You could recognize its round headlights and taillights from the Honda e. From the side you see a Suzuki Ignis without the diagonally folding rear side window. The Hyundai Inster is reminiscent of everything, but like the young Beethoven, it sometimes still resembles Mozart. Although you hear where it comes from, you already feel the genius in processing influences to the level of individuality that this little Korean has to a large extent.
What an endearing eye-catcher. And a smart one. The split rear seat is adjustable in length over a distance of 16 centimeters, so users can choose between more legroom or more luggage space. The suitcase can be expanded from 238 to 351 liters. The rear backrests are adjustable, so the Hyundai passenger can chill with the rear seat back and the backrest in the siesta position in the back like a CEO in an executive limo. Thanks to the folding backrests of both front seats, you could theoretically spend the night in the Inster. The floor is flat without a high center tunnel in the front, so you can slide from left to right and vice versa without any acrobatic feats on the front seats, which almost form a sofa due to the widened driver’s seat. With the rear seat in the rearmost position, the floppy parcel shelf becomes a hammock for extra items. The wireless phone charger is in exactly the right place under an optimally accessible climate control cluster with real buttons.
Nothing is stupid about this car. It is his most striking feature, reinforced by the form and therefore most attractive. Contemporary car designs are rarely intelligent. They serve an aesthetic-cum-psychological purpose, to be beautiful and to impress. Because it amounts to the same thing for many buyers, half the world drives SUVs. For smart car architecture you often have to go far back in time, for example to my Audi A2. When it was introduced in 1999, it was an ergonomic wonder with the interior space of a middle class car on the scale of a city car. In the premier league of brilliant people’s cars you will come across more highlights of thoughtfulness, from the Duck and the Fiat 500 to the first Renault Twingo, but the Inster is one in the outside category. It is impressive how Hyundai managed to squeeze substantial battery packs of 42 and 49 kWh under the floor, depending on the version, with which you can travel up to 327 and 370 kilometers respectively.
Parking garages
Something tells me that Hyundai’s design team has studied the A2 well, for which Audi was already considering an electric motor. The length and height of the Inster are almost identical. It is slightly narrower than the Audi, but that was the original design of the A2 even before the study model was widened by five centimeters to accommodate the interior space. Fortunately, the Inster was spared such interventions. Its small width of just over one meter sixty is a blessing for those who spend a lot of time in urban areas and parking garages. Nowadays, many middle class cars are easily twenty to thirty centimeters wider.
Photos: Merlijn Doomernik
To make matters worse, the Inster is as efficient with power as it is with space. On a rainy December day, after a highway ride of 208 kilometers with partly two adults on board and normal speeds for 118 kilometers of power, I have a promising result at an outside temperature of a maximum of five degrees. With such a winter score, this car will undoubtedly achieve its specified range on hot summer days. Also commendable is the self-control of the manufacturer, who proportionally motorized the Inster with 97 hp for the basic version and a more than sufficient 115 for the more luxurious Evolve. The equipment is not mediocre. The multimedia screen offers all the amenities of larger Hyundais and the top model Evolve Sky lacks virtually nothing, from mood lighting in 64 colors to adaptive cruise control, sliding roof and steering wheel heating.
The Inster stands head and shoulders above the competition. And especially with the bright interior, unfortunately only available in the most expensive versions, it has the charm of an upcoming classic. You should only have ordered it last year, when Hyundai doubled the 2,950 euro SEPP subsidy for quick decision-makers. Then you would have had the top model for 26,000 euros. That is now three grand more now that the state subsidy for private EVs is a thing of the past, but Hyundai Netherlands maintains the 2,950 euro discount. For example, you can still buy a basic Inster with a 42kWh battery, three-phase charger and a fast charger up to 73 kW for 21,345 euros, which is still not enough money for an unprecedented amount of car.