for the first time ever a production prototype of ionic 6 was spotted while being tested in the
streets of korea ionix 6 is the very first sedan from hyundai's ionix sub brand created exclusively
for electric cars and essentially a sedan version of the hugely successful ionic 5 crossover that
has just been launched and is expected to share most of the running gears and the high-tech
features that made the ionic 5 and the kia sibling ev6 so popular these include the state-of-the-art
800 volts charging architecture which is currently available in models such as porsche take and audi
e-tron gt that cost considerably more built into the hyundai group's new egmp dedicated ev platform
the 800 volts charging system currently enables charging to 80 in just 18 minutes or attain 62
miles or 100 kilometers of range in blazingly fast five minutes or less and what's more mind-boggling
is that the egmp's 800 volts architecture can theoretically charge an ev in as short as seven
minutes also with the advancement in the battery technology such as the next generation lithium ion
which would give your 30 more energy density would make current 300 mile range ev such as ionic 5 and
ionic 6 to become 400 mile range car in just a couple of years furthermore when the solid state
battery rolls out in 2025 you can expect the range to be doubled these technological advancements of
hyundai's new egmp-based electric vehicles are opening up a door to the new electric age by
offering charging speeds that are equivalent to refueling traditional internal combustion
engine cars making them rather obsolete and not surprisingly the upcoming sonata sized
ionic six electric family sedan may do just that when it's ready to be produced next year
shockingly it's rumored that hyundai's perennial best seller in the very model that single-handedly
rescued the fledgling korean company that suffered from a poor reputation from certain demise
a decade ago may meet its doom when the ionic 6 comes out yes hyundai sonata the model that
arguably changed the entire sedan segment when the 6th generation model was introduced with the
spectacular fluidic sculpture design concept that revolutionized the boring and boxy family sedan
market and set a new trend for sleek and stylish sedans of now may be discontinued after nearly 40
years and eighth generations however the end of sonata if it comes to be is not all ionic six's
fault with the ban on the pure ice cars expected to occur in 2030 the future of sonata was bleak in
the first place also the controversial styling of the latest eighth generation sonata and the
general decline of the popularity of sedans have seen a drop in sonata sales by a whopping 32.6
versus the previous year in 2020. currently it's reported that there are more than 7 000 unsold
sonata units in hyundai's inventory in midst of a frantic situation where most of the hyundai groups
new cars such as ionic 5 kia ev6 genesis gv70 are being weighted up for up to two years for delivery
so how is ionic 6 going to be different than sonata it's another not so popular sedan
after all what is hyundai doing to make sure that ionix 6 is not going to be met with the same fate
well first hyundai is counting on the pent-up demand for being the first affordable dedicated
electric family sedan although not popular as before but some family sedans such as toyota
camry and honda accord are still pulling decent numbers and it would be hyundai's hope that
the new sonata sized ionic 6 would absolve some of the sales from the japanese brands
by introducing a pure electric alternative earlier than anyone else as it appears that japanese are
late to the electric car game than the rest of the world second they are going to prevent the problem
of underwhelming styling of sonata by employing the very sleek and futuristic prophecy concept
of 2020 which has won all sorts of accolades including best of the best in 2020 red dot awards
design concept group and being named a finalist for 2020 international design excellence awards
the prophecy concept was designed to show the korean company's vision of what a sedan
should be in the coming electric automobile age however interestingly according to luke donker
wolk of bentley and lamborghini fame and now the head of hyundai global design the prophecy is
actually inspired by the kirby sedans of the 1930s adding to the design of the prophecy mr donkerwolk
stated that its skateboard platform will have a short overhang with the cow pushed forward to
maximize the cabin space and the prophecy will not be a traditional sedan but a futuristic one
ionic 6 features the next chapter of what hyundai calls the sensuous sportiness design language
and is to adopt the prophecy's proportions hyundai is calling this the ultimate automotive form built
on a new egmp ev architecture that was debuted on the ionic 5 crossover with its extended wheelbase
that measures 118 inches with short overhangs and expected to feature a boat tail line of
the prophecy concept in the case of the prophecy concept the sloping fastback roof and the rakish
shape had to be complemented by a spoiler in order to get the right aerodynamical values for such a
sleek vehicle with a low back end furthermore the propeller shaped wheels are also functional as
they extract the hot air from the brakes turning to the heavily camouflaged images of the ionic 6
prototype it is difficult to tell whether such a rear spoiler exists for the electric sedan
however we can look forward to ionic 6 adopting the variable rear spoiler that's expected to be
featured on the upcoming gv60 crossover which is a genesis version of the ionic 5. the prototype
also features simple looking disc type wheels that look very aerodynamic and purposeful but lacks the
dynamic appeal of the prophecy wheels what is visible is the parametric pixel themed lighting
that's most visible through the camouflage covering the rear lamps some pixels are also
visible in the front too underneath what appears to be traditional mfr headlamps and not full led
but this could be a lower trim model or could be a makeshift lamp just for this very early prototype
although being a very early prototype we can discern the overall body shape
