Say hello to…
…the Hyundai Inster, an all-electric city car that’s not only cute on the outside, but exceedingly practical inside too. Two battery sizes (42kWh and 49kWh) and two trim levels are available. The smaller battery version is powered by a 97hp motor and the long range version is powered by a 115hp motor.
- 01
- 02
Standard kit on the 01 includes 15-inch alloys, aircon, auto headlights, cruise control, power fold door mirrors, heat pump, reversing camera, rear parkings sensors, keyless entry, Bluetooth, 10.25-inch digital driver’s display, 10.25-inch infotainment screen, satnav, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto and 2x USB sockets
02 trim adds 17-inch alloys, a third USB socket, wireless phone charging, uprated stereo, front parking sensors, heated steering wheel and privacy glass.
Is the Hyundai Inster suitable for my fleet?
Small city cars aren’t usually big fleet sellers. However, while the Inster may look small from the outside, it doesn’t feel like one to drive and that capability means it could be far more fleet-suitable than you’d think at first glance. Anyone after a local runaround or a user-chooser looking for a car that’s suitable for a local communte should think about the Inster.
The boot’s a very respectable 280 litres and there’s room in the back for two adults. The car’s also equipped with a heat-pump as standard.
Leasing a Hyundai Inster
Gateway2lease is offering the Hyundai Inster for £308 a month on a 9+36 contract with 10,000 miles a year. Maintenance is forecast at £23 per month, by Gensen Reports and the Class 1A NIC comes in at £10 per month.
Driving a Hyundai Inster
Smaller electric cars make a lot of sense. Lower weight equals greater efficiency.
Without any effort to drive efficiently, we saw a figure of 4.4 miles per kWh on the trip computer which equates to a range of 202 miles, given the 46kWh usable battery size. This figure also includes some motorway driving, which makes it even more impressive.
FleetandLeasing.com has little doubt the official range figure of 225 miles would be easily achievable with a little more concern for efficient driving.
The Inster isn’t just an efficient small car, it’s also a fun small car that’s nippy and agile with precise steering. Even at lower speeds the Inster makes you feel happier about the world.
Comfort levels are very good too. The seats are supportive and the small EV hatchback rides well over potholes and speedbumps.
Take the Hyundai on the motorway and it’s surprisingly capable there too. Yes, you feel a bit small next to lorries, but the Inster still feels powerful enough and stable enough to cope with faster speeds.
The Inster offers different drive modes including Sport, Normal and Eco. The difference these make to the character of the car is marked and welcome, even though the majority will just stick with Normal.
The only real downside is the (lack of) processor power for the infotainment system. It takes an age to boot up. Especially from cold.
While you can just put the car in Drive and set off. You won’t have Apple CarPlay (or, Android Auto) for about the first minute of your journey. It doesn’t sound like a lot, but what it means is that you’re then adjusting controls (such as for lane keeping and speed limit warnings) on the move, rather than before you set off. Less than ideal.
It may have been more noticeable because we’d previously been driving the latest Ioniq 5 which uses the same operating system for infotainment, but is substantially faster to boot up.
This point will only cause annoyance for some and even then, it wouldn’t stop us running one.
Because the Inster proves low cost and small, doesn’t mean cheap and boring.
Verdict on the Hyundai Inster
Not just a fantastic electric city car, but a fantastic city car, full stop.
Hyundai Inster
- Model: Inster 02 49kWh
- Power: 115hp
- Torque: 147Nm
- Max speed: 115mph
- 0-62mph: 10.6s
- Official range: 225 miles
- Test range: 202 miles
- CO2 emissions: 0g/km
- BIK tax band 2025/26: 3%
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