Hyundai's More Affordable IONIQ 5 With a 58 kWh Battery is a Bargain Compared to Tesla's Model Y

author: Manish Kharinta   

Hyundai's IONIQ 5 SUV equipped with a 58 kWh battery is priced $19,290 less than Tesla's Long Range Model Y.

Just a few months after its launch, the new fully-electric IONIQ 5 SUV from Hyundai is already stirring up plenty of excitement in the electric vehicle and autonomous driving space.

The South Korean automaker and its autonomous driving partner Motional recently revealed the next generation IONIQ 5 robotaxi, which the company's claim will offer SAE level 4 autonomous driving capability, meaning that its can operate without human oversight.

Hyundai also announced that in addition to the IONIQ 5 equipped with a 77.4 kWh battery, the company will introduce a more affordable, smaller battery version of its new EV in the U.S.  The lower priced variant of the ICONIQ 5 will come with a 58 kWh battery pack and will make its stateside debut in spring 2022. 

With its smaller battery capacity, the base RWD variant of IONIQ 5 will offer an EPA estimated range of 220 miles. The battery will send the power to a 125 kWh electric motor, which sits atop the rear axle and powers the rear wheels. 

The entry-level IONIQ 5 model will retail for $39,700 (excluding the $1,225 destination charge which bumps the price to $40,925). The electric SUV is also eligible for the $7,500 federal tax credit, which will further discounts its price to $33,425.

As a result of this offering, the new Hyundai IONIQ 5 is one of the least expensive offerings in the electric SUV/crossover segment. The EV undercuts the prices of most competitively priced rivals.  

At $33,665, the base variant of Kia Niro EV from Hyundai's sister company is the only offering in the segment which even comes close to matching the price of IONIQ 5.

The Volkswagen ID.4 SUV for example, which starts at $40,760, is good for 260 miles of range from its 82 kWh battery pack. This means that drivers of the VW ID.4 will only get 40 miles of additional range vs the 58.2 kWh battery version of the IONIQ 5. It is also worth noting that Volkswagen does not offer a more affordable, entry-level trim for the ID.4. 

When compared to Tesla's Model Y, the IONIQ 5 looks like an even bigger bargain. Since the Hyundai IONIQ 5 SE Standard Range RWD is eligible for the federal tax credit, the effective price of this model is just $32,220. 

This makes it $26,770 cheaper than the Long Range all-wheel-drive variant of Tesla Model Y, which costs $58,900. The Model Y is also not eligible for the $7,500 tax credit since Tesla already passed the 200,000 vehicle limit to qualify for it. 

The 2022 Hyundai IONIQ 5 SE with the 77.4 kWh battery offers 303 miles of range, which is only 16 miles less than the 318 miles range estimate for the Tesla Model Y Long Range AWD version.

So EV shoppers thinking about a Tesla Model Y might want to put the IONIQ 5 on their list to save some money.

Manish Kharinta

Manish Kharinta is a automotive writer based in the Los Angeles area. He has worked for automotive industry websites TheSmokingClutch.com, CarDekho.com and CarBikeindia.com. His experience ranges from covering auto shows, to car reviews and breaking automotive news. Manish aims to bring forth his unique perspective on automotive design and technological innovations in the automotive industry.