Hyundai To Launch i10 Electric Vehicle In 2010

As our own Viknesh Vijayenthiran mentioned on Friday, Hyundai has announced that it will launch a mass-market electric vehicle in the second half of 2010. The vehicle will be a modified version of the existing Hyundai i10 minicar and will appear first in the company's home country of South Korea. A prototype is expected to debut at the Frankfurt Motor Show next week.

The Hyundai i10 EV will be powered by a 16 kWh lithium-ion battery (courtesy of LG) feeding a 49 kWh/65 hp electric motor. The hatchback's range should clock in at a respectable 100 miles, and its top speed will be around 80 mph.

Perhaps the most interesting fact about the Hyundai i10 EV is its ability to handle two charging cycles: the standard 220 V found in many households around the globe, and a significantly stronger, more industrial 415 V current. Not surprisingly, the 415 V offers a much faster re-charge: on the 220 V plug, a full charge of the battery will take about five hours, but on the 415 V, the battery can hit 85% of capacity in 15 minutes. That's pretty exciting -- though until the 415 V infrastructure improves, it does nothing to alleviate consumers' range anxiety.

Hyundai i10 electric vehicleEnlarge Photo As our own Viknesh Vijayenthiran mentioned on Friday, Hyundai has announced that it will launch a mass-market electric vehicle in the second half of 2010. The vehicle will be a modified version of the existing Hyundai i10 minicar and will appear first in the company's home country of South Korea. A prototype is expected to debut at the Frankfurt Motor Show next week. The Hyundai i10 EV will be powered by a 16 kWh lithium-ion battery (courtesy of LG) feeding a 49 kWh/65 hp electric motor. The hatchback's range should clock in at a respectable 100 miles, and its top speed will be around 80 mph. Perhaps the most interesting fact about the Hyundai i10 EV is its ability to handle two charging cycles: the standard 220 V found in many households around the globe, and a significantly stronger, more industrial 415 V current. Not surprisingly, the 415 V offers a much faster re-charge: on the 220 V plug, a full charge of the battery will take about five hours, but on the 415 V, the battery can hit 85% of capacity in 15 minutes. That's pretty exciting -- though until the 415 V infrastructure improves, it does nothing to alleviate consumers' range anxiety. [Carscoop]

By fun #1, Posted: 9/8/2009

Good for Hyundai, so now how do we get 415v in the garage?
By AutoBoy #2, Posted: 9/8/2009

this one is really interesting. understand using the 415 V current is not realistic for consumers at this point, happy to see OE's are starting to put in options that may push a discussion around changing/upgrades/next gen for existing infrastructure.
by John Voelcker #3, Posted: 9/8/2009

Seems like everyone's doing it; Honda is the latest subject of rumors that they'll launch a small EV.
I suspect no one expected the Mitsubishi i-MiEV to be quite as well received as it has been:
http://www.greencarreports.com/blog/1021549_drive-report-2010-mitsubishi-i-miev-electric-car
and
http://www.greencarreports.com/blog/1020297_mitsubishis-smash-success-spawns-5-more-electric-vehicles
By Bob Ryan #4, Posted: 9/8/2009

How does this compare to the other electric cars that are in the US?
By Fizz #5, Posted: 9/8/2009

Interesting that suddenly so many automakers are offering electric vehicles. The best part is the fact it can handle a 220 V which is so accessible. It is a funny looking car, but who cares?
by Nelson Ireson #6, Posted: 9/8/2009

Looks like Nissan's LEAF has a competitor on its hands, though the LEAF does turn out about twice as much power. Maybe the Hyundai will be a lot cheaper.
By Nebraska #7, Posted: 9/8/2009

we are getting closer and closer to the tipping point -- when every car makes electric cars and its less of a separate line on a production schedule and more just "how we make some cars."
by Bengt Halvorson #8, Posted: 9/8/2009

I'm still not convinced about range anxiety being such a significant issue already. Though I suppose it could be by the time many of these EVs arrive if the media keeps suggesting it. 100 miles should be plenty for most commuters, and if you have a two-hour roundtrip commute on the Interstate you probably wouldn't do it in a non-range-extended minicar anyway.
By carguy #9, Posted: 9/8/2009

wont it all come down to cost? the more car manufacturers will produce these cars , the sooner price will come down. Once this happens no question cost will come down..
By jim b. #10, Posted: 9/8/2009

Hyundai i10 EV is its ability to handle two charging... - sounds good.