Hyundai Kona driven
We get behind wheel of new small SUV. Plus Kona EV coming
HYUNDAI only pulled the wraps off the all-new Kona last week, although bosses admit this car should have been brought to the market far sooner to capitalise on the demand for small SUVS.
Nevertheless, in double-quick time, Auto Express has already been behind the wheel at Hyundai’s test facility in Korea to get an early taste of what we can expect.
UK customers will get a choice of two petrol engines when the Kona goes on sale in November – a 1.0-litre threecylinder, producing 118bhp and 175Nm of torque, and a 1.6-litre turbocharged four-cylinder with 175bhp.
Engineers are also working on a 1.6 diesel with either 113bhp or 131bhp (it’s due in April 2018), but Hyundai UK hasn’t decided whether it will bring either spec of the engine to British customers. It may prefer to offer the car with the two petrol motors and a pure-electric edition that’s also due before the end of next year (see Page 19). The smaller petrol engine gets a six-speed manual gearbox only, while the 1.6 comes with a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic.
Our drive at Hyundai’s test facility shows that the Koreans have used the Kona’s extended gestation period to produce a pretty solid product. Our car was a 1.6 petrol model with the dualclutch gearbox and four-wheel drive, which is fitted with a more sophisticated multi-link rear suspension set-up.
Performance is punchy enough, as you’d expect from something with 175bhp. The dual-clutch box shifts smoothly, although it doesn’t always seem the cleverest at judging when to move between ratios. With a relaxed
driving style you can expect upshifts at around 3,000rpm – and that’s just as well, because if you do demand really rapid progress, you’ll find the 1.6 gets pretty harsh beyond 4,000rpm. Its best work is long done by then, frankly.
At cruising speeds the motor fades nicely into the background, settling to just over 2,000rpm at 70mph, although by that speed you’ll hear a fair bit of wind noise from the side mirrors.
We only had the briefest of runs through the handling course and our car was on Korean-spec dampers, but it felt pretty firm regardless. We’d be worried about the Eu-spec model’s more ‘agilityfocused’ settings on British roads. The Korean version doesn’t feel spectacularly involving anyway, with heavy steering that’s not particularly communicative.
Still, on the evidence of this short drive the Kona is going to be there or thereabouts dynamically in a class that’s more focused on image and practicality than pure driving pleasure.
It should be in the mix on cabin space, at least. The Kona is a little longer than a Nissan Juke, and in practical terms the car is just about capable of accommodating four six-footers. Headroom shouldn’t be a problem unless you’re taller than that, while the 361-litre boot is a decent shape.
The cabin finish is more plain and functional than the Kona’s outlandish exterior. The interior design is entirely conventional and you feel like you could be sitting in a mid-spec Hyundai i30.
HYUNDAI will launch a pure-electric version of its all-new Kona small SUV in 2018, as part of a major offensive with sister brand Kia that will see 31 electrified models introduced by 2020.
A fully electric Kona was confirmed by Hyundai’s vice-chairman Chung Eui-sun at the car’s reveal event in Seoul, South Korea last week. It will have a range of “at least 390 kilometres (242 miles)”, according to senior Hyundai officials, putting it at the upper end of the capacity of small EVS.
The new car has been made possible because, in contrast with many of its rivals, the Kona has its own platform that is separate from the underpinnings of its sister supermini, the i20. Hyundai has designed the chassis with both fourwheel drive and electrification in mind, and its higher cabin position makes it easier to install batteries.
The Ioniq was the model that kickstarted Hyundai’s eco plans, and remains the only vehicle on sale available with the option of a hybrid, plug-in hybrid or fully electric powertrain. Hyundai and Kia’s electric vehicle offensive will also include a bespoke, standalone fuel-cell SUV that’s due to arrive within the next 18 months. This is expected to stay relatively close to the design of the FE Fuel Cell Concept that was unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show in March. Hyundai’s fuel-cell tech will also take a leap forwards as the fuel-cell stack will be 10 per cent more efficient, while its weight will be reduced by 20 per cent. Thanks to increased power density, the FCV should be capable of a range of up to 500 miles as well.