It’s the new Hyundai Kona Electric. And if you thought the old one looked striking, just check out this Robocop-style redesign with its “seamless horizon lamps” (aka lightbars) stretching right across the front and rear. Yep, this really is what actual production family crossovers look like these days. Bravo, Hyundai.
Note that you can get internal combustion and hybrid versions of the Kona as well, although this new-generation car has been developed as an EV first and a combustion car second; the previous gen was the other way around. We’re hoping to sneak a go in the petrol-powered and hybrid versions soon.
So, what do I need to know about the electric bits?
Well, the new Kona Electric comes with two battery and powertrain options. Entry level is now a 48.4kWh battery paired with a 154bhp motor that drives the front wheels. That can only be combined with the base-spec Advance trim and provides a max range of 234 miles. Not bad.
All other trim levels – N Line, N Line S and Ultimate – get a larger 65.4kWh battery and a more powerful front-mounted motor that produces 215bhp and 188lb ft of torque. When combined with some smaller 17-inch wheels that sets the headline range figure of up to 319 miles. Oh, and that powertrain also gets 400V architecture with DC fast charging capability of up to 102.3kW, which beats the previous generation’s 75kW max.
What’s it like inside?
First thing to note here is that the new Kona Electric is bigger than the old Kona Electric. No surprises there. It’s 145mm longer, 25mm wider and 20mm taller than before. Plus, there’s an extra 60mm in the wheelbase so you get a fair bit more room inside. Only five seats of course, but the front seats are now also much thinner to maximise the rear legroom.
It’s probably also worth pointing out that the boot is much bigger than in the previous generation (head to the Interior tab for more info) and you can have your choice of cloth, leather, Alcantara and something called ECO Suede for the trim.
Are there screens?
This is an EV launching in 2023. That’s like asking if a bear does its business in the woods. What we’re trying to say is yes, there are two 12.3-inch screens for the dial display and infotainment that come as standard no matter what trim level you go for. Interestingly though the interior is also filled with real, physical buttons. Oh the joy!
How much will it cost me?
Since its launch in 2017, Hyundai has sold over 100,000 examples of the Kona Electric in Europe. And even with the arrival of the brilliant Ioniq 5, the Kona will still be an important EV for Hyundai on our shores, not least because the boxy 5 starts at £43,445, whereas you can pick up the Standard Range Kona Electric from £34,995.
You can find more detail over on the Buying tab of this review, but the range eventually tops out with the Ultimate trim and Long Range battery/powertrain. That’ll set you back £43,095 before options.
Anything else I need to know?
Here’s a quick list of a few bits that are standard fit no matter what trim level you go for: Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, V2L charging for powering your kettle when there’s a powercut, and a heat pump for improved efficiency. Nice.
What's the verdict?
“The Kona Electric may have way more rivals than it did in 2017, but this refresh keeps it right up towards the top of our tree”
We like the way this new Kona looks, especially in all-electric form without the black plastic cladding around the wheelarches. The pixel style lights give it a little link to Hyundai’s Ioniq range, but it’s still a brave and independent design for a family crossover. It also drives as well as it needs to and is much more practical than the previous generation.
The button-filled interior should be applauded in this day and age, and prices that start in the mid-£30k region aren’t bad in today’s market either. The Kona Electric may have way more rivals than it did when it first arrived back in 2017, but this refresh keeps it right up towards the top of our tree.
Kia Niro EV
Skoda Enyaq iV
£34,880 – £47,820
Volkswagen ID.3
£29,565 – £40,495
Continue reading: Driving
Driving
What is it like to drive?
The Kona has always been very competent to drive, and this one is no different. It’s not the last word in fun and even in the more powerful 215bhp version with the long-range battery (the only one we’ve driven so far), acceleration is best described as progressive rather than outright quick. In fact, there’s actually less torque than in the previous generation so that the power is better controlled. Oh, and in case you were worried we’d leave them out, the 0-62mph times are 8.8 seconds for the less powerful entry level car and 7.8s for the other.
The steering and brake pedal have a decent heft to them though and, despite weighing around 1,700kg with the bigger battery, the Kona doesn’t roll too much through twisty bits. We’re also big fans of Hyundai’s continued use of paddles behind the steering wheel to adjust the level of regen. It makes driving an everyday EV that little bit more engaging, and here you’ve got multiple levels from pure coasting right through to one-pedal driving. You can also engage max regen at any moment by holding the left paddle, or switch into an automatic mode by holding the right paddle.
Sounds pretty good for a crossover. What else do you like?
The Kona Electric’s tight turning circle of 10.6m means it matches the outgoing Mini Electric in that regard. Pretty impressive. It also gets the option of a futuristic sound generator that’s actually pretty good at giving you a sense of speed without dominating the experience and making this family EV sound like a V8 muscle car.
Is it efficient?
Good news here too: it is. On a hot day with the air conditioning and the cooled seats set to max, we still managed around 4mi/kWh without trying. That included some country roads in sport mode, some town driving in eco mode and some motorway miles in normal mode. So, basic maths would suggest that a real world range of over 260 miles should be possible in that case, and that’s in the Long Range version but with the larger 19-inch alloy wheels that drop the claimed range right down to 282 miles.
What about comfort?
