Consumers have been slow to accept electric cars (EVs) as a viable alternative to the petrol or diesel-engined vehicles they're currently driving. Even with consumer resistance broken down by powerful, practical prestige machines from Tesla, the price has remained a stumbling block.
For many consumers, any price premium for an EV will be too much. When consumers note that the Hyundai IONIQ Electric is more than double the price of a base-grade Hyundai i30 they stagger back in horror like Doc Brown contemplating the procurement of enough plutonium to generate 21 gigawatts of power.
Never mind that the IONIQ is much cheaper to run and is fitted as standard with much more equipment. But how does the IONIQ stack up against its newest rival, the second generation Nissan LEAF?
Time to find out...
It's tempting to believe that small SUVs like the Hyundai Kona Electric will be the ice-breaker, the tipping point, for many prospective EV buyers.
While battery technology remains expensive and SUVs are so popular in this country, small passenger EVs like the Hyundai IONIQ and Nissan LEAF will struggle for sales.
But they are here, they are cheaper than the Kona Electric – at just under $50,000 each – and there is still a substantial market for small cars in Australia. The LEAF and the IONIQ are the only two EVs in the VFACTS small-car segment and they're very close in price and specification.
Both the Hyundai IONIQ Electric and the Nissan LEAF promote their electric-vehicle credentials through their styling, but Hyundai offers buyers an each-way bet in the form of a black grille for the IONIQ – a sop to those who don't want to make a 'green' statement by driving a car that looks like an EV.
So the two EVs do appeal to buyers with an 'early-adopter' mentality, but these cars are not as 'left-field' as earlier EVs like the Mitsubishi i-MiEV, as one extreme example.
The sort of buyers who will cross-shop the IONIQ and the LEAF may live in Adam Bandt's federal electorate of Melbourne. They are eco-focused, but want an affordable, practical car that is small enough for inner-urban driving (and parking). Maybe they're young professionals, or small families, for whom SUVs – even an electric SUV – is the very symbol of profligate environmental vandalism.
At $48,990 (plus on-road costs) in stock form, the Hyundai IONIQ Electric costs precisely $1000 less than the Nissan LEAF ($49,990 plus ORCs).
Both cars came with optional metallic paint, adding $495 to the purchase price of the IONIQ and $595 for the LEAF. That takes the LEAF over $50,000, which could be a psychological barrier for many aspiring buyers, whereas the IONIQ remains on the low side of that threshold.
For the most part, the LEAF is better equipped – particularly where driver-assist technology is concerned – although the IONIQ has an extra audio speaker and a seventh airbag (six for the LEAF). Both cars are offered with a five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty, and the battery warranty covers against reduced charging capacity for eight years or 200,000km. For the IONIQ, the battery warranty runs for eight years or 160,000km.
The principal traits separating these two cars were plain for all to witness within about 20 seconds of driving. The Nissan LEAF has been designed and engineered for comfort, which is particularly evident in its compliant ride and very light steering. Yet the LEAF also provides safe roadholding and acceptable steering response.
In contrast, the Hyundai IONIQ Electric is more focused on driving dynamics. The spring and damper rates are firmer for better body control and cornering, and the steering is still light, but does deliver better feel in corners and in a straight line. It's the EV you would drive a long distance without feeling fatigued at the end of the journey – assuming the battery charge held up long enough.
In keeping with its upmarket ambience, the LEAF came with very comfortable seats front and rear – featuring raised 'stadium' seating for the kids – plus privacy glass and nice little details like the chrome door handles. It's a very quiet car at speed and the various trim materials inside are – frankly – much nicer than the IONIQ's. And the LEAF has a deeper boot than the IONIQ.
But the IONIQ was the better drive, and it was also the more efficient package. Over the course of a 70km test loop, the lower-powered (88kW) IONIQ was consuming power at the rate of 15.5kWh/100km, versus 16.5 for the LEAF over the same route.
The IONIQ features a 'driver-only' setting for the climate control system, further reducing energy loss on those occasions when the driver is the car's only occupant. That no doubt helps the Hyundai's efficient power consumption.
