Hyundai will be producing the IONIQ 5 at its Megaplant, then shipping it over to Waymo partner Magna for upfitting with all the Waymo tech. Hyundai’s lead for ADAS and autonomous driving shared with CleanTechnica that Hyundai’s part of the puzzle would be about 90% of the build, with the remaining 10% being the upfitted parts from Magna. They expect production to begin by the end of 2026.
The upfitting includes Waymo’s signature sensor stack that gets afixed to the top of the vehicle and serves as the home for numerous sensors, including LIDAR, cameras, and more. In addition to the controversial rooftop sensor stack, a number of additional sensors will be fitted to the bumpers of the vehicle, including a host of spinning LIDAR sensors, ultrasonic sensors, and radar.
I’ve ridden in a Waymo (though not one of these newest ones). At no point did I concern myself with the “dorkiness” of the car’s appearance.
Ironically, at least during this particular phase of AV adoption - robotaxi services - the “dorkiness” is actually a benefit. You notice these cars. If you see one on the street, they look very different from any other vehicle. Which drives customer awareness of the product. When Waymo started testing in Miami, I noticed the cars immediately. Same with Zoox, which also have a number of visible sensors, in a very different look than the Waymo.
When I was in the car, people stared. They noticed the sensors, and then they noticed that no one was driving.
Tesla appears to be doing most of their testing and preliminary service with Model Y’s with little more than the word “Robotaxi” in medium sized letters. It’s easy to mistake it for any other Model Y. That might be appealing to end purchasers one day - but for now, it means their robotaxi cars won’t really stand out from ordinary traffic.
Yep, this dorky looking vehicle is selling VERY badly. The amazing thing is that it is a dream to drive, I had one as a loaner for a few days a few months ago.
