Motoring
Hyundai’s Kona has come from nowhere to become one of New Zealand’s topselling compact-SUV models: year-to-date it’s second only to Nissan’s well-established Qashqai and ahead of the Mitsubishi ASX, Mazda CX-3 and Suzuki Vitara.
But now Hyundai is set on making the car a technology leader as well, with a new plug-in version called the Kona Electric.
Make me an instant expert: what do I need to know?
Hyundai’s been deep into this EV thing for a while. It launched the Ioniq sedan at the start of last year: it’s available as a petrolelectric hybrid, plug-in hybrid and pure electric EV. It’s currently the top-selling new-EV in New Zealand.
It’s all or nothing with the much more trendy Kona Electric, which is available only as a pure EV. No fossil fuel shall ever pass its highly textured lips.
Hyundai New Zealand reckons it’s nailed two burgeoning trends with Kona Electric: SUVs and EVs. The key stat for the new model is its 400 kilometre-plus range, which puts it in Tesla territory.
The other key stat for some people might be the price: the launch lineup starts at $73,990, with the more luxurious Elite topping out at $79,990 – nearly twice the price of a petrol-turbo Kona Elite.
So it’s an expensive Kona, but EVs are all about battery power and range and that costs. The launch Electric has a 64kWh battery that gives an official range of 486km, but the 400km figure is a realistic real-world number says Hyundai (we’ll tell you whether that’s true in a minute).
There will be a cheaper model with a 39.2kWh battery later in the year, with a 312km claimed range; expect around 250km in the real world. No price yet, but it’ll be more expensive than the Ioniq (which has a 28kWh battery) so expect a sticker in the $60k bracket.
The battery tech is more advanced than Ioniq in a number of ways: Kona Electric has Liquid Active Thermal Control and the top Kona Electric Elite even has a heat pump, to warm the cabin more efficiently (and therefore preserve battery power) on cold mornings.
With this level of battery performance we’re talking fastcharging all the way. Plugged in at home, the Kona Electric will take a staggering 43 hours to charge from flat. On an AC fast charger it’s 8-9 hours, while a DC fast charger will get you to 80 per cent (the usual for an EV, as that last 20 per cent takes an age) in 75 minutes.
The Electric has different styling to the Kona at the front (especially, as there’s no main grille) and rear. It has around 7 millimetres less ground clearance than the petrol model thanks to that battery hardware, which takes up most of the floorpan.
It’s much heavier of course: the batteries add 236kg, taking the kerb weight to a hefty 1743kg. It’s still brisk though, getting to 100kmh in 7.6 seconds (39.2kWh 9.7 seconds).
You can’t tow anything with this SUV, but it’s rated to carry 80kg on top so you can still have bike racks or a roof box. They’ll reduce your range of course – just like they increase fuel consumption on a petrol or diesel vehicle.
Inside, it’s familiar Kona with a few EV twists.
There’s no gear lever for example, just pushbuttons for Drive and Reverse on a new ‘‘bridge’’ type centre console.
The touch-screen has EV information galore to distract you and those shift paddles aren’t shift paddles; instead, they allow you to adjust the level of regenerative braking when you lift off the throttle. It goes across four levels ranging from none to ‘‘one pedal driving’’, where the car will actually slow and stop without you touching the brake just from the drag of the regen-system – brilliant in city driving.
You get the same cabin space as other Konas up front but a little less in the rear, losing 4mm headroom. The boot’s smaller as well: down by 30 litres to 332 litres.
The Elite is full of goodies: leather upholstery, extra ‘‘SmartSense’’ driver-assist features, 10-way power seat adjustment, larger touch screen, heads-up display, Krell premium audio and keyless entry.
Where did you drive it?
From Hyundai’s Auckland headquarters to Raglan return, with some pleasant detours along the way.
We drove the top Kona Electric Elite with the 64kWh power pack and we’ll get the big question out of the way first: the return trip was 330km, there were many hills, we drove in a very non-ecofriendly manner and we ended the day with 50km range still showing.
So yes, 400km would be easily achievable in normal driving, especially if you make use of the four drive modes.
They go from Sport to Eco, but
What’s the pick of the range?
Range is the key thing with EVs and this is where the Kona Electric is a leader, so surely you’ll want the 64kWh version? It’s likely to remain around $10k more expensive than the forthcoming 39.2kWh model, but if you’ve come this far...
It’s also the difference between driving an EV where you think about range/recharging all the time and driving an EV where you don’t.
The Elite is fully loaded but the standard 64kWh model gives you the same dynamic package (both are on 17-inch wheels and ecotyres) and it has key tech like adaptive cruise control with stopand-go.
We’d be happy with the $74k version.
Why would I buy it?
Because this is the future, now. It’s a beautifully engineered EV from a mainstream maker that offers character to go with its impressive range.
Why wouldn’t I buy it?
Because you look at it and see a $70k-plus Kona rather than a cutting-edge EV.