7 Features On The 2026 Ioniq 9 That Other SUVs Need To Steal

Travis Langness/SlashGear

The all-new 2026 Hyundai IONIQ 9 has a lot going for it. It’s part of a growing family of electric vehicles at Hyundai using the IONIQ name — a fusion of the words Ion and Unique — and it’s the first Hyundai EV to offer three rows of seating. Its sleek styling gives it lots of curb appeal, it has impressive range estimates, and there’s an equally-impressive list of tech features that we’re looking forward to testing out.

Pricing isn’t available yet (we expect it to fall somewhere in the $60-80,000 ballpark, if the Kia EV9 is anything to go by) but if it’s competitively priced, it could become an immediate class leader amongst three-row SUVs. Depending, of course, on how well it drives and how easy it is to live with. Even before we get behind the wheel to test out the new IONIQ 9 though, there’s a lot to like. Getting our hands on one at Hyundai’s reveal event and at the LA Auto Show 2024 (where the IONIQ 9 debuted) gave us a better impression of what it has to offer – and where it stands out from the crowd.

Doors that open extra wide

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The IONIQ 9’s styling and overall exterior shape gives space-age minivan vibes. The optional second-row swivel seats (that we sadly won’t get here in the U.S.) build on the minivan theme. But the doors — unlike on a VW ID. Buzz — don’t slide. So, sadly, the IONIQ 9 isn’t a minivan, no matter how badly I want it to be (or how practical that would make it).

Thankfully, the IONIQ 9 has the next best thing: doors that open extra wide. While they don’t quite open to 90 degrees, the doors in both the front and the rear open ultra wide. The large opening gives adults easy entry and exit to the second and third row. It’s also an important feature for loading in big items like child seats. The more SUVs adopt this strategy, the better.

Lots of storage solutions

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There are cubbies, drawers, sliding consoles and multi-function pockets all over the inside of the IONIQ 9, and that’s exactly what you need from a three-row SUV. I’ve taken plenty of road trips in minivans and SUVs, testing vehicles with friends and family in the back, and the biggest concerns (behind comfort) were always about small-item storage. Where can I put my book? What about my beef jerky and my extra-large cup of Mountain Dew? Anywhere to store my collection of baseball cards? (Okay, that one might be an exaggeration but you get the point.)

Well, all of that and more will fit in the IONIQ 9. The front-row cup holders are large enough for even big water bottles or thermos-style coffee mugs. The second row of seats has multiple cup and bottle storage options in the door. The third row has decent-sized cup holders as well. Then there’s the sliding front console, the multiple available no-slide shelves for smartphones, the seatback storage for second-row passengers, and the large front glove box. Got a family that overpacks on small items? Bring it on.

Chargers, chargers everywhere!

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Once everyone is settled in and has their knick knacks stowed away, they’ll naturally want to know where to charge up their digital devices. Thankfully, the IONIQ 9 has you covered there too. All three rows of seating offer multiple USB-C ports, and while that’s a more common sight these days, Hyundai points out its USB-C can charge your devices with up to 100 watts of power.

I imagine something like this being particularly helpful for ride-share drivers using the IONIQ 9 as their transport vehicle – giving passengers the opportunity to charge up quickly as they’re transported to/from the airport or their local watering hole. Families with tablets, smartphones, and laptops will likely appreciate all the charging options too – whether it’s on a long summer vacation road trip or just the Monday morning drive to school.

And if the cabin charging locations aren’t enough, there are also multiple power solutions available in the trunk including a 125-volt 15-amp three-prong outlet and a 12-volt 180-watt charging port.

Clearly labeled physical buttons

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Everything is well-labeled in the IONIQ 9. The USB ports remind you of the charging stats. The buttons in the trunk tell you which row they control the folding functions of. The audio controls on the dashboard use full words like “MAP” and “MEDIA” instead of icons. The fonts are easy to read and the contrast of blacks-and-whites on the buttons can be made out easily, even in low light.

This might seem like a small detail that’s barely worth noticing, but I think it’s a big plus: it shows that the designers at Hyundai continue to pay attention to the details. The overall experience of sitting in the IONIQ 9 (and eventually driving or riding in one) is improved when everything is easy to locate and understand. Minimalist styling (a hallmark of a number of EVs these days) might be temporarily aesthetically pleasing, but cars are about function and form, not just the latter.

Simple steering wheel controls

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As more and more features are being added to automobiles every year, the dashboard, display screens, and steering wheels are all becoming more crowded. Buttons for audio controls, heated seats, battery regeneration settings, adaptive cruise control, lane-keep assist, volume, and more all have to be jam-packed onto the steering wheel or put somewhere convenient on the dash. Some automakers have decided to move their controls exclusively into the touchscreen while others make sure to have multiples of the same command throughout the cabin.

Hyundai has organized the controls however, with a simple and elegant steering wheel, built with large-enough-but-not-too-large buttons, and a relatively simple gear stalk. Much like it does in the sporty IONIQ 5, I imagine the gear stalk in the IONIQ 9 will take some getting used to (it rotates forward for Drive, back for Reverse and there’s a button for Park on the tip) but it becomes relatively intuitive after a short amount of time.

Thoroughly thought out design details

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Hyundai’s IONIQ designers have stuck with a theme across several different vehicles and I think it’s a great way to tie things together: squares. More specifically, pixels. In the headlights they refer to these squares as parametric pixels, but they’re all over the exterior of the vehicle and all throughout the cabin. They’re used on the door handles, the seats, the steering wheel, even the wireless charging pad. The retro-future vibe they give off is strong, but not overwhelming, and it feels appropriate on electric vehicles like the IONIQ 9.

A few other small styling details I like? The five-spoke wheels which use a small plastic element to cover up the lugs – great design choice. You can’t see the lugnuts, and I’m sure there’s a relatively simple way to remove the cover if you’re replacing a tire, but it adds another one of those small details to the overall design that ties the package together. And it might be an automotive detailer’s nightmare (lots of tiny crevices to clean), but I really like the styling of in-setting the IONIQ’s emblem into the sheet metal on the rear hatch as well.

Lots of range and fast charging

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The IONIQ 9 has a really big battery. With 110.3 kWh of energy, there’s a lot to charge up, but it’ll go relatively quickly thanks to the 800V charging capabilities (from 10 to 80 percent battery in as little as 24 minutes at a Level 3 DC fast charger, Hyundai says). Just as importantly, there’s lots of range to be had via this big battery, a top priority for a family SUV like the IONIQ.

According to Hyundai, EPA estimates for the longest-range models will go 325 miles between charges, certainly enough to deal with your daily driving needs and enough for finding charging stations on a regular basis during most road trips. According to Hyundai, they’re aiming to have every trim level above 300 miles of range – excellent news for buyers with range or charging-infrastructure anxiety. Details on the time it will take to charge the IONIQ 9 on home charging (like a level 2 plug) aren’t out yet, but we expect charging times to closely resemble those of the Kia EV9.

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