Tesla Model Y vs Hyundai Ioniq 5 vs Audi Q4 e-tron: an electric SUV battle royale

With all the headline-grabbing antics of its CEO, it can be easy to forget that Tesla actually builds cars. The Tesla Model Y was the best-selling car in the world in both 2023 and 2024, but the brand’s sales have slipped in early 2025 – with some observers quite reasonably suggesting that the decline isn’t down to the merits of the cars themselves. 

Even so, the firm’s engineers have been keeping their heads down, and the result is a heavily revised version of the Model Y. While it’s based on the existing car, there’s a lot new to take in, so are the changes enough to keep a car which previously showcased brilliant strengths, but a couple of niggling flaws, competing at the top of the table?

To find out, we’ve lined up the new model against two of its most capable rivals. For our first, it’s very much a case of ‘winner stays on’ in road tests. The Hyundai Ioniq 5 is fresh from a recent victory over the BYD Sealion, where it proved it’s still among the best in the business.

And if it’s upmarket appeal you’re after, a premium badge might swing your decision. The Audi Q4 e-tron competes in very similar circles to the other two, but is there more to it than the lure of a posh brand logo on the nose?

Tesla Model Y

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The latest 2025 model-year updates are the most significant the Tesla Model Y has received yet, and look to focus on a wide range of improvements across the board. 

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Many of these, including the more aerodynamic, Cybertruck-inspired face, aim to eke out even more range from what was already one of the most efficient cars in its class. A revised spoiler helps here, too, but there are also tweaks to the powertrain, including optimised lubricants and revised gear designs. A stiffer body structure, new suspension geometry and improved dampers aim to enhance comfort, while the steering ratio has been revised, too.

Elsewhere, Tesla has made some changes inside the cabin, with a redesigned interior that features 300 per cent faster WiFi, 65-watt USB-C charging, and a new glass roof, which reflects more solar energy, helping to keep things cool on a hot day.

Tester’s notes

No matter how many new cars we test, we’re yet to find one with automatic windscreen wipers that work properly. These systems have an uncanny knack of sweeping wildly when there’s barely a drop of drizzle in the sky, before failing to notice a deluge of rain when it’s hitting the windscreen. 

While all brands’ auto wipers are poor, Tesla makes them worse than anyone else. Please, Tesla: just give us a proper wiper stalk with a manual intermittent control. An auto mode could stay if you like, but we’re certain nobody would bother with it.

Hyundai Ioniq 5

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The Hyundai Ioniq 5 was a landmark model for Hyundai. While the brand had made very capable cars before in some cases good enough to challenge the very best in their respective segments – it wasn’t until this angular, retro-futuristic hatchback burst onto the scene that Hyundai offered family-car drivers something that was truly desirable.

When it arrived in 2021, nothing looked remotely like it, and that’s still the case four years later. Even among its mechanically similar siblings, the Kia EV6 and the Genesis GV60, which look unique in their own right, it’s the Hyundai that turns the most heads.

The design isn’t just striking, but cleverly executed, too. In pictures, its proportions suggest it’s the size of a family hatch such as a Volkswagen Golf, but in reality it’s larger. At 4.6 metres long, it’s even longer than the brand’s Tucson SUV, although it’s a little lower. 

A range of updates were incorporated as part of a mid-life refresh. The most obvious is the introduction of the N Line and N Line S trims. An angular bodykit inspired by the hot Ioniq 5 N model adds a sporty aesthetic to the main range. All cars also gain a beefed-up rear axle and revised shock absorbers.

Tester’s notes

Big electric cars such as these are fairly hefty, and from 1,880kg in its base small-battery form up to 2,190kg in all wheel-drive form, the Ioniq 5 is no different. It’s under braking where the model’s mass is most noticeable, with emergency stops revealing that it’s not quite as responsive as a smaller, lighter car. 

Motor regeneration helps with smaller deceleration manoeuvres, and the steering wheel-mounted paddles to adjust through a series of regen strengths are excellent. It’s among the best systems we’ve used in an EV.

Audi Q4 e-tron

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Audi’s EV family is seemingly growing by the month, although the Audi Q4 e-tron still remains among the most popular choices with buyers. It’s easy to see why; the family SUV offers the premium badge appeal that Audi buyers love so much, at a price which isn’t too far beyond the level of a range of mainstream models. 

