2026 Hyundai IONIQ 9 SEL 4dr SUV AWD (electric DD cyber gray and 2 tone light gray interior. ) This an early review having only 478 miles on it.
Positives:
*Quiet ride: Very hushed inside with little road noise, tire noise or any squeaks or rattles. Smooth over all road bumps w/o lateral or vertical bobbing as some professionals have reported. I did notice mine has 20' Kumho's vs 21s on higher trims that were reviewed by most pros.
*Awesome drivetrain: Adaptive cruise is very precise and lane centering is steady with no weaving. It will even change lanes which I was surprised it did despite not being a hands off system. Aerodynamics are yielding an average of 3.2mi/kw since taking ownership. I drive 0-10 MPH over speed limits and using ECO mode or 1 pedal driving when alone but switch to none or level 1 when others in the car to increase smoothness. My wife prefers zero regen and it glides on so much that I sometimes wonder if I should let it stay that way. Normal and sport mode really boosts accelerator response and sport definitely tightens the steering response.
*Luxury comfort: 1st row comfort outstanding for almost all body types. Super soft headrest is a welcome surprise. Kia EV9 has a mesh headrest equally soft and comfortable. I enjoy having some buttons for climate and media features but enjoy that the screen or voice commands can do just about anything the buttons do. EV9 has similar layout and was a close comparison. Tesla's all screen modality does not work for me but for others it is fantastic - to each their own. 2nd row bench again is what works for my family as we are numerous and have grown adult children. Foot rests in higher trims seem small and unlikely to allow full leg extension as it would squeeze legs against the set in front. and gimmicky except for small kids; mine are all adults owning their own cars. Sliding the seat a bit forward gives decent 3rd row space, but my wife and I typically keep 3rd row down for extra storage.
*Other likes: Hidden rear wiper increases vision; Headlights shine nicely at night; rear pixelation and lights across the hatch, frunk to keep charging cables and adapters. I have home charger and as this is the 2nd EV ['21 ID4 Pro S] we easily swap cars to use it. NACS = CCS1 Adaptor works flawlessly and app is fantastic, giving current charge, time to full, charge rate and more. Have not yet used a public charger but Hyundai has an app that apparently across platforms.
Areas to improve:
Harmon Kardon stereo not very base-y so it requires a bass boost done manually. The gray interior scuffs easily. Kumho tires not rated as high as Hankooks which come on higher trims but these are very quiet. Dealers had no hitch available and other places do not yet list the Ioniq 9 so will need to wait for the market to catch up. 303 HP is good but not as powerful as upper trims, EV9 GT or Caddy Vistiq. Tesla and Rivian are on another tier relative to power. EV9 clearly more boxy and traditional shape so that is a preference but I agree it is also a beautiful car. Ioniq 9 could use adaptive dampers but maybe that will be a Genesis option. A household power outlet seems like a miss - we bought a converter to plug into the 12 volt outlet - who uses these old 'cigarette lighter' outlets anymore! A second wireless charger would also help.
Final thoughts on higher trims: Higher HP is a matter of taste but an excellent value as it loses very few range miles. It's the other features that lose value: they have memory seats which I would have liked but don't need as I expect to be the main driver. Window shades, never get used. Rear seat ventilation rarely needed as typically just 1-2 people in it. Mechanical 2nd and 3rd row very slow - I prefer doing it manually and get extra tilt feature on passenger side. We prefer bench seat vs losing it to captains chairs. Comfort is the same. We are tall and prefer to not have moon/sun roof to add more head room.…
