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A case of form over function

I liked the styling of the Ioniq5 when it was released. The price however put it out of my budget. Cue Teslas price reduction in early 2023 and a demo I had seen on a forecourt in Chester was reduced by £4k. So I bought it.
The design I love so much still wins out, but the ownership experience is underwhelming. The range and charging speed is excellent, 300+ in summer and 260 in winter means range anxiety is non existent. Charging to 80% is very fast too. So no complaints there.
However, there are so many design faults, combined with poor build quality that spoil this car.
The seat belts are truly awful, the rears rattle and the buckles knock on the hard plastic trim if not put in a certain position after use. A huge sewn on tab ends up in the middle of a child’s tummy when a child seat is fitted. My granddaughter hates it. The fronts don’t retract properly without assistance. The passenger buckle knocks against more hard plastic. I fitted felt pads as sound deadening, not sure why Hyundai didn’t employ this simple solution.
Body panel gaps are huge in some places, the tailgate doesn’t align and also rattles. The doors are really heavy to close for children & elderly. The door handles are just awful too.
The car has a bank of bright charging lights guaranteed to annoy the neighbours if you charge outside. I fitted a plastic cover bought on eBay. Another simple solution ignored by Hyundai.
The interior feels spacious and for short journeys is comfortable, although the many rattles and squeaks, especially in cold weather, spoil an otherwise quiet car. Hard cheap plastic panels everywhere away from the dash also give the car a less than luxurious feel. The boot, although superficially large, is restricted by the fiddly load cover. The useful frunk/froot is the best place for the charging cables.
The driving experience is completely ruined by the aggressive Lane Keep Assist. I disable it on every journey but this results in very vague and heavy steering.
The car has no rear wiper, at motorway speeds the rear vortex creates a mist effect making the screen opaque except for a strip at the top which the airflow clears. Why no wiper Hyundai?
The more I drive this car, the more this multitude of annoyances mar the experience. Definitely a case of form over function.

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