2019 Hyundai Nexo Review in Peoria, AZ

The Futuristic Features of the Hyundai Nexo

When people think of green vehicles, they typically think of electric-assisted cars. This can include plug-in hybrids or full-on electric vehicles. Hyundai has been working to make a new kind of green energy work in the automotive industry: hydrogen fuel-cell powered cars. Hyundai's latest vehicle in this futuristic lineup is the Nexo. The Nexo is the only fuel-cell powered SUV in the world.

So why try a hydrogen fuel-cell powered vehicle? Well, they are a lot more convenient than your standard electric vehicle. Refueling them is the same as refueling a standard combustion engine. The only difference is that you are pumping hydrogen into your car, not gasoline. Also, instead of producing a toxic carbon byproduct as exhaust, the Nexo produces clean H2O as its emission. Overall manufacturers like Hyundai are trying to make hydrogen fuel-cell powered vehicles more common, so more infrastructure is built to support them. Hydrogen-powered cars typically have longer ranges than standard electric cars, but the network of fuel stations is not as vast as the network of fast chargers available.

The Hyundai Nexo is Efficient & Fun to Drive

Measuring performance on a hydrogen fuel-cell powered vehicle is a bit different than a standard one. Most people don't even know how a hydrogen fuel-cell works. Basically, the hydrogen is stored in a tank. Then it is transported into the fuel-cell as needed. There, it is introduced to oxygen, and this creates an electrochemical reaction. This reaction creates electricity to power the Nexo, and it emits water as its byproduct. The system in the Nexo has a combined power of 135 kW. It gets 95 kW from its fuel cell reaction and 40 kW from the lithium-ion polymer battery. When this power is transported to the onboard motor, it produces 120 kW of power. This converts to 161 hp and 291 lb-ft of torque. The great thing about vehicles with electric powertrains is the instant torque they provide. If you have never driven an electric vehicle, you will be pleasantly surprised by how quick they accelerate from a dead stop. The Hyundai Nexo's powertrain is incredibly efficient, as well. You get a range of 380 miles in the standard Blue trim and a range of 354 miles in the luxurious Limited trim. This is most likely caused by differences in weight and wheel sizes. The Nexo only comes in FWD, which is generally the most fuel-efficient layout for any vehicle.

Built with Safety in Mind, Inside & Out

Moving on to the safety technology that the Nexo offers: first up, we have Smart Cruise Control with Stop and Go. This system allows you to input your desired cruising speed like any other cruise control system. Where this system becomes unique is when a car is in front of you. The Nexo will use radar guidance to lock onto that vehicle and keep a predetermined distance. This system works even if the vehicle in front of you come to a complete stop. This system is a must-have for anyone that spends a lot of time commuting or in rush hour traffic. Lane Follow Assist works great in conjunction with the Smart Cruise Control. This system will keep the Nexo in its lane automatically, which takes a lot of the tedium and fatigue out of long-distance driving. A technology you will notice as soon as you make your first turn is the Blind View Monitor. This system activates as soon as you put on your turn signal. It broadcasts a wide-angle view of your blind spot to your instrument cluster. This helps to broaden your field of vision past your mirrors.

Aside from practical, day-to-day safety tech, the Hyundai Nexo is also outfitted with features that can prevent collisions and keep you out of harm's way. First up, we have the Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist. This system scans the road ahead of the Nexo to search for any object that may come into your path. If you fail to react quickly to a detected object, the Nexo will automatically apply emergency braking to avoid or reduce the severity of the accident. This system works with pedestrians and vehicles. Next up, we have the Blind-Spot Collision Warning. If you fail to notice a vehicle in your blind spot, the system will alert you with an audio warning. Another audio alert the Nexo can give is the Driver Attention Warning. The Nexo will notify you if it senses that you are drowsy or distracted, keeping you alert until you reach your destination.

To help you park more easily when you get to your destination, we have the rear cross-traffic collision warning system. This system will scan the area behind the vehicle as you are in reverse and notify you if any object comes into the path of the Nexo. This is great for getting out of tight and crowded parking lots. There are also parking sensors front and rear to help you fully get into your parking spots without hitting anything. If you want the Nexo to park itself, you can use the Remote Smart Parking Assist (RSPA) (Auto parking function). Many vehicles can help guide you into tough parking spots or even do some of the steering inputs for you. This feature takes it to the next level. You can be out of your Nexo, and with the push of a Smart Key button, the Nexo will find a space and park itself. When you need your Nexo, you just push a button, and Remote Smart Parking Assist will automatically summon the Nexo to you like a valet. This system can help parallel park, and back into a perpendicular parking space. This is one of the most seamless technologies on the Nexo.

