I can't believe it has been a year since I bought my Ioniq 5. I'm still getting used to the car, but it has served me well. The Ioniq 5 is a technological marvel compared to the 23 old Baja it replaced. When I drove the car home from the dealer last year, I remember being overwhelmed by the amount of information in front of me and all the controls I had to get used to.
The main difference is of course that this car is an EV. It's really not that different than any other car except for the fact that you need to charge it instead of filling it up with gas. This has a number of advantages especially since 99% of the time you can charge it at home instead of having to take it to a charging station. We installed a level 2 charger so can easily fully charge it overnight. An EV is mechanically a lot simpler than a normal car. It's basically a battery with an electric motor. There is no oil, radiator, or transmission fluid to change so the scheduled maintenance is just rotating the tires. This makes an EV a lot cheaper to maintain.
The main downside to owning an EV is range. It takes around 20mins to charge the Ioniq 5 at a DC fast charging station as opposed to just filling it up with gas in a few minutes. This gives people range anxiety. I will say that I had a little range anxiety the first few months I had the car but after a year I can say that range is not a problem at all.
We bought the Ioniq 5 to be our short distance car, which means we use it for any trip under 200 miles. I can say that even in the worst conditions, like cold weather (we drove this car to and from Paramus in 18-degree weather), I know this car can do at least 200 miles in any weather. The car is rated for 270 miles on average and I pretty sure we can get close to that if needed on a mild day (i.e. between 40-80 degrees). But the truth is that most of the trips with this car are between 20 and 80 miles so there is very few time where I need more than 100 miles in range.
The few times that I have taking this car long distances, like my recent overnight trip to Hawk Mountain, I was able to find a DC charger to top it off at night. For most of the places I plan to drive this car there are usually chargers close by.
The one change in behavior you have to make with an EV is to just do a little more planning. Before each trip you just have to remember to plug the car, so it has enough power to make the trip. This isn't a problem as I just have to remember to plug it in at night. It you are taking a long trip you just have to plan out where the chargers are. It's not a big deal.
I can also say, after a year of owning an EV, that that the upsides of owning an EV far, far out weight any downside. I get the equivalent of 90 miles a gallon so it's a lot cheaper to drive especially with the cost of gas these days. An EV doesn't have a transmission so there are no gears to shift there just a reduction gear between the electric motor and the wheels. This leads to quick linear acceleration. The Ioniq 5 that I have can go 0-60 in 4.5 seconds. I don't really drive it that fast, but it is nice to have the quick acceleration when needed to get on highways and get past other cars.
The Ioniq 5 has a good suspension and handles well. The suspension has a good balance between stiffness and comfort. It's not a sporty as my Baja was but it handles well enough to be fun to drive.
Driving the Ioniq 5 is a much different experience from my Baja. Cars have a lot more features to assist drivers now and the Ioniq 5 has a lot of them. All new cars now have collision avoidance features to automatically brake if you about to hit a car. The Ioniq 5 takes driver assistance to a new level with lane warning, lane keeping, adaptive cruise control, backup collision avoidance and many other features that make it a lot safer to drive. These warnings can be a little annoying at times but now that I'm used to them and trust them, I feel a lot more comfortable in the car.
Take the lane keeping/adaptive cruise feature. This is a simple self-driving feature. It's not as advanced as Tesla's full self-driving but when I'm on the highway the car basically drives itself and keeps itself in the lane and at the speed I set or as fast as the car in front of me if that car is going slower. This means I'm monitoring the car and not driving it. I find this reduces the stress of driving a little and makes me be more situationally aware. It's really useful in stop and go traffic as the car controls the gas and brake and I just watch.
After a year, I'm no longer overwhelmed by all the information on the screens in the car. In fact, now that I'm used to it, I really like the display and how it is organized. Some EVs, like the Tesla, just have a single iPad like screen in the middle of the dashboard with all the information on it. I don't like having to look at the middle of the dashboard for my speed or other information as that takes my eyes off the road. The Ioniq 5 has a regular dashboard display along with an infotainment screen integrated into one long linear display. It's easier to view than other cars which have two completely separate displays.
The different screens that can be displayed on the infotainment system are well organized once you get used to them and switching between screens can be done mostly from the well-organized buttons on the steering wheel. One of my favorite screens/features of the car is the parking assist view which shows you a 3D view of car.
This makes it much easier to see if you properly in a parking space or if you have enough clearance to get around a car or other obstacle. All the technology in the car does take some effort and time to learn. However, once you understand it you can see the benefits of using it. Just like smart TVs and streaming have revolutionized entertainment I believe that the advances of technology in cars will make them much safer and change how we interact with them. The Ioniq 5 is as much a computer as it is a car. I can actually talk to it and ask it to find an ice cream shop with in 10 miles of my current location and it will bring up a map to show me how to get there.
As I said at the top of the post the Ioniq 5 is a technological marvel and shows how far cars have come in the last 20 years. It's still a vehicle that gets you from point A to point B but it encompasses so much more now. The car has Android auto play and Apple car play so your smart phone is fully integrated into the car. This makes it easy to bring your life with you into the car. So your playlist, podcast, GPS, phone and most other apps are now part of the car.
After a year I can say that I'm very happy with the Ioniq 5 and it was the right car to buy for my lifestyle. With the 1-up bike rack it's a great vehicle to get me to and from my rides and a good car for our day-to-day driving. It's a much different car than my Baja but I expect it to be a fun drive for many years to come.
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