Who says EV sales are slowing down? Certainly not Hyundai where demand is up by double-digits this year. It helps to keep expanding the line-up with new models like the upcoming EV9. But the Korean carmaker also is expanding the array of variants spun off of existing models. And, for 2025, that will include its first off-road-ready EV, the Ioniq 5 XRT.
The Hyundai Ioniq 5 adds a new variant for 2025, the off-road XRT package.
Hyundai will join the small but growing line-up of manufacturers offering EVs capable of heading off pavement when it launches the 2025 Ioniq 5 XRT. As the name makes clear, it’s the latest variant of the all-electric compact crossover the Korean automaker introduced three years ago, and follows the high-performance Ioniq 5 N which raced into U.S. showrooms last spring.
The XRT trim will pick up on some of the welcome updates coming to the entire Ioniq 5 line, including a rear windshield wiper and manual controls for the EV’s climate system.
The 2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5 XRT will be offered exclusively in all-wheel-drive form and only with an extended-range battery pack – both appropriate features for those who actually will take the crossover out on the trail. With less reason for range anxiety, buyers will be able to enjoy the spirited torque offered by the Ioniq’s twin-motor powertrain – as well as the ability to run in near silence.
2025 Updates
A new, more conventional control panel will be added for the 2025 Ioniq line-up to operate climate settings.
Ioniq 5 was Hyundai’s first all-electric model to use a dedicated skateboard-like platform, the E-GMP. It places the battery pack and motors below a flat load floor. The layout also offers the ability to configure the drivetrain in a variety of ways, with single and twin motor options, as well as standard and long-range battery packs.
The EV, when it debuted in 2022, adopted an aero-swept design that minimized wind resistance to maximize range. Among other things, it sacrificed a rear windshield wiper – something that generated complaints from buyers, especially in wet and snowy climes. All versions of the 2025 Ioniq 5 now get a rear wiper, Hyundai designers finding other ways to cheat the wind and avoid a range penalty.
The original electric crossover also adopted a clean, high-tech interior layout with a minimum of traditional controls. But here, Hyundai also has listened to owners and, for 2025, it adds more manual controls, mostly for the climate system. You’ll no longer need to scramble through the crossover’s big touchscreen to change cabin temperature, for one thing, or adjust the seat heaters.
The 2025 Ioniq 5 line-up also gets a new center console with a repositioned smartphone charger. And there are updates to the infotainment and connected-car technology, along with new safety and driver assistance features. The tech story is rounded out with an updated version of the smartphone-as-key system, Hyundai Digital Key 2.
What’s an XRT?
The 2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5 XRT adds distinctive “pixel” bumpers.
Like so many other manufacturers, Hyundai has figured out that there’s strong demand for off-road capable vehicles. It’s adding XRT variants of a number of different product lines, from the quirky Santa Cruz pickup to the three-row Palisade SUV. This marks the first time the automaker has added an all-electric XRT package.
From first glance you’ll notice some big changes. That includes a unique grille and front bumper, the latter adopting a distinctive “pixelated” color scheme that might be considered digital camouflage. The pattern repeats around back with oversized cladding designed to add a bit more protection from rocks, brush and other obstacles.
As you’d expect of an off-roader, the Ioniq 5 XRT also gets unique 18-inch wheels and 235/60 R18 all-terrain tires.
More Hyundai News
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- Hyundai Adding More Hybrids, PHEVs to Balance Out EV Line-Up
All 2025 Ioniq 5 models — including this Limited trtim – will get larger battery packs, among other upgrades.
Powertrain upgrades
The entire 2024 Ioniq 5 line-up also offers two upgraded lithium-ion battery packs:
- Standard Range models go from 58.0 to 63.0 kilowatt-hours. Look for rear-wheel-drive models RWD models to now deliver more than 240 miles per charge;
- Long Range models go from 77.4 to 84 kWh. The XRT is expected to deliver “250+” miles per charge while other AWD packages should top 280 miles when final EPA numbers are released. Rear-drive models will now get as much as 310 miles range.
Hyundai has yet to lock down final powertrain specs but officials all but confirmed it will match the numbers from existing AWD models – excluding the N package. That stands at 320 horsepower and 446 pound-feet of torque.
Final calibrations are underway and XRT is all but certain to offer unique powertrain tuning that will help do a better job of delivering power where its needed, depending upon road conditions. We’ll have to wait to see if there’ll be unique setting for, say, Mud and Ruts, or sand and gravel.
This show can go
Expect to see the 2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5 XRT get unique driver mode settings to help it attack more diverse off-road conditions.
Some competitors have introduced what might, politely, be called “off-road light” products. No, it won’t be something you’d likely take out on the Rubicon Trail, but Hyundai officials insist the Ioniq 5 XRT package really will be able to handle moderately challenging trails.
As such, this is clearly more than just appearance package. XRT gets a nearly one inch increase in ride height. Hyundai officials also noted during a media backgrounder that its approach angle jumps to 19.8 degrees, the departure angle to 30.0 degrees – compared with 17.5 and 25.4 degrees, respectively, on non-XRT models.
The suspension also has been uniquely tuned for off-roading. And the driver mode selector has unique functions for operating in more rugged terrain.
One other nice addition with XRT: front tow hooks capable of handling loads up to 5,834 pounds.
Pricing and availability
The 2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5 line will begin production at a new plant in Georgia come November.
The entire Ioniq 5 line-up will shift production to the U.S. with the 2025 model year. Models will start rolling out of the new Hyundai Motor Group “mega-plant: near Savannah, Georgia in November, alongside other EVs earmarked for the sibling Kia and Genesis brands.
We’ll have to wait until closer to the on-sale date for pricing information. Expect XRT to come in somewhere closer to the high end of the Ioniq 5 line-up –which currently starts at $43,195 for the SE Standard Range RWD package. That jumps to $47,245 for an AWD version of the SE with a Long Range pack. The well-equipped Disney100 Platinum Edition comes in at $60,795, while the screaming N model tops the range with a $67,495 MSRP.
Right now, buyers can qualify for up to $3,750 in federal tax credits due to the domestic sourcing requirements under the Inflation Reduction Act. But that jumps to a full $7,500 when an Ioniq 5 is leased. Hyundai officials said they hope to meet the full guidelines of the IRA once production is transferred to the mega-plant. That could make buyers, as well as lease shoppers, eligible for the full $7,500 incentives. But it’s not clear if the EV will qualify by the time the 2025 models begin production.
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