A new EV has been previewed ahead of the Busan International Mobility Show 

Hyundai has teased a new A-segment EV under the name ‘Inster’ and it appears to debut an evolution of the brand’s futuristic design language. The name is a combination of the words “intimate” and “innovative”, a hint at the vehicle’s compact footprint and, we suspect, forward-looking design and technology. 

The shadowy images still leave a little to the imagination but we have a pretty strong impression of how the Inster will look on the show floor at Busan later this month.

Hyundai Inster03

New-look daytime LEDs

The circular daytime running lights which occupy a large portion of the front mask push Hyundai into new territory. It is quite different to the look of recent Ioniq models and, on the face of it, does not draw on its heritage from the back catalogue either. The closest comparison we could muster is the circular headlamps of the 1983 Pony TL, but even that is a stretch.

It is not entirely unfamiliar, though, with the pixel theme found elsewhere on the tail and brake lights plus the main lamps at each corner of the bonnet (although it appears the full-width ‘seamless horizon’ light bar has gone, too). 

The project was led by SangYup Lee and Simon Loasby from the studio in Namyang, with Loasby praising the “excellent work” of the various teams involved. 

The Busan International Mobility show will run between June 27 to July 7.