By Ian Strachan.
Hyundai’s little all-electric INSTER seems to be picking up award after award – including the coveted 2025 World Electric Vehicle.
And deservedly so. The Hyundai INSTER may be small but it has a big personality. It’s just 3.8m long by 1.6m wide but in this case size doesn’t matter. The INSTER is a baby electric car that thinks it’s a grown up, with a surprising amount of room, lots of standard kit and a good range between charges. It also looks good, with some quirky design cues.
The INSTER that I tested comes with a 49kw battery. It develops a more-than-adequate 115PS and a 0-60mph acceleration of around ten seconds.
Despite its diminutive size the INSTER sits quite high on the road which, along with big windows, gives you great visibility.
From the outside, the INSTER is a head-turner despite its size. You get bespoke 17-inch alloys, distinctive front and rear bumpers, roof rails, side skirts with black cladding, and a rear spoiler with integrated brake light.
The INSTER has a crisp, well laid out and comfortable interior. It’s light and roomy with attractive trim materials, and the seats are comfortable and supportive for a small car.
Instruments are clear and well laid out. The whole of the interior feels spacious, pleasant and light. It’s one of those cars which feels much bigger on the inside than it looks from the outside. Luggage space – at 351 litres – is good for a small car and by folding the seats this increases to 1059 litres. You effectively have a small van.
The INSTER gives you a stable and safe ride, with little or no body roll on cornering despite its relative height. The car feels glued to the road, but still gives light handling and driver involvement. It felt confident and stable, even at speed, which isn’t the case with some small cars.
Equipment levels on the INSTER are high, with a heat pump to help battery and interior warming without a range penalty, reclining and sliding rear seats, heated front seats and steering wheel, climate control, all-round electric windows and door mirrors, keyless entry and ignition, navigation system with a10.25 touch screen display, DAB digital radio, Bluetooth connectivity and USB sockets, front and rear parking sensors with rear parking camera, smart cruise control, steering wheel-mounted controls, automatic headlamps and wireless phone charger.
There’s plenty of safety aids as standard including forward collision avoidance, road driving assist, lane keeping assist driver status monitor and parking guidance system.
The Hyundai INSTER comes in at £23,505, which includes Hyundai’s valuable five-year unlimited mileage warranty and an eight-year battery warranty.
All in all this is an excellent package which looks the part and has plenty of character. Plus you get the satisfaction of being kind to the planet.
