Hyundai releases official photos of the Ioniq (new: video)
 

Hyundai Releases First Official IONIQ Images
Hyundai drops first official pics of Prius-rivaling IONIQ
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-W4Ueg2rm_d...rst-pics-9.jpg
Just like the second gen Insight did - this is more like what a 3rd gen Insight should have been.
Paint it red then I may wonder why it does not react to my remote.

Nonetheless, this is a practically sized car.
The plugin version will give the Volt a hard time.
The full electric version would fill a niche, there's no other full electric car in that size and shape yet.

At least in that picture it doesn't look bad.

I was reading about that last night, first to be released in Korea
"[Ioniq] would be rolled out in mid-January in Korea with a starting price of about 22.9 million won ($19,145), similar to the basic version of its Sonata mid-sized sedan."

And also talks about aerodynamics.

"Good aerodynamics were a major driving factor behind the design and Hyundai has already claimed the car will have a “class-leading” drag coefficient."

Some spy pics were also captured of the new Hyundai, completely undisguised. I won't post them, but here's a link:

Hyundai drops first official pics of Prius-rivaling IONIQ

I like the styling and the design.

I also think it's geeky cool that they showed the rear of the car in the first official photo, since that's the most important end from an aero efficiency standpoint.

Some specs:
http://ecomodder.com/forum/attachmen...8&d=1452181586

Shame about the smaller than Prius electric motor, I like my 470Nm's off the line :)

Also being a DCT this is likely going to be a Honda IMA style hybrid, it won't be able to move under EV power alone.

That was what Toyota keeps saying about the Insight.

My Insight moves under EV power alone just fine. The engine turns over all right but it uses no fuel and it has a special VTEC camshaft to stop the flow of gases so the cats won't be cooled by unburnt air.

As the IMA battery and motor are small it can just provide enough power to maintain speed in the city. But that still is pure EV usage.

The IMA system excels in killing CVT lag; one short burst of motor power to speed up the CVT drums provides instant acceleration.

I guess the Ioniq will use the motor to power or regenerate from one axle in the DCT gearbox while the engine powers the other axle, just like the new Fit Hybrid does.
But Honda suffered reliability problems with that DCT system so the new Fit Hybrid has not been sold outside of Japan yet.
I hope Hyundai does a better job with it.

I mean move a bit more literally, like moving it out of the driveway so I can get another car out. I think Hondas always accelerate from a stop with the ICE running? I did drive a HCH, I don't remember what it did.

If the IONIQ is like that, it's no deal for me personally, although if it has a tow rating that might make the decision difficult, no towing (legally) is a big draw back to the usefulness of the Prius for me.

It won't do EV mode below 15 km/h, which is when the CVT clutch slips because the revs would otherwise sink too low even in its lowest ratio.
Which is a pity, as in EV mode the motor could theoretically turn the engine over at very low RPM, no harm done.
But if you'd hit the accelerator then the clutch should start slipping to allow the engine to rev to be fired again, and that transition would probably not be smooth enough for Honda to deem it acceptable.

The plus is that it will do AutoStop (engine stall) rolling when braking very lightly below 15 km/h.
The clutch will fully disengage until you release the brake pedal which causes a restart.
I can make it coast for 50 meters or so, slowly advancing to a red light.
I may some day even add a brake light switch to engage that mode without braking at all for longer coasts :)

It does not use EV mode in reverse either.
It will use EV mode at high speeds and very light throttle (I used it even at 140 km/h) but that's just a lightly augmented coast.
10 kW is not enough to maintain speed at those speeds :)

In absolute terms fuel usage is still low at low speeds, even if it does not use EV mode. A stop and go traffic jam does hurt economy somewhat, but nowhere near what it would be with a non hybrid car.

I'm sure it will have a real EV mode.

The Sonata hybrid and PHEV both use a fixed ratio, stepped-gears transmission, and have EV only operation.

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More pics are out, plus a video:

http://ecomodder.com/forum/attachmen...1&d=1452796746

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R3PvFXykMN0