All hail the new mpg king? We test the 2017 Hyundai Ioniq Hybrid
Cars
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This is the 2017 Hyundai Ioniq Hybrid.
The car that took on Toyota for the title of most fuel efficient car without a plug and won.
With its combined estimate of 58 miles per gallon, it has effectively out Priused the Prius.
But I know what you're wondering right now.
Is it any good?
Well, there's only one way to find out.
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Now the Ioniq name refers to three electrified vehicles that share the same hatchback body, but have slightly different powertrains.
So you got the Ioniq electric, there's the plug-in hybrid version coming later this year, and there's this, the standard Ioniq hybrid.
Under the hood, you've got a 1.6 liter Atkinson cycle gasoline engine that's paired with a 32 kilowatt electric motor, and a battery pack.
Total system output, stated at 139 horsepower and a pretty respectable one hundred 195 count beat of tort.
Here's where things get interesting.
The ionic puts that power to the front wheels via a six feet dual clutch transmission which is different from the more conventional continuously variable transmission that we normally see in hybrids.
That means that on the road, the ionic feels more like a conventional gasoline car but Before you get too excited about sporty aspirations, I will say that, though we have a sport mode, we don't have pedal shifters.
So you can't take advantage of the DCT in that capacity.
Also, at really low speeds, like when you're creeping through stop and go traffic, it just feels like a very hesitant transmission, which is weird, because that's an area where most electrified vehicles just.
Tend to excel.
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At the blue trim level the EPA estimates the Ionic's good for 58 combined MPG which is better than the previous hybrid king the Toyota Prius Eco's 56 mile per gallon estimate.
However, this isn't an Ioniq Blue.
You see, the FEL and Limited trim levels actually step down to 55 miles per gallon combined because they've got more equipment on board and thus are heavier vehicles.
However, even then, we're still doing better than the non Eco Prius' 52 mile per gallon estimate, so at least on paper across the board, the Ioniq looks like the more efficient car.
On the road, I'm averaging In between 52 and 54 miles per gallon here, which is in line with the EPA's estimates, but I have to point out that when I tested the Prius with very similar driving conditions and very similar routes, I ended up averaging almost 60 miles per gallon when I tested it last.
What does that tell you?
Well, not a whole lot, other than that your miles may vary.
And it will, especially if you're dealing with hybrids.
But mostly I think it just means that the Prius' power train is better lined up with my driving style and my driving habits.
Now every Ioniq features the same dashboard tech.
It's a Hyundai blue link unit that features standard Android auto and Apple car play and all of the features that we like to see at this price point.
It's a very responsive head unit Unit with crisply window graphics.
We'll talk more about it in different video but other say for now that it stays out of its own way when being operated.
And it stays out of my way while driving and that's a high praise.
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Driver A technology ranges from the very basic like a standard backup camera to optional features like blind spot monitoring to the very advanced features like that of a cruise control, automatic autonomous breaking and laying the partial warnings.
So, is the ionic good?
Yea, it is better than the Prius.
Is it a Prius Killer?
Probably not.
But I think it's a more than worthy rival.
Actually, I think ironically I prefer driving the Prius, because on the road it felt like a more powerful vehicle, plus the way it gives feedback means that it translated into better real world fuel economy for me However I do really like this Ionic but for very different reasons, it's a less expensive car than the Prius, it's about as efficient, it's got much better dashboard tech that makes it easier to live with on a dat-to-day basis, plus it just feels more like a regular car when you're driving it around, and I think that counts for a whole lot.
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The 2017 Hyundai Ioniq hybrid starts around 22,200 bucks for the entry level blue model which is also the most fuel efficient one for those of you pinching pennies.
However this limited model trades a few MPGs for a bit of creature comfort and tops out the range at around $30,000 fully loaded.
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