No longer an all Rivian household

[shrink]

I didn't sell any of my precious Rivians, but instead added a 2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5.

Long story short - the madness at the Federal government has seriously, drastically, and unexpectedly affected my business for the worse. I had to adjust and started working out of town regularly. It's not horrible - working in Tucson 3 days per week for the next few months (and likely through at least the end of the year) but mostly living in Phoenix (with regular trips to the Big Island in Hawaii for those familiar with me).

It's not a horrible commute - about 120 miles each way through boring desert - and mostly highway, but after a few weeks of making this commute, I decided I didn't want the wear, tear, and mileage on my precious R1T. I know it could easily take such usage, but it's my beloved personal vehicle, so I instead decided that my business would lease a fast charging long range EV for this commute - hence the Ioniq 5.

I just took delivery yesterday on a 2025 Limited RWD. It's just a 24-month business lease and I was pretty happy with the lease incentives ($11,500 lease cash on a 24; $14,000 lease cash on a 36) + $1000 competitive owner/conquest discount.

I don't have many initial impressions to share. I took delivery, drove it home, then took my R1T on the out of town commute for which the Ioniq 5 will be used going forward. I just didn't want to drive a new car with which with I am unfamiliar out of town immediately. I literally plan to RTFM this weekend and take then start driving the Ioniq 5 back and forth between Phoenix and Tucson.

Brief initial thoughts in no particular order:

- I'm in the minority and do not like the NACS port - because both my home charging stations are J1772. It's fine, though, and I know it's probably better for the future. Glad an adapter was included!

- So excited about the minimal vampire drain!

- Love the HUD and wireless CarPlay.

- the motorized cover for the Vision roof is simple but brilliant! I only own Gen 1's so I don't know how well the Gen 2 Dynamic Glass roofs perform, but man of us Gen 1 owners end up tinting the roofs or getting aftermarket sun shades. The Ioniq's powered roof cover like a traditional sun roof/moon roof cover is wonderful and convenient.

- the Ioniq's sun shades in the rear seats are fantastic as well! So simple and so effective (and important in a hot climate).

- Ioniq's integration with Apple Wallet is pretty cool.

- I can't believe the Ioniq does NOT have auto lock when walking away. I am going to leave this vehicle unlocked constantly.

- the start button utterly confused me. I left the vehicle on a few times already. This will be an adjustment. I had to get used to the gear selector, too. Not bad, just an adjustment for me.

- the Ioniq 5's camera rear view mirror option was impressive!

- the Ioniq 5 frunk is just sad, but I knew this going on.

- the Ioniq's paddler shifters didn't seem to remember my regen settings, but this could be user error. As a long time EV driver I prefer max regen.

- the Ioniq 5's phone charger works! Rivian still cannot get this right.

- I was overwhelmed with all Ioniq 5's buttons and knobs. I know this is a design choice with Rivian and Tesla having few. I can see both sides to this UI debate. I look forward to developing a more informed opinion with more experience with both.

- although mine is a Limited RWD, I did see an Ioniq N in the showroom and my impression is that Hyundai beat Rivian to the R3X. They seem like very similar vehicles - fun, fast, high-performing lifestyle vehicles with off-road capabilities. Will be fun with both are available.

- I amlooking forward to the 800V charging. On my travel commute yesterday in my R1T for reference, I drove about 110 miles to a fast charger (EVGo 350 kW capable) and added about 66 kWh in 41 minutes to my R1T (45% SOC to 90% SOC). I think my 2025 Ioniq has an 84 kWh battery as compared to the 135 kWh battery and 400 V charging in my gen 1 RT. I know the R1T is a large, heavy truck but looking forward to seeing the Ioniq 5 charging time and kWh/efficiency data on the same commute next week.

I'm sure I'll have many more impressions in the coming weeks.

I am impressed with the Ioniq 5, though. Seems to have great features and technology. Almost feels like a Genesis (and I would have gotten the GV60 Advanced if it had more range and cost a little less).

