2023 Hyundai Ioniq 6 triumphs in EV efficiency

Tesla may grab all the attention when it comes to electric vehicles, but Hyundai just bested the market leader on who has the more efficient EV.

Hyundai's Ioniq 6, which goes on sale this spring, has been rated higher than Tesla's most efficient Model 3 on the EPA MPGe scale.

With a combined MPGe rating of 140, the base SE Long Range version of its 2023 Ioniq 6 with rwd also matched the industry's top two nameplates on the EPA efficiency scale — the 2023 Lucid Air Pure awd with 19-inch wheels and the 2023 Lucid Air Touring awd with 19-inch wheels. Both Lucid models are also rated at 140 combined MPGe.

Tesla's popular Model 3 rwd has an MPGe of 132.

MPGe, or miles per gallon equivalent, is the EPA's calculation of an EV's energy efficiency, equal to miles per gallon on an internal combustion engine vehicle. The measurement equates 33.7 kilowatts to 1 gallon of gasoline.

Hyundai said the 2023 Ioniq 6 SE Long Range with rwd has an EPA-estimated range of 361 miles, while the same model with awd has an EPA-estimated range of 316 miles.

In addition to giving the mass-market Hyundai brand bragging rights in its marketing campaign, the high efficiency rating also flags Hyundai's growing prominence in the EV field.

Hyundai Motor Co., including its Genesis luxury brand, sold 26,320 EVs last year, according to data from Motor Intelligence. Together with Kia America, part of parent Hyundai Motor Group, it sold 58,028 EVs.

That is right on the heels of Ford Motor Co., which sold 61,575 EVs. The battle between Ford and Hyundai for the No. 2 position far behind Tesla, which sold an estimated 803,072 EVs, will continue to heat up in 2023. Ford expects to increase deliveries of both the Lightning F-150 pickup and Mach-E, while Hyundai and Kia both roll out new EVs this year.

The Ioniq 6 will be Hyundai's second dedicated EV following the Ioniq 5 crossover. Hyundai refers to it as a streamliner because of its sleek, aerodynamic shape that reduces wind resistance to a low drag coefficient of 0.22.

Engineers designed the vehicle to optimize efficiency, versus saddling it with a bigger battery. In addition to its fastback roofline, it has a low nose, slight boat-tail structure and full underbody cover.

Other efficiency boosters include active air flaps, an elliptical wing-inspired spoiler with winglet, separation traps on both sides of the bumper, wind deflectors and reduced wheel-arch gaps.

However, this is not the first time Hyundai has ranked No. 1 on EPA-rated efficiency. The 2017 Hyundai Ioniq, discontinued after the 2021 model year, achieved a list-topping 136 MPGe when it debuted in 2017. That model remained a leader in efficiency until Tesla topped it with the 2020 Model 3 Standard Range Plus, rated at 141 MPGe. That version of the Model 3 is no longer available.