Hyundai has released a first set of images and details of the all-new Inster EV, Hyundai’s entry level electric vehicle for global markets. The familiar-looking Inster is based on the popular Casper sub-compact City car but sits on a lengthened platform.
- Inster gets two EV powertrain options
- Gets a practical cabin with clever folding seats
- Gets 360 camera and adaptive cruise control
Hyundai Inster: a global entry level city EV
The new Hyundai Inster will serve as the brand’s contender in the mainstream city EV market. The SUV shares most of its underpinnings with the 3.5 meter long Casper which is sold exclusively with a petrol powerplant in the Korean market. For the Inster, Hyundai has stretched the Casper’s platform by 230mm overall, out of which 180mm has been added to its wheelbase. This helps with more cabin room and also additional space for the underfloor battery pack.
As far as dimensions go, the Inster is 3.8 meters long, 1.6 meters wide and 1.6 mm tall. With these measurements the Inster is slightly shorter than the Citroen eC3 which is 3.9 meters in length. The Inster gets a practical five seat cabin with multiple interior configurations, according to Hyundai. The Inster’s four seats can be folded completely flat and the two rear seats are capable of sliding and reclining, in order to liberate more leg room or boot space.
Hyundai Inster: battery, powertrain, performance
The Inster gets two battery and motor configurations initially. Entry-level cars get a 96hp front-mounted drive unit that delivers a 0-100kph sprint time of 11.7sec and a top speed of 140kph. It’s paired with a 42kWh battery pack, which is claimed to deliver a range of around 300km between charges.
The flagship ‘long-range’ Inster is boosted to 113hp and 49kWh, taking its range to around 350km and its top speed to 150kph, while reducing its 0-100kph time to 10.6sec.
Both versions use the nickel-cobalt-manganese (NCM) chemistry and all Insters get a heat pump and 85kW (DC) charging capabilities as standard.
Hyundai Inster: features and tech
Although those specifications place the Inster roughly on a par with its class mates, Hyundai believes that it will stand out for its interior connectivity and on-board technologies. Inside, all variants get a pair of 10.25in displays (an instrument panel and an infotainment touchscreen), and you can use your smartphone as a ‘key’ to unlock and start the car.
The Inster also gets Hyundai’s full suite of driver assistance technologies, including a 360deg parking camera and adaptive cruise control. Additionally, it receives the brand’s novel blindspot monitoring system, which projects a camera image of your rear quarter view onto the instrument panel as you indicate.
Hyundai Inster: will it come to India?
For India, Hyundai is currently focusing on introducing the Creta EV which will be the brand’s mass-volume EV for our market. The Inster with its 3.8 meter length, a versatile cabin, funky looks, a decent feature list and tech makes a good proposition for India as a potential Citroen eC3 and Tata Punch EV rival. However, it remains to be seen on whether this EV makes it to India in future.