Depending on how the lease goes, I'm already thinking of buying the car at lease end instead of an R2. I have two R2 reservations, one of which is was to replace my 2014 Jeep Cherokee in Kona. However, my R1S collision repair in Kona took 7-1/2 months so I am now not very enthusiastic about having 2 Rivians as my only vehicles on an outer Hawaiian island. Glad I have time to evaluate and decide....

Attached are some crappy photos. I was in a rush, afternoon lighting was bad, and I was scrambling to pack and leave for my drive out of town.

Sponsored

 

[Great Gatsby]

I completely get it. My Riv is my main vehicle, but I do tend to drive a lot, and have been weighing on a second vehicle as well to ease off on the wear and tear I'm putting on it. I used to have an EV9. and I can tell you this unfortunate truth...it will never remember your regen settings. You will have to adjust every time you enter the vehicle. Not fun. I think Hyundai and Kia make great chassis, but the tech is not where it needs to be, nor does it seem to be a high priority for them sadly. The range is also never as good as advertised...the fast charging is legit though! I used to go into Walmart, take a bathroom break and grab a snack and by the time I got it, car was almost fully charged!

Happy for you though and I'm sure you'll enjoy it as a second vehicle!

 

[COdogman]

The I5 is a great EV! It’s probably the only one I would actually buy other than my Rivian. Sorry you have to commute so much now

 

[Donald Stanfield]

Not a bad looking car. How’s the driver assist? With that long commute I bet a good driver assist package would help.

 

[DayTripping]

If anything happened to one of my Model 3s, a Hyundai Ioniq 5N would be its replacement. I think you made a great choice for your purpose. Yeah, their SW lags a bit, but the rest of the car is pretty impressive.

 

[James Worden]

Shrink, Nice looking "fleet". I noticed right away that you pointed out the lack of big vampire drain in the new Ionic 5 versus the R1-T's. I really, really hope Rivian figures this out. After seeing lots of comments and hacks for reducing R1-T vampire losses, I haven't wanted to do the battery tender hack, but did put it in "shipping mode", plus making sure Gear Guard is off and no seat belts are on, but it still had a really high loss of 0.6% each day which is many times higher than my 2021 M3 Tesla and infinitely higher than my Solectria EVs. It seems that pretty much every other present EV has a far lower vampire standby loss than Rivian which I don't understand. Rivian, can you please fix this issue in a major way and do an OTA update to reduce vampire loss? Thanks, James

 

[Donald Stanfield]

Shrink, Nice looking "fleet". I noticed right away that you pointed out the lack of big vampire drain in the new Ionic 5 versus the R1-T's. I really, really hope Rivian figures this out. After seeing lots of comments and hacks for reducing R1-T vampire losses, I haven't wanted to do the battery tender hack, but did put it in "shipping mode", plus making sure Gear Guard is off and no seat belts are on, but it still had a really high loss of 0.6% each day which is many times higher than my 2021 M3 Tesla and infinitely higher than my Solectria EVs. It seems that pretty much every other present EV has a far lower vampire standby loss than Rivian which I don't understand. Rivian, can you please fix this issue in a major way and do an OTA update to reduce vampire loss? Thanks, James

Rivian has stated publicly that their target for vampire drain is 1%. They consider that normal. I don’t think there is any plans to do better than that.

 

[malditofman]

I didn't sell any of my precious Rivians, but instead added a 2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5.

Long story short - the madness at the Federal government has seriously, drastically, and unexpectedly affected my business for the worse. I had to adjust and started working out of town regularly. It's not horrible - working in Tucson 3 days per week for the next few months (and likely through at least the end of the year) but mostly living in Phoenix (with regular trips to the Big Island in Hawaii for those familiar with me).

It's not a horrible commute - about 120 miles each way through boring desert - and mostly highway, but after a few weeks of making this commute, I decided I didn't want the wear, tear, and mileage on my precious R1T. I know it could easily take such usage, but it's my beloved personal vehicle, so I instead decided that my business would lease a fast charging long range EV for this commute - hence the Ioniq 5.

