Hyundai Motor will begin preorders on the 16th of this month for ELEXIO (EO 羿欧), the first dedicated electric vehicle it is unveiling to regain its foothold in the Chinese market. Built in China, ELEXIO will be sold there first, and the company will consider exporting it later to other regions such as Australia.
ELEXIO is a compact SUV built on Hyundai Motor Group's dedicated EV platform, E-GMP. Its size is similar to the Kia EV5 and Sportage. It has a driving range of over 700 km on a single charge and comes equipped with various advanced driving and safety assistance features.
Beijing Hyundai (BHMC), Hyundai Motor's Chinese joint venture, is refocusing on the Chinese market with electric vehicles at the forefront. Hyundai Motor's sales in China have been sluggish for several years, driving its market share down to around 1% and even sparking speculation about a withdrawal.
Beijing Hyundai plans to launch two to three new electric models every year over the next four years. These are expected to include all-electric sedans, SUVs, and multipurpose vehicles (MPVs), as well as plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) and extended-range electric vehicles (EREVs).
ELEXIO is Hyundai Motor's first China-tailored EV. While the exact price has not been disclosed, local expectations are that it will start at 140,000 yuan (about 28 million won). The strategy is to target demand for mass-market models in the compact electric SUV segment while differentiating with technological competitiveness.
Key rivals include the BYD Yuan Plus (Atto 3), Song Plus (Sealion 6), the Kia EV5, Toyota bZ3X, and Volkswagen ID.4 Crozz. The Atto 3 is priced at 103,800 yuan (about 20 million won), the bZ3X at 109,800 yuan (about 22 million won), and the Song Plus, EV5 (149,800 yuan), and ID.4 Crozz (149,900 yuan) are selling for about 30 million won.
Equipped with a BYD battery made in China, ELEXIO can travel up to 722 km on a single charge under China's certification standard, and it takes 27 minutes to charge the battery from 30% to 80%.
With Qualcomm's latest automotive chipset, it improves the response speed of various assistance features, including the infotainment system for video streaming, gaming, and artificial intelligence (AI) voice control. It also offers features such as an advanced driver-assistance system (ADAS) utilizing technology from a Chinese autonomous driving company, over-the-air software updates (OTA), and vehicle-to-everything communication (V2X).
ELEXIO measures 4,615 mm in length, 1,875 mm in width, and 1,675 mm in height. Its wheelbase, which determines interior space, is 2,750 mm. Except for overall length (4,610 mm), it matches the EV5 that Kia recently released in Korea.