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The Hyundai Elexio is initially offered in just one mid-spec grade – which will surge in price by up to $9000 come April – but the car maker says a more affordable alternative isn't far behind.
Electric Cars
The price of the 2026 Hyundai Elexio electric mid-size SUV is set to surge by about $6000 to $9000 when an 'introductory' drive-away offer is discontinued in less than six weeks' time.
To soften the blow, Hyundai will introduce a new entry-level version of its latest electric car, simply named Elexio, due to arrive in Australia between April and June this year.
It will share the current, high-spec Elite grade's motor and battery pack, but will lose out on some premium features to bring the price down to $58,990 plus on-road costs, $90 dearer than a base Tesla Model Y.
The Elexio has launched in one Elite model grade with a $59,990 drive-away sticker, which will rise to $61,990 plus on-road costs from April 1.
It will represent a price increase after on-road costs of between $6034 and $9221, depending on the state of registration, according to the Hyundai website.
Like the Kia EV5, the Elexio is made in China, but unlike its stablemate, the line-up is limited to two grades with front-wheel drive only.
The EV5 Air and Air Long Range are also FWD, but the higher-spec Earth and GT-Line are all-wheel drive.
Hyundai’s temporary pricing helps it undercut its Kia counterpart, which currently starts from $56,770 before on-roads for the Air, as well as the segment-leading Tesla Model Y, which costs from $58,900 before on-roads for the Premium Rear-Wheel Drive.
Both versions of the Elexio are based on a 400-volt architecture said to be a version of Hyundai-Kia’s Electric-Global Modular Platform (E-GMP), with a single 160kW/310Nm motor driving the front wheels only, and an 88.1kWh battery.
Despite sharing the same battery, the cheaper Elexio offers marginally more driving range, as it rides on more aerodynamic 18-inch wheels rather than the Elite’s 20s.
The Elexio has a claimed driving range of 562km, while the Elite quotes 546km, both according to European WLTP testing. Claimed energy consumption for both grades is rated at 18.2kWh/100km.
Both can be charged from 10 to 80 per cent in a claime 38 minutes at a maximum of 150kW.
As standard, the Elexio features a 27-inch touchscreen with an integrated passenger display, a small digital instrument cluster in the driver's line of sight, cloth seats, a six-speaker audio system, a six-way power-adjustable driver’s seat, and a wireless phone charger.
It also features Hyundai’s Bluelink connected-car services with over-the-air software updates, including its Digital Key 2.
The Elite adds leather-appointed seats, a heated steering wheel, dual wireless smartphone chargers, a powered tailgate, a 14-way power-adjustable driver's seat with memory, a four-way power-adjustable passenger seat, and heated and ventilated front seats.
Crash-testing authority ANCAP has also given the Elexio a five-star rating as of last week, based on the EV5.
The 2026 Hyundai Elexio is on sale now, with the base grade due to arrive in the second quarter of this year.
2026 Hyundai Elexio standard features (base grade:
2026 Hyundai Elexio Elite adds (over Elexio):
Available colours include:
Standalone options:
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A born-and-bred newshound, Kathryn has worked her way up through the ranks reporting for, and later editing, two renowned UK regional newspapers and websites, before moving on to join the digital newsdesk of one of the world’s most popular newspapers – The Sun. More recently, she’s done a short stint in PR in the not-for-profit sector, and led the news team at Wheels Media.