I just took delivery yesterday on a 2025 Limited RWD. It's just a 24-month business lease and I was pretty happy with the lease incentives ($11,500 lease cash on a 24; $14,000 lease cash on a 36) + $1000 competitive owner/conquest discount.

I don't have many initial impressions to share. I took delivery, drove it home, then took my R1T on the out of town commute for which the Ioniq 5 will be used going forward. I just didn't want to drive a new car with which with I am unfamiliar out of town immediately. I literally plan to RTFM this weekend and take then start driving the Ioniq 5 back and forth between Phoenix and Tucson.

Brief initial thoughts in no particular order:

- I'm in the minority and do not like the NACS port - because both my home charging stations are J1772. It's fine, though, and I know it's probably better for the future. Glad an adapter was included!

- So excited about the minimal vampire drain!

- Love the HUD and wireless CarPlay.

- the motorized cover for the Vision roof is simple but brilliant! I only own Gen 1's so I don't know how well the Gen 2 Dynamic Glass roofs perform, but man of us Gen 1 owners end up tinting the roofs or getting aftermarket sun shades. The Ioniq's powered roof cover like a traditional sun roof/moon roof cover is wonderful and convenient.

- the Ioniq's sun shades in the rear seats are fantastic as well! So simple and so effective (and important in a hot climate).

- Ioniq's integration with Apple Wallet is pretty cool.

- I can't believe the Ioniq does NOT have auto lock when walking away. I am going to leave this vehicle unlocked constantly.

- the start button utterly confused me. I left the vehicle on a few times already. This will be an adjustment. I had to get used to the gear selector, too. Not bad, just an adjustment for me.

- the Ioniq 5's camera rear view mirror option was impressive!

- the Ioniq 5 frunk is just sad, but I knew this going on.

- the Ioniq's paddler shifters didn't seem to remember my regen settings, but this could be user error. As a long time EV driver I prefer max regen.

- the Ioniq 5's phone charger works! Rivian still cannot get this right.

- I was overwhelmed with all Ioniq 5's buttons and knobs. I know this is a design choice with Rivian and Tesla having few. I can see both sides to this UI debate. I look forward to developing a more informed opinion with more experience with both.

- although mine is a Limited RWD, I did see an Ioniq N in the showroom and my impression is that Hyundai beat Rivian to the R3X. They seem like very similar vehicles - fun, fast, high-performing lifestyle vehicles with off-road capabilities. Will be fun with both are available.

- I amlooking forward to the 800V charging. On my travel commute yesterday in my R1T for reference, I drove about 110 miles to a fast charger (EVGo 350 kW capable) and added about 66 kWh in 41 minutes to my R1T (45% SOC to 90% SOC). I think my 2025 Ioniq has an 84 kWh battery as compared to the 135 kWh battery and 400 V charging in my gen 1 RT. I know the R1T is a large, heavy truck but looking forward to seeing the Ioniq 5 charging time and kWh/efficiency data on the same commute next week.

I'm sure I'll have many more impressions in the coming weeks.

I am impressed with the Ioniq 5, though. Seems to have great features and technology. Almost feels like a Genesis (and I would have gotten the GV60 Advanced if it had more range and cost a little less).

Depending on how the lease goes, I'm already thinking of buying the car at lease end instead of an R2. I have two R2 reservations, one of which is was to replace my 2014 Jeep Cherokee in Kona. However, my R1S collision repair in Kona took 7-1/2 months so I am now not very enthusiastic about having 2 Rivians as my only vehicles on an outer Hawaiian island. Glad I have time to evaluate and decide....

Attached are some crappy photos. I was in a rush, afternoon lighting was bad, and I was scrambling to pack and leave for my drive out of town.

What is the total cost of the lease contract over 24 months, including return fees, sales taxes, registration, and any other fees before figuring in business tax deductions or credits? Leasing "incentives" by the vendor can be very misleading. At 24 months the vehicle is returned. I've seen claims of super low monthly lease payments, but when the contract is examined and all the fees and taxes considered the real cost of the 24 month "rental" can be quite huge. By the way, the Iconiq 5 is a solid little EV.

