Hyundai's Casper EV: Max cuteness, mini price — but you get what you pay for

Hyundai's EV version of the Casper has a stylish look and useful safety features, but the price reflects the lack of amenities.

The Casper Electric SUV [HYUNDAI MOTOR]

[TEST DRIVE]

PAJU, Gyeonggi — Hyundai’s adorable Casper is back, this time a bit bigger and electrified.

The little four-door runabout packs lots of new safety features for young and inexperienced drivers while keeping the price tag light. It’s a small, cute SUV but it does not lack most of the tech that today’s fancy cars have.

The Casper Electric on the road [HYUNDAI MOTOR]

The Korea JoongAng Daily recently got behind the wheel of the Casper Electric, equipped with a 49-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery, on a 60-kilometer (37-mile) journey across Gyeonggi from Goyang to Paju.

The adorable Casper is cute and funky, reminding this reporter of a toy car in cartoons and manga. It is sure to be right up people’s alley — especially young and female drivers.

The interior of the Casper Electric [SARAH CHEA]

The gear knob has been changed to an electric shifter on the right side of the steering column, with cup holders in between the front seats. [SARAH CHEA]

It seems like Hyundai has done its homework and given the mini SUV a bigger body, which was the source of the biggest criticism for the petrol-powered Casper. It offers more spacious legroom, at least enough for this reporter at 5 feet 4 inches tall, thanks to a wheelbase that increased by 180 millimeters (7 inches) from the gasoline model.

The SUV also lacks a center console, which was not a really minus factor but rather gave it a simpler and cleaner look. The gear knob has been moved to an electronic shifter on the right side of the steering column.

But always remember this: You get what you pay for. The design details such as the fabric and plastic are far from high quality or trendy, which this reporter always thought was Hyundai’s priority when designing a car.

The EV model offers more legroom than the gasoline one thanks to the wheelbase that increased by 180 millimeters. [SARAH CHEA]

Wireless connection to the car with a smartphone is not available. Drivers must have a USB cable, but honestly, who carries those cables these days?

The center console housing the climate and audio controls had physical buttons instead of the touch screen that is common in today’s cars.

But yes, the Casper is an economical option rather than a stylistic one. Its price may soften any dissatisfaction.

The sticker price starts at 31.5 million won ($23,600), and drops to some 23 million won after applying the government's EV subsidy. Combining additional credits from local governments, the price falls to as little as the low-20 million won range.

Driving was softer than expected even when the road conditions were not perfect due to heavy rain during the test drive. This reporter had to accelerate suddenly quite a few times, but the car stayed stable without any shaking or vibrating.

The Casper is equipped with the world’s first Pedal Misapplication Safety Assist (PMSA) system, which automatically controls the car when the driver hits the accelerator fully for 0.25 seconds while an object is within a distance of 1 meter. [SARAH CHEA]

Whenever the car exceeds the speed limit, it warns the driver with a red light on the dashboard. When the car gets too close to the vehicle in front, it reminds the driver to keep a distance.

Hyundai was also very serious about safety, especially as the Casper is heavily targeted at young and beginner drivers.

Kim Dong-gun, head of the battery cell development division at Hyundai Motor Group, explains safety features in the Casper Electric during a test drive session in Goyang, Gyeonggi, on Wednesday. [HYUNDAI MOTOR]

The Casper comes with the world’s first Pedal Misapplication Safety Assist (PMSA) system, which automatically controls the car when the driver hits the accelerator fully for 0.25 seconds while an object is within a distance of 1 meter (3 feet, 3 inches).

The system's introduction is timely, with the number of accidents due to pedal misapplication on the rise.

“Hyundai learned much from our history, especially from the battery recall of the Kona EV; the Casper EV is the result of our 20-year know-how on batteries,” said Kim Dong-gun, head of the battery cell development group at Hyundai Motor Group, during the test drive session on Wednesday.

“Our battery management system monitors the conditions of the Casper regularly to prevent any incidents like a fire.”

Powered by batteries from LG Energy Solution, the Casper Electric travels 315 kilometers on a single charge, around 100 kilometers longer than its rival from Kia, the Ray EV.

The rear of the Casper Electric [HYUNDAI MOTOR]

BY SARAH CHEA [chea.sarah@joongang.co.kr]