KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 21 — Hyundai Motor Company has kicked off its "Go Far with Zero Worries” Ioniq 5 Asean Tour to showcase its electric vehicle’s reliability, eco-friendliness and long-distance capabilities. The journey with five Hyundai Ioniq 5 EVs will cover a distance of 2,751km covering 5 Asean countries.

The Asean Tour covers a total of 5 countries commencing from Hyundai Motor Group Innovation Centre Singapore (HMGICS) on 20th November and it will end at Ho Chi Minh City’s Royal Palace in Vietnam on 30th November. Today marks the flag-off for the Malaysian portion where the convoy will spend 3 days visiting Kuala Lumpur, Ipoh Old Town and Batu Ferringhi.

The journey continues into Thailand where the convoy will spend 4 days covering Hat Yai, Chumphon, Wat Phra Boromthat, Klai Kangwon Palace and Bangkok. This is followed by 3 days in Cambodia visiting Angkor Wat, Bayon Temple and Banteay Rei. The final day of the Asean Tour will be in Vietnam where the EVs will reach the finishing line at the Royal Palace.

The convoy of EVs consists of three Singapore-assembled Hyundai Ioniq 5 from HMGICS and another two Ioniq 5 units from Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Indonesia (HMMI). There are three additional support vehicles from Malaysia which consist of Hyundai Creta and Hyundai Staria. According to Hyundai, this would be an EV tour featuring the most visited countries in Southeast Asia.

When asked why they opted for the Ioniq 5 instead of the Ioniq 6, Hyundai said the Ioniq 5 being a crossover allows them to carry more items and is more comfortable for long-distance drives. For the journey, they planned up to 2 charging stops per day and they expect to have at least 20-30 per cent battery remaining when the convoy reaches the hotel at each stop. Depending on the country, the convoy will be 100km away from the nearest charging station which serves as a backup.

Hyundai added that 24 diverse participants including representatives from Hyundai Motor Company, the Automobile Association of Singapore, Hyundai Club members, local community influencers across Asean countries and Key Opinion Leaders (KOL) from Indonesia and Thailand will embark on this journey.

During the flag-off, President of Hyundai Motor Asean HQ Youngtack Lee said "Our aspiration through this journey is to demonstrate the reliability, eco-friendliness, and long-distance capabilities of the IONIQ 5, aiming to reduce consumers’ doubts and anxiety about EVs, especially in the region.”

Besides being an all-electric SUV, the Ioniq 5 also boasts extra innovative features such as Vehicle-to-Load (V2L) which allows the Ioniq 5 to be a versatile energy hub, empowering participants to tap into its battery to power up gadgets and providing on-the-go electricity for community events.

The Hyundai Ioniq 5 is a five-seater EV which is also locally assembled in Singapore and Indonesia. The Ioniq 5 can deliver up to 507km of WLTP-rated range for the single motor version equipped with a larger 77kWh battery. Meanwhile, the more powerful twin-motor version with the 77kWh battery has a slightly shorter range of 454 km.

In case you missed it, you can check out our Hyundai Ioniq 5 Max Review which features twin motors and a slightly smaller 72.6kWh battery. — SoyaCincau