Hyundai has revealed the Ioniq 3 for Europe, a 4,155 mm battery-electric "aero hatchback" built on the E-GMP 400V platform shared with the Kia EV3 and upcoming EV4. Two front-wheel-drive configurations launch: a Standard Range with a 42.2 kWh pack and 144 hp / 108 kW for 344 km WLTP, and a Long Range with a 61 kWh pack and 133 hp / 100 kW for 496 km WLTP. Both develop 250 Nm. Claimed drag coefficient is 0.263.
The Long Range makes 11 hp less than the Standard Range. That is not a typo, and it is not an error. Long-range EVs on 400V architecture routinely detune the motor to protect range figures in the certification cycle, because a higher-output motor spends more time at the efficient part of the map only when the battery is large enough to absorb the loss. Hyundai has optimized for the range sticker, not the launch chart. WLTP puts the Long Range at 308 miles with a 0 to 100 km/h time that Hyundai is not yet disclosing. It will be slower than the Standard Range. The buyer Hyundai is after will not notice.
Where It Fits And What It Replaces
The Ioniq 3 slots above the Inster (3,825 mm, 97 hp) and below the Kona Electric (4,355 mm, 215 hp) in Hyundai's European EV lineup, effectively acting as a junior Ioniq 5 with 1,480 mm shaved off the length. Its 2,680 mm wheelbase matches the outgoing Elantra sedan, which tells you what the interior package is borrowing from. Boot volume lands at 441 liters with a double floor and a Ford Puma-style Megabox underneath, which is competitive for a sub-4.2-meter hatchback.
The competitive set is genuinely crowded: the Kia EV3 from its own parent group, plus the Mini Aceman, Renault 4 E-Tech, Ford Puma Gen-E, Jeep Avenger, Alfa Romeo Junior, Volvo EX30, Opel Mokka Electric on the crossover side, and the Renault 5 E-Tech, BYD Dolphin, MG4, and the upcoming VW ID.Polo on the hatchback side. Thirteen named rivals for one new Hyundai is what price discipline looks like before it gets tested.
The Detail Inside
The center stack runs a 14.6-inch free-standing touchscreen on top trims and a 12.9-inch display with a separate digital cluster on the rest of the range. Both get the Google-based Pleos infotainment system, making its production debut here. A row of physical switches sits above the climate vents, and the gear selector has moved to a right stalk to free up the center tunnel. The heated-and-ventilated Relaxation Seats and the Bose Premium audio are available on higher trims. This is a competitive interior package at the expected price point.
Production runs at Hyundai's Turkey plant, which is why the Ioniq 3 is not coming to the United States. European tariffs on a Turkey-built EV are workable; American tariffs on the same car would push pricing beyond what the segment will absorb. Hyundai's N division is separately exploring a hot-hatch Ioniq 3 N, which would reuse the dual-motor setup from the Kia EV3 GT-Line (up to 288 hp).
European deliveries begin in the second half of 2026. Final pricing will be announced closer to launch, though the positioning below the 35,000 EUR starting point of the current Kona Electric is the baseline to watch.