Socalsp3
Well-Known Member
- Thread starter
- #1
So I finally picked up my MME RWD select with tech PKG last week. I've been driving base model Ioniq 5 AWD for the past 3 mos. MSRP are 48700 for i5 and 47300 for MME before incentives.
First impressions of MME was the nice interior. The materials are premium. Surprised it was so nice for a base trim. Base i5 has a lot more plastic and seats are cloth. MME seats are more supportive and comfy. i5 is more spacious though. Surpringly i5 is 5 inches shorter. But it's boxy and maximizes interior space. It's geared for a relaxing experience. The MME is definitely more sporty looking with more curves at the expense of interior space. It's definitely geared for a sporty and an exciting driving experience. MME has a more cozy seating space but has a little more cargo capacity than i5.
For the driving experience you do feel the excitement and mojo of MME when you start it up and roll down the street. People seem to notice it bit more than i5 even when nothing else really looks like an i5. The suspension between the two is night and day though. I have noticed the MMEs firm and bouncy ride. I seem to feel every bump on the road which is fine but feeling the subsequent bounces after is a bit annoying. It feels like its not dampened at all. I lowered the tire pressure from 40 to 36 with a little improvement. The I5 probably has the best ride quality for EVs. The ride feels like a BMW 528i I once had. It takes initial bumps well and there's no bounce. MME cornering is slightly better though. RWD Acceleration is fast enough but of course doesn't knock you back like an AWD. 5.8s vs 4.5s 0-60 between the two.
I find the i5 driver assistance a lot better. My biggest gripe with BC is that it limits you to mapped roads and lane centering doesn't work without BC on. Most city streets I drive on are not mapped. The Hyundai system is simpler but works fairly well on any road with lane markings. It makes driving almost effortless most of the time. Handsfree driving is a nice idea but BC disengages so often that it's not that useful. I5 system is not supposed to be handsfree and gives you about 15s before nagging which is about how often bluecruise disengages for sharper curves anyway. I'd rather have something more reliable I can use 90% of the time than something that works a little better but I can only use for 50% of the drive.
In the i5 after 1500 miles I've been getting 280+ miles of range and 3.7 mi/kwh in 50/50 hwy city driving. SR MME Real world range is around 250 I believe. I've only been doing CCS charging with i5 because it's free for 2 years. I actually like to go charge because it doesn't take long and it's free. It's been taking about 20mins or less to charge 10 to 80% on a 150 kw charger. Between range and fast charging I5 is the better road tripper of the two.
MME is the better value though. I was able to get 2500 off with Ford options. Hyundai financing only gives you 500. For all you get with the tech pkg and better materials it's an insane value. Base model i5 doesn't have power lift gate or rear ac vents which is ridiculous for a 48k car. Also Android auto/carplay is only available as wired in all trims. I bought a wireless dongle but it was buggy. Wireless AA is so convenient. I love PAAK on the mme. It was easy to setup and has been reliable. PAAK is only on highest trim on the i5 and is android only, and the dealer has to program it.
I recommend test driving the MME if you can for the suspension. It's a real deal breaker for some people. MME right now retains its value better than the i5. I5 hasn't been out long enough for people to figure out its used prices. You probably won't be able to sell a used i5 at msrp when you can probably get more than msrp for your MME.
Both are great cars in their own way and are better at certain things than the other. I'm going to stick with the i5. I like the ride quality and using autosteer almost all the time. My wife doesn't care too much about that so she gets the mme. I think people would be happy with either if they know what exactly they are looking for in an EV. Hope that helps for those that are on the fence between the two.
First impressions of MME was the nice interior. The materials are premium. Surprised it was so nice for a base trim. Base i5 has a lot more plastic and seats are cloth. MME seats are more supportive and comfy. i5 is more spacious though. Surpringly i5 is 5 inches shorter. But it's boxy and maximizes interior space. It's geared for a relaxing experience. The MME is definitely more sporty looking with more curves at the expense of interior space. It's definitely geared for a sporty and an exciting driving experience. MME has a more cozy seating space but has a little more cargo capacity than i5.
For the driving experience you do feel the excitement and mojo of MME when you start it up and roll down the street. People seem to notice it bit more than i5 even when nothing else really looks like an i5. The suspension between the two is night and day though. I have noticed the MMEs firm and bouncy ride. I seem to feel every bump on the road which is fine but feeling the subsequent bounces after is a bit annoying. It feels like its not dampened at all. I lowered the tire pressure from 40 to 36 with a little improvement. The I5 probably has the best ride quality for EVs. The ride feels like a BMW 528i I once had. It takes initial bumps well and there's no bounce. MME cornering is slightly better though. RWD Acceleration is fast enough but of course doesn't knock you back like an AWD. 5.8s vs 4.5s 0-60 between the two.
I find the i5 driver assistance a lot better. My biggest gripe with BC is that it limits you to mapped roads and lane centering doesn't work without BC on. Most city streets I drive on are not mapped. The Hyundai system is simpler but works fairly well on any road with lane markings. It makes driving almost effortless most of the time. Handsfree driving is a nice idea but BC disengages so often that it's not that useful. I5 system is not supposed to be handsfree and gives you about 15s before nagging which is about how often bluecruise disengages for sharper curves anyway. I'd rather have something more reliable I can use 90% of the time than something that works a little better but I can only use for 50% of the drive.
In the i5 after 1500 miles I've been getting 280+ miles of range and 3.7 mi/kwh in 50/50 hwy city driving. SR MME Real world range is around 250 I believe. I've only been doing CCS charging with i5 because it's free for 2 years. I actually like to go charge because it doesn't take long and it's free. It's been taking about 20mins or less to charge 10 to 80% on a 150 kw charger. Between range and fast charging I5 is the better road tripper of the two.
MME is the better value though. I was able to get 2500 off with Ford options. Hyundai financing only gives you 500. For all you get with the tech pkg and better materials it's an insane value. Base model i5 doesn't have power lift gate or rear ac vents which is ridiculous for a 48k car. Also Android auto/carplay is only available as wired in all trims. I bought a wireless dongle but it was buggy. Wireless AA is so convenient. I love PAAK on the mme. It was easy to setup and has been reliable. PAAK is only on highest trim on the i5 and is android only, and the dealer has to program it.
I recommend test driving the MME if you can for the suspension. It's a real deal breaker for some people. MME right now retains its value better than the i5. I5 hasn't been out long enough for people to figure out its used prices. You probably won't be able to sell a used i5 at msrp when you can probably get more than msrp for your MME.
Both are great cars in their own way and are better at certain things than the other. I'm going to stick with the i5. I like the ride quality and using autosteer almost all the time. My wife doesn't care too much about that so she gets the mme. I think people would be happy with either if they know what exactly they are looking for in an EV. Hope that helps for those that are on the fence between the two.
Sponsored
Last edited:
