This guest article was written by freelance EV and efficiency consultant Kevin Booker. Kevin also holds world records for a number of EV range-related challenges.
I recently had the pleasure of spending a week with the Hyundai Inster city car. The Inster from Hyundai is the smallest addition to the brand’s electric model range. Given the brand’s history with building efficiency, it should do well for range and economy. With prices well under £30,000, looks reminiscent of the Japanese Kei cars, and the ability to seat four adults comfortably, it certainly manages to conquer the city—but how will it fare on the open road?
Design and Driving Experience
When you first get in the Inster, you immediately notice a familiarity—if you’ve driven any other vehicles from Hyundai. The drive selector, indicator stalks, and door handles are from the Ioniq 5. The dashboard and infotainment screen are from the facelifted first-generation Kona. Don’t read this as a criticism—these are good, solid, tried-and-tested components. As the saying goes, if it isn’t broken, don’t fix it. The only disadvantage to using the slightly older system is that it only supports wired Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, but that’s not exactly a dealbreaker at this price point.
The interior of the Inster is its strong point, with very flexible seating. Both front and rear seats have a good degree of forwards and backwards movement, and the front passenger seat is able to fold flat. This design is firmly rooted in South Korean car camping culture, known as Chabok.
As for power, this long-range version sports a 114 bhp electric motor (84 bhp on the standard range). This may not sound like much in a world of EVs easily sporting power figures in excess of 500 bhp, but it’s more than enough to keep up with traffic with ease. Its small size also means it’s great around town, making parking simple—in fact, it is only 100 mm longer than the facelifted Polo Coupe from back in the ’90s, although significantly taller by over 200 mm.
Range and Charging
There are two battery sizes available with the Inster: an entry-level 42 kWh pack on the standard range, and a 49 kWh pack as installed in the ’02 model I had on test, which has a claimed WLTP range of 223 miles per charge. Ever the one to like a challenge, I decided to put this claim to the test by taking it on a round trip to visit a friend in Swindon from Swansea—a round-trip distance of 222 miles, just one mile short of its WLTP range. It has to be said, the weather conditions were just right—warm—and the Inster definitely delivered with ease. It even gave me enough confidence to take a detour to Badley Castle on the way home. What were the results? A total of 260 miles.
This was no hypermiling challenge either—this was keeping up with the flow of motorway traffic, with the air conditioning set to a sensible level, which didn’t seem to have a significant impact on range thanks to the heat pump fitted as standard across the range.
This road trip even gave me the confidence to go on a longer excursion the next day, topped up on my cheap off-peak Octopus Go tariff. Another advantage of a smaller battery: it doesn’t take as long to charge at home. This time, it was Swansea to Cheddar Gorge to check out some of the sculptures on the Wallace and Gromit Unleashed Trail. This time, the weather was poor with lots of surface water—the ultimate range killer. Still, the Inster managed a very respectable range of over 200 miles, even with the challenge of very hilly terrain in the Gorge itself, including managing a detour to get a photo of it driving over the Clifton Suspension Bridge.
The journey back gave me a chance to test its rapid charging performance. On the charger, it peaked at over 75 kW, which is excellent and more than quick enough when you take into consideration the small 49 kWh battery pack.
Conclusion
After a week behind the wheel of the Inster, I have to say I’m very impressed. Some people have commented to me that, from some angles, its looks are challenging—but I think that’s more a result of its clever packaging. Not many cars in this category can seat four adults in comfort. I personally think it looks kind of cute, and finished in matte green like the one I had on test, it definitely gets attention.
With current discounts, the entry-level version with the smaller battery pack can be had for around the £20,000 mark. As for the version I tested in long-range form, it’s definitely a car I could live with every day. And with Hyundai’s five-year warranty, and eight years on the battery and powertrain, you certainly get peace of mind.
So, if you’re after a city car that can hold its own on the open road, then this might be the car for you—in a market currently filled with large SUVs. Add to that the availability of vehicle-to-load (V2L) on all models, and I think Hyundai is on to a winner.
