Inspired by 'Doctor Who,' Hyundai's Ioniq 9 EV travels though time

Hyundai Ioniq 9 during the vehicle's media preview event held in Los Angeles in November. [CHO YONG-JUN]

Hyundai Motor has unveiled its flagship EV, the Ioniq 9 — a three-row SUV with a design inspired by “Doctor Who” that also taps into Korean heritage.

“We wanted to create the Ioniq 9 as something that’s less daunting; it doesn’t look and feel so huge on the outside, but when you get inside, you realize it is big,” Head of Hyundai Global Design Center and Hyundai Motor Group Vice President Simon Loasby told the Korea JoongAng Daily during a media preview event for the Ioniq 9 held in Los Angeles in November.

The Ioniq 9 was officially unveiled at the premier event held in Los Angeles, California on Thursday and will headline the Hyundai Motor booth at the upcoming LA Auto Show. It will first hit the Korean market in early 2025 before launching in other regions including the United States and Europe.

While not boxy in its exterior design like the Ioniq 5, the Ioniq 9 features similar pixel-inspired headlamps that generated excitement to many for a perceived 80s retro vibe. The British designer, however, said the motif dates back further than that.

“You can say that it’s a 600-year-old design language,” Loasby said, explaining that the pixelated concept can be dated back to the creation of hangul as an alphabet that features squared-off shapes.

“But it doesn’t look old-fashioned or historical," he added.

Hyundai Ioniq 9 during the vehicle's media preview event held in Los Angeles in November. [CHO YONG-JUN]

The squared-off pixel design, which is also shared by the company’s hydrogen-powered concept SUV, the Initium, appeals to all generations, according to the head designer. Loasby said while he had his first encounter with pixels in the 70s video game Pong, the younger generation links the design language to their smartphones or games like Roblox and Minecraft.

Another Korean-heritage inspired design was the car’s "hanbok line": a single diagonal crease running down the second-row door panel that was inspired by the diagonal collar line seen on typical versions of the traditional Korean garment.

The British designer was also inspired by Tardis — a fictional time machine from the renowned BBC TV series “Doctor Who” — in the Ioniq 9 concept: bigger on the inside than it is on the outside.

This is because the Ioniq 9 — despite the likely classification of mid-size SUV in the United States — is Hyundai's largest SUV so far that will be perceived as a big vehicle in both Korea and In Europe. While not considered “huge” in the United States, it was designed as a “big car for big families and a big amount of space” around the world, according to Loasby.

Hyundai Ioniq 9 during the vehicle's media preview event held in Los Angeles in November. [CHO YONG-JUN]

The Ioniq 9 is sized at 5,060 millimeters (199 inches) in length, 1,980 millimeters in width and boasts a wheelbase of over 3 meters at 3,130 millimeters, larger than the three-row petrol and diesel-powered SUV Palisade and Kia’s three-row SUV EV9.

The car is also equipped with a 110.3 kilowatt-hour next-generation battery from SK On, giving it an estimated range of 532 kilometers (330 miles) for the rear-wheel drive model.

Hyundai Ioniq 9 during the vehicle's media preview event held in Los Angeles in November. [CHO YONG-JUN]

And the Ioniq 9, indeed, felt roomy on the inside, with six or seven seats available depending on the spec. The six-seater version, which features independent rear seats, felt particularly comfortable as the top-of-the-line Caligraphy trim offers electronically controlled second-row seats that provide seat massaging, leg support, generous recline and are heated and ventilated.

Hyundai Ioniq 9 during the vehicle's media preview event held in Los Angeles in November. [CHO YONG-JUN]

The third-row seats also felt adequate for most adults, offering fairly decent legroom for passengers under 5 foot 11 and roomy headroom for most.

Both the second and third rows feature cup holders and USB-C charging of up to 100 watts, enough to fast-charge a MacBook.

Hyundai Ioniq 9 during the vehicle's media preview event held in Los Angeles in November. [CHO YONG-JUN]

Similar to the EV9, the Ioniq 9 has optional rotating second-row seats, providing better accessibility when installing booster seats. The second-row seats can also be rotated 180 degrees to face the third row, but the lack of legroom in the area between the rows means that adults will have to try extra hard to share the space.

The Ioniq 9 features a 12.3-inch cluster and infotainment screen, with a steering wheel resembling the current generation of the Grandeur sedan, with tactile buttons.

The car is packed with tactile physical buttons, from parking camera buttons, drive mode toggle, and physical volume and HVAC knobs, while precise climate controls, such as seat ventilation and fan controls, are integrated into a touch display.

Hyundai Ioniq 9 during the vehicle's media preview event held in Los Angeles in November. [CHO YONG-JUN]

The Ioniq 9 is equipped with the top safety and technology features seen on other Hyundai models, including lane assist, Highway Driver's Assitance 2 and many collision assist functions. Hyundai Motor did not comment on the Highway Driving Pilot level-3 self-driving option that it initially tried to offer with the EV9 but quickly scrapped.

What can be a bit worrying is that the Ioniq 9 is expected to arrive with on-demand functionalities that allow owners to purchase additional features after buying the car. Remote and automatic parking, cluster and infotainment themes and other features will be sold through Hyundai. The company did not, however, specify the pricing or whether the features will be subscription-based.

Hyundai Ioniq 9 during the vehicle's media preview event held in Los Angeles in November. [CHO YONG-JUN]

Other than the Kia EV9, based on the same platform, the Ioniq 9 will launch with no direct competitors, as it is bigger than Tesla's Model Y, but is estimated to be priced lower than larger EV SUVs like the Tesla Model X, Rivian R1S and the Mercedes-Benz EQS.