Hyundai Delays Ioniq 9 EV SUV

by Carl Malek | July 5, 2024

Hyundai’s Ioniq 9 SUV was supposed to be its flagship EV but a new report suggests that Hyundai has been forced to delay the rollout of the big EV.

A new report suggests that the upcoming Ioniq 9 EV SUV will be delayed.

Hyundai has remained committed to its rollout of EV offerings. The Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 6 served as spearheads into the segment and were also supposed to plant the seeds for the development of a diverse pool of models that would allow the Korean car giant to cater to a wide range of vehicle segments. One of these was the Ioniq 9, a flagship EV SUV that would allow Hyundai to reach out to family buyers who needed a large SUV to haul gear and other items while still delivering an all-electric driving experience. The model was previewed by the Seven Concept with the Ioniq 7 name quickly being swapped out for the 9 moniker later on.

A new report suggests that the rollout of the Ioniq 9 will be delayed and that Hyundai will be forced to roll it out later than it had initially hoped for.

Ioniq 9 didn’t appear at Busan Mobility Show

The reported delay is a calculated move by Hyundai to help ensure that it smooths out all the rough edges before it brings the SUV to dealer lots.

The original timeline of the Ioniq 9 had the SUV potentially launching this year with the model possibly appearing at the Busan International Mobility Show which kicked off last week. But when the show opened its doors to guests and assembled media, the Hyundai was nowhere to be found. According to a new report that was published by The Korean Car Blog the Ioniq 9 is still coming but with a new timetable that sees the model endure a delay before it makes its eventual debut.

In this case, it appears that the delay is a calculated move by Hyundai to work out any last-minute bugs in the Ioniq 9 to help it be as good as possible for its debut. Eliminating any lingering issues will help ensure a smooth launch for the model and also avoid some of the mistakes that have often dogged other automakers when they rushed their EVs to the market too fast with the VinFast VF8 being a recent example of this in action.

Delay part of a broader trend

The Ioniq 9’s delay is also reflective of a broader trend with other automakers also either delaying or shifting their plans in electrification due to shifting customer demand.

The delay of the Ioniq 9 is part of a broader trend that has taken place in the automotive industry with other automakers either delaying their own EV models or rethinking the way that they are approaching electrification. This is mainly due to shifting consumer demand with more buyers passing on EVs and instead preferring lower-priced ICE or hybrid models.

Hyundai for its part has not publicly said it’s deviating from its EV plans with other aspects of the firm’s electrification strategy still on track. However, the delay of the Ioniq 9 is the first indication that Hyundai is monitoring market trends and that the company is prepared to make more adjustments to its game plan if conditions require it. When the Ioniq 9 does make its appearance on dealer lots, it will have to contend with the Kia EV9 which has won its fair share of awards since it made its debut and has raised the bar for other family-focused EV models as a result.