Sitting atop Hyundai’s EV-specific E-GMP architecture, the Seven, and the Ioniq 7, benefits from a flat floor, short overhangs and bonnet, and a 3200mm-long wheelbase – roughly as long as that of even the largest version of the Mercedes-Benz S-Class – all features that allow for a much more spacious cabin environment than offered by Hyundai’s existing SUVs.
It is in this respect that the production-spec Ioniq 7 will differ most obviously from the concept, which ditches a conventional three-row seating layout in favour of a more “fluid” format comprising a pair of movable, swivelling armchairs – complete with footrests – and a curved corner sofa-style arrangement at the back of the cabin.
On the Seven concept, a retractable joystick replaced the steering wheel, for example, and in place of a conventional dashboard, a sleek digital control panel spans the width of the cabin – an evolution of the set-up shown in the Prophecy concept – while a huge OLED screen in the ceiling serves as a sort of virtual sunroof with customisable displays.
With the front seats turned rearwards, the Seven is transformed into a mobile lounge, with ambient lighting supplied by distinctive tube-shaped devices in the door panels, an inbuilt fridge and even dedicated shoe care compartments.
Which of these, if any, will make it to production remains unclear, but Hyundai design boss SangYup Lee said the Seven “paves the way forward for what an SUV needs to become in the EV era”, suggesting a similar ethos will be applied to production cars.