We’ve only driven the new Kona Electric on smooth Czech roads so far (it’s built in Hyundai’s factory in Nošovice), so we’ll know more on this front when it arrives in the UK, but it seems to handle itself well enough. The suspension might be a little on the firmer side but that’s likely to try and hide some of the kerbweight.
Plus, wind and road noise are properly well suppressed so it’s a quiet place to sit and watch the world go by. The former is no doubt helped by the 0.275 drag coefficient.
Is there anything you don’t like?
Sit tight, because we’re about to get our moaning caps on for a brief moment. The new Kona Electric has some of the most irritating bongs and beeps we’ve experienced from a production car in recent years. It’ll bong at you every time you dare to venture 1mph above the speed limit, and it’ll beep incessantly at you if you dare take your eyes off the road for a second – even if all you want to do is turn off the so-called driver attention assist function.
The systems for both speed and the driver’s attention both require at least four presses of the touchscreen to silence too, and they’ll reactivate themselves when you turn the car back on. We’ll be hearing them in our nightmares next.
Hyundai Kona Hybrid review: crossover tested on UK roads
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Hyundai Kona review: new hybrid crossover tested
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Hyundai Kona Electric review: new BEV tested
£38,545
Previous: Overview
Continue reading: Interior
Interior
What is it like on the inside?
If you thought the exterior changes compared to the previous Kona were dramatic, wait until you check things out in here. Of course, it’s dominated by the twin 12.3-inch screens for the dials and infotainment. They sit together in one large unit proud of the dash and the dial display is impressively simple and easy to read. It’s a far cry from the flaming rev counter graphics you get on Hyundai’s own i20N.
The central infotainment screen is also nicely laid out and features simple graphics and easy to understand maps, and the shortcuts all seem to have been well thought through. Our test car’s screen did seem ever so slightly laggy though.
Thankfully Hyundai has also thought to include proper physical buttons for just about every function you could need. Hurrah! There’s a separate climate control panel, proper screen shortcut buttons, actual knobs for the audio controls and even buttons for the heated and cooled seats that are standard on both N Line S and Ultimate trims.
Those front seats are thinner now too in order to provide more room in the rear, but it’s plenty comfortable enough up front still. You do sit higher than you might expect in both rows though, and in the rear you’ll have plenty of legroom but thanks to the battery under the floor those with longer legs will have their knees reaching towards their ears.
There’s a good amount of kit that comes as standard on the new Kona Electric and plenty of choice in terms of options too. For example, each trim level gets its own upholstery. Entry-level Advance brings black cloth seats, then N Line brings cloth seats in black with some red detailing. N Line S adds Alcantara and leather seats in black with red detailing, whereas the full-fat Ultimate trim can be had with either full leather in a couple of different colours or something Hyundai calls ‘ECO Suede’ in Fossil Grey.
Other bits to note? The front and rear seats are heated from N Line trim and above, and you get dual-zone climate control as standard with three-zone on N Line S and Ultimate versions. Those latter two also get a BOSE premium sound system with seven speakers and a subwoofer that sounds excellent, and there’s wireless phone charging and a heated steering wheel on everything except the entry-level cars.
How big is the boot?
Great question – not least because it’s way bigger than before. Previously the Kona suffered in this department with only 332 litres of boot space, but now it’s up to a full 466 litres with the rear seats in place and 1,300 litres with them folded flat. That puts it much closer to the Kia Niro EV with its 475 litres of space and way ahead of something like a VW ID.3 (385 litres). Plus, the Kona also gets a 27-litre frunk to store its cables. Very neat.
Previous: Driving
Continue reading: Buying
Buying
What should I be paying?
Given the way EV prices have been shooting up recently, the entry-level Kona looks very decent value at £34,995 for 234 miles of range. Remember, we live in a world where the Honda e now starts at £37,395 and only manages around 100 real world miles on a single charge.
A £3,600 jump gets you into the same Advance trim level but with the bigger battery, 319 miles and more powerful motor. Said trim level includes 17-inch wheels, all the body-coloured exterior bits, cloth seats and the two 12.3-inch screens inside.
N Line is the sportier looking offering, with N-spec 19-inch wheels, a slightly more aggressive bodykit, black exterior mirrors, an optional black roof and the slowest possible electric bootlid. Inside there are aluminium pedals and black and red cloth seats. N Line can only be paired with the larger battery and starts at £40,395. Worth bearing in mind that the bigger wheels absolutely kill the range though: it drops to an estimated 282 miles even with that 65.4kWh battery.
Next up is N Line S which is essentially more of the same but with Alcantara and leather seats, three-zone climate control and the BOSE sound system. That will set you back £43,095, and it’s also the entry point to getting the full width daytime running light across the front. Advance and N Line get two separate DRLs in each corner which is a bit of a shame.
Top spec is Ultimate trim, which starts at £43,095 and brings 19-inch wheels, an ECO Suede and leather interior, a sunroof and all of the Kona’s many, many active safety systems. At this point, Hyundai will also let you swap to the 17-inch wheels for max range as a no-cost option. An optional Lux Pack (£1,500) also adds a couple of extra bits including a heated charging flap so that it doesn’t get frozen shut in winter.
If you’re buying on finance, PCP deals for the entry spec Advance should start at £352 a month on a 48-month contract with an £8,000 deposit.
There are 11 different colours to choose from including two reds, an orange, two blues and a green. Well done Hyundai. Plus, you get a five-year unlimited mileage warranty and an eight-year, 100,000 mile battery warranty.
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