It’s a well trodden formula for Audi; after all, the A3 hatchback shares its mechanical make-up with a Volkswagen Golf, and here, Audi uses the same MEB architecture as the VW ID.4, but with a posher bias to its cabin.

There are other premium contenders that the Q4 e-tron has to beat, and it holds up fairly well against them. It’s more efficient than the expensive Genesis GV60, its range is better than the BMW iX1’s and it’s more roomy inside than the Mercedes EQA.

Tester’s notes

The Q4’s steering wheel looks a little odd at first; its squared-off shape reminds us ever so slightly of an Austin Allegro’s wheel. As with BL’s most infamous of machines, the shape actually works quite well in practice, but the issue here lies with what’s going on between the outer wheel rim. 

The spokes are covered in a bank of touch-sensitive buttons, several of which are placed exactly where many drivers would rest their hands when driving normally. On more than one occasion I clipped the ‘skip track’ button by accident.

Head-to-head

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On the road 

Tesla has vastly improved the Model Y’s ride and refinement, to the point where the former is firm but acceptable, and the latter is as good as it gets in the class, much like its straight-line performance always has been. 

The Ioniq 5 is a little soft and doesn’t quite have the same sophistication to its ride, while the Audi has the best blend of suppleness over bumps with handling and balance on a twisty road.

Tech highlights

Tesla has targeted a wide range of improvements for the Model Y in 2025 to boost efficiency, refinement and in-car tech. As such, the company claims that its SUV is quieter and more comfortable than ever before.

Hyundai has focused on boosting ride comfort and steering precision on the Ioniq 5. The Q4 uses the VW Group’s MEB platform, and comes with a selection of powertrains and battery capacities.  

Price and running

Efficiency has always been a Tesla strong point, and the Model Y proved to be comfortably the most adept of this trio in this area, averaging 3.9mi/kWh in mixed driving. 

That’s enough for a range just short of 300 miles, which is impressive given that we didn’t shy away from motorway driving. The Audi came in at 3.4mi/kWh (a 262-mile range), while the Ioniq 5 was least efficient, at 3.1mi/kWh (260 miles).

Practicality 

All three are very spacious in the back. The Ioniq 5 feels the lightest and most airy, but its seats are short of under-thigh support.

The Audi’s back seats are the most comfortable, but the Tesla has the best mix of space and support. It also has the largest, most versatile boot; the Audi’s load bay is spacious but there’s no frunk, while the Hyundai’s boot is a little too shallow, despite its impressive volume.

Safety

The Audi, Hyundai and Tesla all scooped maximum five-star ratings when they were tested by Euro NCAP (in 2021 for the first two and a year later for the Tesla). 

Since then, tweaks to the driver-assist systems of each have improved them further, and Hyundai has even gone to the extent of boosting the car’s passive safety by toughening up the Ioniq 5’s structure around the B pillar area, too.

Ownership

Tesla ranked extremely strongly in our 2024 Driver Power owner satisfaction survey, finishing second overall in the brand rankings behind only Subaru. Hyundai took 17th and Audi finished a lowly 27th out of 32. 

But of those three brands, Tesla owners experienced the most faults, with 37.9 per cent of them finding an issue of some sort, compared with 22.8 per cent for Hyundai and 21.3 per cent of Audi drivers.

Verdict

Winner: Tesla Model Y

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If you’re making your car-buying choice based on rational reasons, the Tesla is pretty much impossible to overlook. The 2025 updates have added to the Model Y’s class-leading performance and efficiency with much-improved ride and refinement.

Interior and boot space is as good as ever, and Tesla’s Supercharger network is the best by some margin. We still wish there were more physical controls, though.

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Runner-up: Hyundai Ioniq 5

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In its last group test victory, we called the Ioniq 5 “one of the most convincing and desirable family EVs money can buy”. We still stand by that, but the Model Y pips its rival for many sensible reasons that will make it easy to live with.

Charging convenience, efficiency and the boot design are key areas where the Hyundai can’t quite match the Tesla. There’s still a lot to like, such as an airy cabin, soft ride and strong performance, along with the striking exterior design. 

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Third place: Audi Q4 e-tron

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Bringing up the rear here might be a poor result, but in reality the Q4 e-tron has simply come up against very tough competition. In isolation, it’s still a very competent all-rounder, with decent efficiency, lots of space and a well finished cabin. 

While few models are outstanding in this class when it comes to handling and steering, the Audi is towards the top of the pile. In this company, however, it’s just a little to pricey and not quite well equipped enough to compete.

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Prices and spec

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