Hyundai Ionic 6 - Trish Whelan, Irish Car

Hyundai’s Ionic 5 all-electric crossover was always going to be a hard act to follow having gained the title of 2022 World Car of the Year, World Electric Vehicle of the Year and World Car Design of the Year. But Hyundai designers and engineers have pulled off a repeat performance with the Ioniq 6 to win the overall 2023 World Car of the Year and the other awards won by its ’5’ predecessor. 

Both Ioniq models are built on the same platform although both have different body styles. Chief competitors are the Tesla Model 3 and BMW i4. 

Hyundai people call the Ionic 6 four-door saloon ‘an electrified streamliner’. Yes, this is a sleek, low slung car that is a very welcome break from the avalanche of SUVs in the marketplace. A car for the senses. You can’t help but feel emotional looking at it with its sculpted shape, sensuous curves and sloping design. To my mind, there’s nothing quite like it for style on our roads, especially when viewed from the rear with its wing-inspired rear spoiler shaped with glass-like, transparent materials that highlight the LED signature lighting and which a neighbour said ‘makes the car look like a space ship’. A very stylish one at that and with one of the lowest drag-efficient figures around at 0.21. Good aerodynamics saves on energy. 

The interior takes full advantage of the car’s long 2,950mm wheelbase to provide a spacious cabin with very good legroom for those in the rear. The slope of the roof doesn’t interfere with headroom here as I tested the car with a 6ft 2ins guy seated there. He found getting in and out didn’t mean having to duck his low down too low. All seats are so comfortable you won’t want to leave them. My driver’s one provided good, but gentle, support right the way up my back so full marks there. It also had two memory seat settings. Front seats are 8-way adjustable and fold flat for a power nap with just one click. Ambient lighting, in this case in a gentle purple, was a welcome addition. 

The dash is dominated by an easy to use and stylish 12.3ins infotainment touchscreen with satellite navigation and an equally big driver’s instrumentation screen that displays speed and battery state of charge. Blind spot cover is well catered for with a red warning triangle on side mirrors and also on the rearward left and right-hand side views in the driver’s digital cluster. There’s a traditional knob for the volume control and other controls for heating and the air con. Storage areas include a deep pull out drawer type glovebox, a good area below the front armrest and a long tray below the flat of the central console. 

The car’s parking gizmos really took my fancy, especially the surround view monitor. Driving into a friend’s long driveway, the central screen showed the whole drive, garden and house before me, ditto when parking nose-in to a tight parking slot showing how close I was to a hedge in front and to a vehicle parked alongside. Power window switches are on the central console. A high-speed wireless charger port is located in the centre console and there are lots of USB ports front and rear, of varying sizes. Luggage space isn’t so great, though, at a tad over 400 litres but there’s another 45 litres of front cargo space under the bonnet. 

Grades include Signature, Elegance and Finesse. The spec for the Signature version includes 18-inch alloys, heated front seats, dual zone climate control, tinted windows, a heat pump, power tailgate, heated steering wheel, both 12.3ins screens, front and rear parking sensors, rear view camera, a tyre kit, hill start assist, and numerous top end safety features. Elegance trim adds a leather interior, auto flush door handles, the remote smart parking assist, a Bose Speaker system, park collision avoidance, heated rear seats, Head Up display among other items. 

While a 53kWh battery option with a claimed range of 429km is available, my car was the more powerful 77kWh battery with 614km of range and in the Elegance trim. When I returned the car after some long, and some short drives, it was still 50pc charged with 251kms left. Not bad at all. 

Ioniq 6 can charge from 10-80pc in under 20 minutes, or add 351km of range in 15 minutes. You can power any device or charge your tablet or computer up to 3.6 kW with the on-board 230V plug of the car’s Vehicle-to-Load technology. 

On the road, the car proved a lot of fun to drive - it has a 0-100km/h time of 5.1 secs and, for such a low car, I found there was all-round good visibility. Steering was a bit light for me at first, but I soon got used to it. My passenger remarked on how quiet the car drove - he drives a diesel - which added to our onboard comfort. Drive modes of Eco, Normal and Sport. I mostly used the Normal mode. 

A big niggle, though, were the bong warning sounds while driving, as is also the case in quite a few other new cars. If you exceed the speed limit, you get a four bong alert. A bong also alerts you to a speed limit change on the road and even picks up the reduced 50km/h speed limit difference of an off-ramp road while you are on the motorway, resulting in more bongs. Even if you turn off the system, it comes back on automatically next time you drive the car. Yes, it's a safety feature, but I found the bong alerts a distraction. 

Ionic 6 was awarded the highest possible 5-star safety rating from Euro NCAP scoring 97pc for adult occupant protection, 76pc for child occupant, 90pc for safety assist and 66pc for vulnerable road users cover. Ioniq 6 comes with a 5-Year Unlimited Mileage Warranty; the battery is warranty protected for 8 years or 160,000 whichever comes first.

 

New generation Kona arrives

The new generation Hyundai Kona has gone on sale in Ireland at a starting price €30,885 for the petrol version, writes Brian Byrne. A hybrid variant starts at €34,295.

A fully electric new Kona will arrive in October, but no pricing has been agreed yet.

Hyundai Ireland expect to sell 500 units of the Kona this year, a number limited by the allocation they have been given.

According to the Irish distributor's Stephen Gleeson, the ratio of sales of the two current versions will be a third  of petrol and two-thirds petrol-hybrid.

The engines are 120hp 1.0 for the petrol version and a 1.6 140hp plus electric motor for the hybrid. They come with 6-speed manual and 6-speed dual-clutch automatic transmissions respectively.

The new car is significantly bigger in most dimensions to the previous generation, especially with a longer wheelbase offering more interior room.

In comparison to competitors, Hyundai Ireland claims a much more comprehensive specification. There are three grades in petrol and two in hybrid.