 

[mikehmb]

Congrats! My wife picked up a GV60 and I am also perplexed by buttons. The interior is great, the quality of finish is superb, it's dead quiet, and is fantastically efficient. Plus she gets free charging from EA enough to pretty much eliminate need for charging anywhere else, for the life of the lease.

Not bad for $300 a month.

I tried to talk her into the Ioniq 5 but she didn't like the design, which is unfortunate because I was going to then try and upsell her into the N-series. lol

 

[NY_Rob]

Rivian has stated publicly that their target for vampire drain is 1%. They consider that normal. I don’t think there is any plans to do better than that.

I sure hope they reconsider that stance for the R2. If it has any VD, I almost guaranty I'll cancel my R2 reservation.

How can BMW, Jeep and Hyundai produce EV's with no VD yet Rivian who everyone says "is so far ahead of everyone else" software wise not be able to do it? My 2 cents.. they can do it, but they choose not to.

 

[bigsky]

Great that you found a great EV to save wear and tear on your Rivian. It made me think of an R3 when I saw your photos, power button and clusterf of buttons notwithstanding.
I hope it all works out for you.
The long commute sucks, but if you go to the gorgeous Big Island regularly, apparently...what a gift for you!

 

[COMtnEV]

I think you'll love the car as you get used to it. We have a 2022 and a 2025 Ioniq 5 SEL in our fleet, along with our 2025 R1T (and 2025 GM Sienna EV). I love the cars. The driver assistance is better than the Rivian - it operates extremely well on secondary roads (basically as long as there are painted lines), and on the interstate I've found it to do a better job of lane centering on curves (although it also slows more than the Rivian going into curves). It allows for a longer period of hands-off than the Rivian. Unlike our Rivian, fast charging is consistent and fast - it typically takes 15-20 minutes to go 20-80% with a 350kW DCFC unit. I've road tripped both our Ioniq 5 and R1T in similar conditions from western CO to Las Vegas (~600 miles) - the Ioniq 5 is over 2 hours faster due to better efficiency and better charging. I like the buttons for common buttons - I find it much less distracting to punch a button by feel than to look at a screen. Just personal preference/experience with both systems. Based on customer feedback, Hyundai added additional tactile controls in the 2025 upgrade, so it's not just me. You should still be able to control everything through the software as well. Build quolity is excellent, and other than chip upgrades (covered under warranty), I've had zero service issues (60k miles on the 2022 - am having to take our Rivian w 5000 miles to a SC 4 hours away and leave it for two weeks for a variety of issues). Unlike Rivian, it's easy and fast to get service. There's an amazing amount of cargo space with the rear seats down - m dog and I can both sleep comfortably in the back, and I'm 6 ft tall. I love the paddle shifters (really wish the Rivian had them) - they make driving mountain roads a blast. I also like the fact that I can turn regen off completely when it's really slick. For the cost (our 2025 was under $40k after incentives and rebates), I think the Ioiniq 5 is a fantastic value.

 

[Hereforthesnacks]

The Ioniq 5 is really solid. You will like it. Fast charging time is a huge bonus.

Interesting that folks don’t want to put miles on their R1s. We’ve always piled a ton of miles on our EVs on purpose - they are cheap to operate and have less maintenance. For us, the whole point of the EV is to sink miles into a car that will last forever and doesn’t require a ton of maintenance.

 

[R1Yes]

CarPlay/AA, physical controls for important features, and faster charging are clear advantages for Hyundai/Kia/Genesis. Kudos.

 

[MountainBikeDude]

Similar sentiment to others, I think the Ionic 5 is a solid choice, the N version is pretty sweet, but a bit expensive for a Hyundai.

The only thing I wish Hyundai would have done, is taken the interior dash and controls from the EV6 and put them in the Ionic. I hate the look of the big grey plastic PRNDL lever, and the grey instrument boarder, it breaks up the screens and makes them look out of place compared to the more seamless dual screen black boarder in the EV6. Other than that, solid vehicle!

Sponsored