and what we found to be the most disappointing is the lack of prophecies bulging fenders
maybe this can be fixed if and when the rumored 600 horsepower ionic 6n makes its introduction
but it's definitely a letdown it's as disappointing as the removal of the frameless
windows of the prophecy that gave the concept such a clean and futuristic look the traditional framed
windows and the protruding pillars combined with the clear indentation marking the outline of the
clamshell hood all take away from the sportiness of the original concept the prototype does make up
for it a bit with the inclusion of the digital mirror that was first seen in the ionic five
however the overall proportion is great with a very short hood and short rear deck
the trunk opening indication of the camouflage suggests a very deep opening that extends from
the d pillars all the way down to where a typical rear bumper should be and we look forward to a
very swoopy coupe like profile reminiscent of the original prophecy concept what we can also look
forward to our ionic 6's great overall performance and efficiency similar to ionic 5 the ionic 6 will
be offered with motor options that include the single motor rear-wheel drive set up with 215
horsepower and the dual motor all-wheel drive setup with 308 horsepower borrowing the running
gears from ionic 5 the performance of the ionic 6 is expected to be similar with 0 to 60 miles per
hour time of mid 7 seconds for the 2wd model and low 5 seconds for the awd model extremely fast for
a family sedan if you want more speed be on the lookout for the end version in the near future
with nearly 600 horsepower on tap similar to kia ev6's gt version that achieves 0 to 60 miles per
hour in just 3.5 seconds utilizing the european ionic 5's long range 73 kilowatt hour battery
the single motor rear wheel drive model is to achieve 300 miles or 483 kilometers in range
while the more powerful dual motor all-wheel drive model is expected to attain slightly fewer 270
miles or 430 kilometer when fully charged unlike ionic 5 which also offers a standard range model
with a battery size of 58 kilowatt hour hyundai will offer only the bigger battery for ionic 6.
this comes as no surprise as 90 of the pre-orders were long-range models for ionic 5 and ev6
as mentioned earlier the charging speed via 350 kilowatt ultra fast charger is 18 minutes which
is faster than the 80 000 porsche take ends 22.5 minutes for comparison similarly priced as ionic 6
tesla model 3 has a longer claimed range of 353 miles long range or 263 miles standard range
but requires 30 minutes to charge to 80 another technological advancement offered by ionix 6 is
its self-driving autonomy which hyundai claims to be higher than level 2 closer to level 3
exceeding that of tesla's autopilot which is considered level 2. this new technology that
hyundai calls hda2 or highway driving assist 2 will control speed and stay in lane and highway
driving conditions as well as changing to a crossroad entering a junction and merging onto the
main road automatically when drivers signal their intentions by using the indicator the full level
3 autonomy will be available through the vehicle's ota or over-the-air online update system when the
technology is ready in 2023 which will make the car nearly self-driving inside the sedan ionix
6 will feature a spacious interior aided by its long wheelbase and flat floors similar to ionic 5.
this will help to create the living room concept interior design similar to ionic 5 that features
zero gravity comfort seats and the panoramic vision roof the interior will be highlighted
by the panoramic dual lcd screen that incorporates two 12.3 inch displays for the drivers cluster and
the infotainment system and works in conjunction with the augmented reality hud navigation system
also look forward to the egmp signature v2l or vehicle to load feature that supplies 3.6 kilowatt
of electricity via 110 volts 220 volts outlets located inside and outside the vehicle to charge
anything from a laptop a whole house or even another ev when everything is said and done the
ion x6 will be a much more attractive choice than sonata for consumers looking for a family sedan
we are not certain if the sonata name will live on as a secondary name for ionic 6 or will be
utilized in some other way later down the road for example is a dedicated hybrid vehicle under the
hyundai nameplate maybe sonata will continue to carry on as it is and all the rumor is just here
say a sonata's departure will leave a huge gap in the ice lineup for hyundai also not nearly as many
as it did five or six years ago when sonata sold in excess of 200 000 units each year in the us
it still pulled in nearly 80 000 units last year and the sales are picking up this year with over
45 000 units sold in just five months predicted to surpass 100 000 units by the end of the year
so maybe all this talk of ionic 6 permanently replacing sonata may be premature however at
this moment it's almost certain that ionic 6 will be built in the same asan factory in korea where
sonata has been built for decades also for the us ionix 6 will likely be built on the sonata's
assembly line in montgomery alabama hyundai u.s plant whether this will be a permanent change is
uncertain the new ionic 6 electric sedan should be ready by the summer of 2022 and be available
for sale in late 2022 or early 2023 the estimated starting price is fifty thousand dollars which is
ten thousand dollars more than the lowest price standard range ionic five model but considering
that ionic six only comes as a long range it should represent a great deal especially when
compared to other 800 volts electric cars for the end of the video question we have two first what
do you think about the prototype ionic six does it meet your expectation secondly do you think
the ionix 6 should replace sonata or do you think there's still enough demand for ice front-wheel
drive family sedan please cast your vote and share your views by clicking on the link in the comment
section thanks for watching auto vision your best source for the fastest korean car news and rumors
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