Hyundai Motor Group formally announced Tuesday that the award-winning IONIQ 5 electric SUV will be the inaugural model to enter production at its upcoming Metaplant in Georgia as early as this fall, GPB reports.
IONIQ 5 production to kick off this year
Hyundai plans to begin the production of the 2025 IONIQ 5 sometime between October and December 2024 at its currently under-construction electric vehicle and battery factory in Bryan County near Savannah.
Remarkably, this timeframe is ahead of the South Korean automaker’s original target of early 2025.
“We are in the final phase of construction and are getting ready for the 2025 Hyundai IONIQ 5 to roll off the line. It’s the ideal vehicle for us to start production with.”
Oscar Kwon, Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America – Georgia CEO
Ongoing training and trial production
Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America is actively training its employees and conducting trial production. These are crucial steps for the company, considering it aims to start commercial production by October 2024.
“It’s all about training. We call our employees’ Meta Pros.’ All of our Meta Pros that are hourly workers, that will be working on the line [and] have been training for months, being paid to train — now they’re getting into the factory and actually getting to do what they were trained to do. And that’s really exciting.”
Joe LaMuraglia, Hyundai Metaplant Communications Director
The upcoming factory will reportedly produce all trim lines of the Hyundai Ioniq 5 except the sporty Ioniq 5 N.
The Metaplant is expected to become the sole factory to produce the IONIQ 5 for sale in the United States, potentially enabling it to access federal tax credits of up to $7,500. However, Hyundai omitted from disclosing a timeline for this strategy.
The 2025 Hyundai IONIQ 5
Hyundai has not yet introduced the 2025 IONIQ 5 in the US. Nonetheless, it will surely have updates similar to those of its South Korean counterpart, which was introduced in March.
It boasts a larger battery pack of 84 kWh from the original 77.4 kWh. In South Korea, the updated electric SUV promises a driving range of 485 km (301 miles), a notable increase from the prior 458 km (285 miles). Moreover, the larger battery now enables the Hyundai IONIQ 5 to support an even faster charging capability owing to its redesigned circuitry: 10%-80% charge in just 18 minutes.
The Hyundai IONIQ 5 is also the brand’s first model to ride on the 800v E-GMP architecture, enabling the electric SUV to deliver stronger performance.
On the other hand, Hyundai’s upcoming Metaplant is currently the largest economic development project in Georgia’s history. It secured a substantial incentive package, with state and local officials offering $2.1 billion in tax breaks.
According to the South Korean automaker, the facility and its onsite suppliers will collectively generate approximately 8,500 direct jobs for Americans. In return, Hyundai can potentially gain eligibility for the IRA’s federal tax credits in the US market.