Advanced Tech to Enhance Your Drive

The technology in the Nexo can be split into two tiers, features designed to keep you safe, as we've covered, and those that are designed to entertain. The Nexo has a good balance of both to give you the ultimate driving experience. When cruising around in the Nexo, you will appreciate the 440-watt Krell 8 speaker premium audio system. This system is also fitted with the Clari-Fi music restoration system. This system can take your digitally compressed audio files and enhance them to sound even better coming out of the Krell speakers. Your passengers will be quite impressed with the audio clarity and fidelity that this system produces. To control what track you are jamming out to, you can use either the 12.3-inch touchscreen display or the steering wheel mounted audio controls. These options help you to stay connected while driving safely. Another great feature to help you stay connected while minimizing driver distraction is the inclusion of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. These systems allow you to pair your smartphone to the Nexo's infotainment system, and they allow you to access features of your phone through the Nexo directly. This helps to cut down on distractions caused by your smart devices. To help keep your devices going for the whole trip, the Nexo has a wireless charging pad which is incredibly easy to use. You just take a compatible device that needs to be charged and rest it on the charging surface. No cords or wires needed. If you need to charge multiple devices, the Nexo has you covered. There is a USB with audio capabilities, a 12-volt outlet up front, and a 110V power outlet in the 2nd row. One of the coolest features unique to Hyundai's lineup is Blue Link. This app allows you to remotely start the vehicle and change the climate controls depending on the weather. It also allows you to track your Nexo and see the health of your vehicle. It is like your Nexo can tell you how its feeling and when it needs service.

Functional & Refined: The Nexo's Interior Places You in Command

Stepping inside the interior of the Nexo, you feel as you are transported into the future. The interior of the Nexo is one of the most high-tech ones in the whole automotive industry. If there were one word to describe the interior of the Nexo, it would be precision. Everything is exactly where it should be and laid out in a way that allows you ease of access with minimal distraction. At the helm of the Nexo, you find two massive digital displays. First, there is the 7-inch digital dash, and then there is the 12.3-inch multimedia touchscreen. The Nexo makes it abundantly clear to its driver that it is filled to the brim with technology.

The Nexo has features to make your drive more comfortable. It has heated and ventilated front seats, so you can keep your whole body at your ideal temperature. Those seats are also power-adjustable. The driver's seat is 8-way power-adjustable, while the passenger's side is a 6-way. The steering wheel has convenient controls for the multimedia interface and also has a heated option for those cold mornings. The Nexo has storage everywhere, including a storage cubby underneath the dual-tier center console. To make the interior feel even more spacious, Hyundai fitted it will a sunroof. This gives you a more light and airy feeling to the interior, especially when combined with the stone gray color. The Nexo also has remote keyless entry, so you don't have to go digging for your keys. You just walk up to it, and the recessed door handles will automatically present themselves.

Explore the Hyundai Nexo Lineup

The Nexo is not like other electric vehicles, as it only has two trim options. There is the base Blue model and the more luxury-focused Limited model. Hyundai also does not overwhelm you with option packages, as the only option on each trim is the exterior color. The Blue base model of the Nexo comes with most features as standard. You get a 380-mile range, and it comes with stylish 17-inch alloy wheels. It also comes with the 12.3-inch LCD touchscreen as standard along with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. When you step up to the Limited trim, you only get 354 miles of range out of the Nexo. You also get 19-inch alloy wheels and a power tilting sunroof, as well as a few more safety technologies like the blind view monitoring system and the remote smart parking assist. The Limited also comes with a few more luxury features like ventilated front seats and a power liftgate. The liftgate really comes in handy when your arms are full of groceries. Overall, no matter what specification of Nexo you get, they are both very well equipped. For people that want to get the maximum amount of range out of their Nexo, you may want to get the Blue. The Limited is better for people who value technology and luxury over range. The difference in range is not that noticeable, and there is less range anxiety with hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles, as it only takes five minutes to fill them up. This is opposed to over an hour of charging for a fully electric vehicle.

Getting into the design language of the Nexo, it looks like nothing else on the road. Electric vehicles typically do have outlandish styling, but the Nexo looks more akin to a green luxury vehicle than anything else. It also has great sloping lines that give it a futuristic look that stands apart from any other SUVs on the road. The Nexo can be had in four different colors, a white pearl, a cocoon silver, a dusk blue, and a copper metallic. No matter what color you get the Nexo in, they all have the same end result of making the Nexo look like it is built out of exotic materials, like nothing else on the road. This is especially true with the copper metallic. The interior of the Nexo is always a stone gray color unless you select the cocoon silver exterior. That exterior is paired with a meteor blue interior. The 19-inch alloy wheels on the Nexo look like they are wind turbines cutting through the air as you cruise down the highway. Our team finds the exterior of the Nexo to be distinguished, but pure.

Overall, the design is not too busy. Every feature on the exterior of the Nexo was designed to give it optimal aerodynamics and to increase its fuel efficiency. This is done by lowering its coefficient of drag. The Nexo has wing blades on the D-pillars that help it slice through the air as you drive, acting almost as a diffuser does on a racecar. The final thing you notice before you enter the Nexo is the flush-mounted door handles that decrease the Nexo's drag even further.

The Hyundai Nexo's Unique Benefits

No matter what trim you choose to get, the Nexo comes with great benefits. Clean vehicle rebates that can be up to $5000, and  complimentary fuel, help to make the Nexo more affordable. The Nexo comes with three years or $13,000 of free fuel, whichever comes first. These programs are here to help stimulate the growth of hydrogen cell vehicles. When there are more hydrogen vehicles on the road, there will be more places to fill up your Nexo.