All-electric Hyundai Inster priced from £23,495

Hyundai has announced prices for its electric Inster city car, with the range kicking off at £23,495, and topping out at £26,745 for the fully-loaded variant. 

This places it a little higher than Citroen’s bigger, supermini-sized e-C3, but the Korean company is hoping the Inster’s funky looks will sway buyers. The EV is due to go on a dealership roadshow across the UK over the next three months, with the first customer cars arriving early next year. 

The Inster is available with 42kWh and ‘Long Range’ 49kWh battery sizes in a well equipped ‘01’ trim level that includes alloy wheels, climate control, rear parking sensors, a 10.25-inch touchscreen nav system and cruise control. 

The 49kWh battery is also available with ‘02’ trim, which throws in extra kit such as front parking sensors and ambient interior lighting.

Hyundai says the ‘Long Range’ car is capable of a range of up to 229 miles, which in conjunction with the smallest 15-inch wheels, contributes to a Dacia Spring-beating claimed range. The standard car will do 203 miles on a charge.

All cars get a 120kW maximum DC charging rate, which Hyundai says makes the Inster good for a 10-80 per cent top up in 30 minutes. The city car will charge at 11kW (AC) where conditions allow, meaning a full charge of the bigger battery is possible in four hours and 35 minutes. The charge port (both AC and DC) is located on the nose, and it will also feature Vehicle to Load (V2L) technology.

The Inster’s body and wheelbase have been stretched slightly compared with the petrol Casper to accommodate the new car’s EV powertrain. Measuring 3,825mm long, 1,610mm wide and 1,575mm tall, the Hyundai is a little bit longer than the Spring, but shorter than the new Citroen e-C3. Hyundai claims 280 litres of boot space, or 351 litres with the sliding rear seats pushed fully forward. The upright stance should provide decent headroom inside.

The Inster’s design is distanced from other Hyundai EVs’, thanks to its unique proportions and bold front end. Much of the look has been lifted from the petrol-powered Casper, so the only real tie-in with the brand’s Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 6 models is the pixel-style lighting signatures to the front and rear. 

Cladding along the sills and wheel arches gives the Inster more pseudo-SUV style than the Casper, complemented by a set of roof rails and silver scuff plates at both ends. As on the Casper, the rear door handles are hidden in the C-pillar.

Inside, the Inster features a “walk-through” front cabin with fold-flat seating for all four seats. There’s no centre console as such; instead the front seats merge into a kind of bench, with  a pair of cupholders nestled within, plus a fold-down armrest to create some separation. 

The suite of safety kit isn’t lacking either, with Hyundai listing features like an around-view monitor, blind-spot warning and autonomous emergency braking.