2020 Hyundai Ioniq Gets Visual Tweaks And More Battery Range

The Hyundai Ioniq debuted in 2016 as the brand’s first vehicle powered exclusively by electrified powertrains. With three years under its belt, it hasn’t exactly been a breakout success story the way the second generation Toyota Prius was in the mid-2000s and has been significantly outsold by its platform-mate, the Kia Niro. Heading into year four, the Ioniq is getting a mid-cycle update with some exterior tweaks but more substantive changes inside and under the metal. 

The Ioniq, which is offered with hybrid, plug-in hybrid and battery electric propulsion options came to market as smaller car sales began a significant sag and high efficiency hybrids continued a prolonged plateau. More than any car since the second-generation Honda Insight in 2008, the Ioniq emulated many aspects of the Prius with almost identical dimensions and a similar aerodynamically efficient five-door hatchback profile. 

The visual changes for 2020 may go largely unnoticed by many casual observers but the tweaks to the front and rear fascias are certainly pleasant enough. The head and tail lamps are now all LED and the grille on hybrid variants is more stylized than before. 

Inside, the revisions will be much more noticeable with a new instrument panel featuring a much larger central display. The original had a choice of 7 or 8-inch touchscreens that were embedded in the dashboard. Like most recent products, the 2020 Ioniq has adopted the standalone tablet style display that is up higher and mounted closer to the driver’s line of sight so they don’t have to look away from the road as much. That display also grows to a standard 10.25-inch unit. A 7-inch multi-function display is also incorporated into the instrument cluster. 

On the hybrid and plug-in hybrid versions, the powertrain remains unchanged with a combined output of 139-hp from the 104-hp 1.6-liter Atkinson cycle four-cylinder and the electric motor. The hybrid keeps the 32-kW motor while the plug-in stays with its 45-kW unit that enables better electric-only operation. 

The battery electric variant does get a major upgrade though. Previously, the Ioniq Electric was one of the most affordable and energy efficient BEVs on the market with a starting price of just over $30,000 and EPA efficiency rating of 136 MPGe. Part of how that was achieved was by keeping weight down with a smaller, lighter battery with just 28-kWh of capacity. That was enough for just 124-miles of range.

With more and more BEVs coming to market with ranges well in excess of 200 miles, Hyundai felt is time for more. Thanks to new more power and energy dense lithium ion cells, the 2020 Ioniq Electric now has 38.3-kWh available, enough for 170 miles of driving range. The drive motor has also received an upgrade from 88-kW to 100-kW (134-hp). While that’s still well short of the 200-hp and 259-miles in the Kona EV, it should make daily commuting a bit more brisk and relieve a bit of potential range anxiety worry when weather conditions are less than ideal. 

The 2020 Ioniq also adds more standard and optional driver assist features. Forward collision alert, auto high-beams and driver attention monitor are standard. Blindspot monitors and adaptive cruise control, lane following and highway driving assist function are now available as extra cost options. The latter is similar in function to Nissan’s ProPilot Assist. 

No pricing updates have been announced yet, but the 2020 Ioniqs should be available before the end of 2019 and the plug-in models are only offered in California and the other nine states that follow its zero-emissions vehicle mandates.