The 2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5 is the first non-Tesla vehicle to feature a NACS charge port. We conducted our 10-to-90 percent charge test at a Supercharger and an Electrify America charger to evaluate Hyundai’s assertion that Tesla Superchargers offer substantially faster charge speeds. The average charging rate between the two is now significantly closer than it was previously, with the total charging time being 40 minutes at the 400-volt Supercharger and 30 minutes at the 800-volt EA unit. About two years ago, Ford was the first automobile manufacturer to announce its intention to incorporate the Tesla charge port, which is also known as the NACS (North American Charging Standard) or J3400 by the Society of Automotive Engineers. It was not long before virtually all other automobile manufacturers followed suit. Nevertheless, the delay times for auto manufacturing are extensive, and at present, no Ford EV is equipped with NACS charging connectors. The 2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5 is the first non-Tesla EV to feature a NACS connector, which allows for charging at Tesla Superchargers without the necessity of an adapter. This particular Ioniq 5 is the new XRT model, which is designed for off-road use. It features all-terrain tires, an inch more ground clearance, and exceptionally powerful tow hooks to help it navigate any sticky situations it may encounter. In 2025, the battery packs of all Ioniq 5s will be considerably larger. The standard-range models will have 58–63 kWh, while the long-range variants will have 77–84 kWh in capacity. Furthermore, the Ioniq 5s will now be produced in the United States. It is of the utmost importance, however, that Hyundai guarantees a faster charging process at Tesla Superchargers than was previously possible. The Ioniq 5 has been one of the fastest-charging EVs in our evaluations; however, its 800-volt electrical architecture contributes to its faster charging speed. Tesla’s Superchargers operate at 400 volts until the release of the next-generation, 800-volt V4 hardware. However, Electrify America’s DC fast chargers operate at 800 volts. This disparity has resulted in significantly delayed charge times at Superchargers for the Ioniq 5 and other 800-volt EVs, such as the Porsche Taycan, Lucid Air, and other models from the Hyundai, Kia, and Genesis families. The Ioniq 5 was previously limited to a maximum charging rate of approximately 100 kW at a Supercharger, as opposed to a maximum of 240 kW at an 800-volt station. We have now conducted tests on the 2025 model’s 10- to 90 percent charging at a supercharger and at an 800-volt station, where we utilized an adaptor to transition from CCS to NACS in order to observe the difference. Although the NACS connector of the Ioniq 5 precludes the necessity for an adaptor, the process of charging at Tesla’s Superchargers, which are widely accessible, remains more complex than simply plugging in, as is the case with Teslas. The Tesla app is still employed to initiate a charge. The Tesla charging outcome was considerably improved prior to the customary tapering of the charge rate to 90 percent, as it maintained a consistent 127-kW speed from 10 percent to 74 percent state of charge. The most recent Ioniq 5 also charged more rapidly than its predecessor at the 800-volt EA station, with a high of 258 kW and an average of 141 kW between 10 and 90 percent. Although the Supercharger’s peak performance may appear to be significantly worse, the average is what matters. In addition, the average state of charge between 10 and 74 percent was 127 kW, which is not significantly different from the overall average of 141 kW with the 800-volt charger. This is because the high peak occurs early, and the charge rate subsequently gradually diminishes. The EA 350-kW charger required 30 minutes to charge from 10 to 90 percent, while the Supercharger required 40 minutes. Nevertheless, the 800-volt charging was nearly twice as rapid (11 minutes versus 21 minutes) from 10 to 60 percent. Consequently, the battery’s state of charge and charging level are the determining factors.
