When it comes to enjoying different vehicles, we like a wide range of things here in the Hooniverse. Rally-ready cars are fun, right? We love the idea of a hot hatch. Not everyone enjoys an electric vehicle, but I personally am a fan. When you sandwich that all together, then upsize it a bit, you wind up with something certainly unique. The vehicle that puts all those qualities together is one you likely wouldn’t have imagined even five years ago. The all-new 2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5 XRT has arrived, and I’m happy to report that it’s well-suited to deliver smiles on your local fire roads.
Hyundai pays attention to what other automakers are doing. All automakers do, of course, but none of them ever admit it. Here, it’s clear that Hyundai sees the growth of Subaru’s Wilderness lineup. There’s the recent launch of Ford’s Mach-E Rally. Then if you want to go into the realm of the delightfully insane, you have the Porsche 911 Dakar and Lamborghini Huracan Sterrato. Hyundai wants a mild adventurer of its own, thus the Ioniq 5 XRT exists.
To XRT-ify this SUV-sized electric hot hatch, the automaker gives it nearly another inch of ground clearance, tweaks the suspension tuning, slaps on a set of all-terrain tires on 18″ wheels, and then gives the car a button marked Terrain Mode. This is the only Ioniq 5 model to get that button. It tells the “throttle” pedal that you’re driving on snow, in mud, or through sand, and adjusts power delivery and allowable wheel slip.
I spent a few hours on a pre-defined stretch of off-pavement trails, and the XRT made me laugh and smile the entire time. This course featured some slow-speed scrambling up and down minor pitches, a bit of higher-speed loose gravel, and some deeper sand as well. I kept the Ioniq 5 XRT in Sand mode the entire time since I wanted the most slip. That’s not me preparing for the surface in a smart manner but trying to extract the most fun. In fact, I just did a press and hold on the traction control button, and the system said, “Ok, I guess you’re the Captain now…”
You can fling it, slide it, set up for turns with the rear end waggling wide, and it seems to enjoy every moment of it all. The steering heft is nicely dialed, and the suspension tune is appropriately soft to help absorb any unexpected hits from hidden rocks. My only area of concern, which takes a moment of brain recalculation, is when you’re hard on the brakes. Specifically in soft terrain like deeper sand, because here is where the extra weight of an EV comes into play and you push forward farther than you might expect. This isn’t an I5 XRT-specific problem, mind you, but one of all heavy vehicles in an off-road setting. It’s just that an EV might not seem as heavy as you’re expecting, but you’re quickly reminded of that weight.
Hyundai says the XRT is good for 259 miles of range. It can charge at speeds up to 270kW on a DC fast charger… or you can charge it at a Tesla Supercharger, as this is the first non-Tesla production model fitted with a native NACS charger. Hyundai supplies a CCS adapter, however, as well.
The 2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5 XRT is on sale now and has a starting price just north of $55,000.