On a longer run, we're certain that the energy-efficiency gap in the IONIQ's favour would have widened further. Yet the lower power of the Hyundai didn't translate to reduced driveability, thanks in part to the Hyundai's comparable torque (295Nm versus 320 for the LEAF) and the significantly lower tare mass – 1475kg for the IONIQ and 1594kg for the LEAF.
While the IONIQ looks a little bland in comparison with the LEAF, it's a better design in terms of its ergonomics. Other than buttons in lieu of a conventional lever for drive selection, there's nothing in the cabin of the IONIQ that will be hard to fathom.
All the controls are located where you would expect them in any passenger car from Japan or South Korea and the IONIQ has reach-adjustable steering and a better driving position as a consequence. Instrumentation, including the infotainment system in the centre fascia, and controls are laid out more cohesively than the LEAF's counterparts.
There are adjustable vents in the rear, and the Hyundai's lower beltline makes it easy for kids to look out at the sights, despite the IONIQ lacking the LEAF's stadium seating.
As a packaging exercise, the IONIQ's rear seats don't fold flat, but they do fold flush with the boot floor for loading longer and heavier items all the way through. The boot itself lacks the LEAF's depth, but is wider and longer, making it easier and faster to load larger items.
Both cars have been awarded five stars for safety by ANCAP, although the IONIQ was tested in 2016 and the LEAF was tested more recently, just last year. Based on the individual point scores by category – adult occupant protection, child occupant protection, pedestrian protection and safety assist – the LEAF is marginally safer than the IONIQ.
It's always a polarising viewpoint, but why must the LEAF have its indicator stalk on the left side of the column? Roll on BREXIT, if only to put an end to this sort of silliness. That is symptomatic of the LEAF's ergonomic issues. They're not major concerns, but they are placed in context by the sensible design of the IONIQ.
The LEAF's start (power) button is located in the centre fascia/centre console bin and the e-Pedal button (for more braking energy recovery) is located in the centre console – slightly too far from the driver for finding it quickly without groping around for it. To select Drive or Reverse the selector works through a sort of 'half-H' pattern that's not completely unfamiliar to Toyota Prius owners, but is slightly quirky for everyone else.
There was no reach adjustment for the steering and another aspect of the LEAF's controls not to our liking was the foot-operated parking brake, which wasn't a particularly good example of the type either.
The tablet display for the infotainment systems looked like a tacked-on afterthought and reflected glare quite badly at times, rendering it unusable.
There were no adjustable vents for the occupants of the rear seat. Both cars suffered from rear-seat headroom deficiency and the LEAF's roofline hangs a little low for adults climbing in. The IONIQ's headroom in the rear was worse than the LEAF's, and the Nissan felt slightly roomier there.
While the LEAF had a deeper boot than the IONIQ, it was shorter and there was a step between the rear-squabs folded down and the boot floor. Any large box-like object loaded in the boot would need to be perched with one end on the step and the other end resting on the boot floor.
On the road, the LEAF's steering lacked feel and was frequently in need of micro-correction on-centre. The IONIQ's Michelin tyres issued more noise than the LEAF's Goodyears over coarse-chip bitumen.
Viewed subjectively, some buyers will prefer the Nissan LEAF for its richer presentation and its obvious comfort-related accoutrements. Conversely, some prospective buyers will be drawn to the Hyundai IONIQ Electric for its conventional design.
For the two reviewers taking part in this comparison, the winner is the Hyundai.
While there was nothing particularly objectionable about the LEAF, the IONIQ struck us as the car that could convinces buyers that EVs can go mainstream – without the need to make many concessions. It drives nicely, its efficiency is undeniable and its ease of use usurps the LEAF's luxury features in this contest.
There's just one reason to hold off buying the IONIQ, however. Hyundai plans to introduce an upgraded model later this year – and that vehicle has a 39kW/h battery rather than the 28kWh battery of the current model. More range, in other words.