Yahoo Autos Hyundai's next electric car, the 2022 Ioniq 5, is like the 1980s on wheels
Unveiled at the 2019 Frankfurt Motor Show, back when there was a Frankfurt show to introduce cars at, the retro-inspired Hyundai 45 concept is well on its way to becoming a production model. It will wear the Ioniq 5 nameplate when it lands in showrooms, and preview images confirm its overall design won't stray far from the concept's.
Hyundai explained that the 45 concept was loosely inspired by the Giorgetto Giugiaro-designed 1974 Pony, the first car it developed in-house, but the pixel-shaped lights on both ends and the flat, straight surfaces send us straight back to the 1980s. It's a look you'll either love or hate, and one that breaks all ties with current members of the Hyundai range. Stylists pointed out that the clamshell hood minimizes panel gaps, and that the 20-inch wheels are the largest they have ever put on one of the South Korean company's electric cars.
Although the preview images keep the 5's overall proportions hidden, earlier spy shots taken in Germany confirm that the model will arrive as a compact hatchback with an unusually long wheelbase and correspondingly short overhangs on both ends. It's also a little bit taller than, say, the Elantra GT, which likely reflects an attempt to inject some crossover DNA into the overall design while masking the bulky battery stuffed under the cabin.
