Aju Business Daily

SEOUL -- South Korea's Hyundai auto group released interior images of its IONIQ 5 midsize crossover utility vehicle installed with a dedicated new battery platform, saying the interior is furnished with sustainable materials and textiles such as eco-processed leather, bio paint as well as natural and recycled fibers.

IONIQ 5 carrying the electric-global modular platform (E-GMP) will be showcased at an online event on February 23. Hyundai said that the platform houses a flat battery that enables a spacious and customizable interior, offering personalized mobility with flexible configurations to comfortably accommodate both passengers and cargo.

"IONIQ 5 is a statement of design that offers an optimistic look at what customers can expect in the new EV era," Hyundai's design center head Lee Sang-yup said in a statement on February 15. "The long wheelbase is translated to a new dimension of space. We designed this special space as a perfect place to recharge, Your home away from home."

IONIQ 5's driver and passengers can freely enter and exit the cabin on either side when parked in a narrow spot because the flat floor allows the center console to slide back and forth to offer greater function than a static storage box, Hyundai said, adding the newly developed "Universal Island" replaces the center console and becomes the centerpiece of IONIQ 5's living space experience. All seats can be operated and repositioned, making it easier for adults in the front to care for children and pets seated in the rear, the company said.

The seats are clad in an eco-processed leather that is dyed and treated with plant oil extractions from flaxseed. Hyundai said that other soft furnishings consist of textiles derived from sustainable fibers such as sugar cane bio components, wool and poly yarns, as well as material woven from fibers made from recycled PET plastic bottles, while the dashboard, witches, steering wheel and door panels are coated in a polyurethane bio paint composed of oils from rape flowers and corn.