[Edaily Reporter LEE BAE-WOON ] While the journey home for the Lunar New Year is exciting, there’s more than just a few things to keep in mind. With gas prices soaring in the wake of the war, people are paying closer attention to fuel efficiency and fuel costs—things they would normally take for granted. How much will it cost to drive from Seoul to Busan in a gasoline-powered car, a hybrid, and an electric vehicle, respectively?

To answer this question, we decided to compare the fuel costs of the Tucson Gasoline, Tucson Hybrid, and Ioniq 5—all SUVs of similar size. The one-way distance from Seoul City Hall to Busan City Hall is approximately 400 km. Although most of the route is on the highway, we factored in urban driving sections and holiday traffic congestion by using the official combined fuel economy figures for gasoline and electric vehicles in our calculations.

The Tucson Gasoline has a combined fuel efficiency of 12.5 km per liter, while the Tucson Hybrid achieves 16.2 km per liter. The Ioniq 5 travels 5.2 km per 1 kWh of electricity. For gasoline, we used the average price of 1,844 won per liter at highway gas stations, as indicated in the government’s Chuseok discount guidelines; for charging costs, we used the rate of 348.4 won per kWh at 100-kW public chargers operated by Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO).

To drive 400 km in a gasoline-powered Tucson, 32 liters of gasoline are required. This translates to a fuel cost of approximately 59,000 won. The Tucson Hybrid requires about 24.7 liters of gasoline to cover the same distance, with a fuel cost of approximately 46,000 won. This means driving the hybrid saves you about 13,000 won per one-way trip.

The charging cost for the Ioniq 5 is calculated to be about 27,000 won. This is less than half the fuel cost of the Tucson gasoline model and about 19,000 won less than the hybrid.

Under the same conditions, a round trip between Seoul and Busan costs about 118,000 won for a gasoline car, 91,000 won for a hybrid, and 54,000 won for an electric vehicle.

You can save even more on fuel costs by taking advantage of holiday discounts. From the 24th to the 27th—during the Chuseok holiday—226 gas stations along the Jeongja Expressway will sell gasoline and diesel at 1,744 won per liter, which is 100 won less per liter than on the 17th.

Assuming you fill up with all the gasoline needed for a one-way trip at this price, the fuel cost for a gasoline-powered Tucson would be about 56,000 won, and for a hybrid, 43,000 won. This represents savings of about 3,200 won and 2,500 won, respectively, compared to before the discount. Highway tolls are also waived during the same period.

Electric vehicle owners can further reduce charging costs by taking advantage of the discount period. Approximately 18,000 public chargers operated by the Ministry of Climate Change and KEPCO will offer a 50% discount on charging fees daily from the 24th to the 27th, from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

If the Ioniq 5 were to charge all the electricity needed for a 400 km one-way trip at the discounted rate, the cost would be just 13,400 won. However, since discount policies and methods vary by operator for private charging stations, it’s important to check before using them.

The Ioniq 5’s certified range on a single charge is 485 km based on the combined cycle, which is longer than the one-way distance between Seoul and Busan. However, since the actual driving range can vary depending on the number of passengers, luggage, and use of heating and cooling, it’s best to plan your charging stops in advance.