Hyundai’s all-new rapscallion Kona N is sure to make you grin
Luring BMW’s M performance guru Albert Biermann into Hyundai’s stable is paying off handsomely for the South Korean group, which is now thrilling speed freaks with its auto gearbox i30N and ‘hot hatch-like’ compact SUV, the Kona N
tHAnks to An ovErBoost FunCtIon momEntArIly ups tHE powEr to 213kW.
THE EIGHt-spEED DuAl-ClutCH trAnsmIssIon (Also sEEn In tHE nEw I30N) Is A “wEt ClutCH”, wHICH ImprovEs HEAt mAnAGEmEnt AnD DurABIlIty AnD Is CApABlE oF quICk sHIFts, EspECIAlly In N-moDE, Its vEry FAst moDE.
THErE ArE spEED-FrEAk GooDIEs suCH As A HIGH-pErFormAnCE suspEnsIon, An ElECtronIC lImItED-slIp DIffErEntIAl AnD pErFormAnCE BrAkEs tHAt provED to BE rAzor-sHArp wHEn nAvIGAtInG sHArp CornErs At spEED, AIDED By PIrEllI P ZEro sport tyrEs.
It’s A wEll-BEHAvED, propEr CompACt SUV on normAl roADs, offErInG DECEnt Boot spACE oF 361 lItrEs wItH BACk sEAts up, But tHE KonA N BEHAvEs lIkE A propEr rApsCAllIon Hot HAtCH on-trACk, lEAvInG A DElIGHtED GrIn on tHE DIAl As It rEACHEs 200km/H wItH EAsE.
TAlkInG oF GrInnInG, tHErE’s An ACtuAl N GrIn SHIFt (NGS) Button tHAt Allows tHE turBo ovErBoost FunCtIon to kICk In, GIvInG tHE KonA N ExtrA spEED For 20 sEConDs.
LIkE Its sIBlInG, tHE I30 N, tHE KonA N FEAturEs fivE DrIvE moDEs, wHICH InfluEnCE EnGInE rEsponsIvEnEss, stABIlIty Control GrIp, prECIsIon In stEErInG As wEll As tHE lEv
tHAt
Els oF roAr From tHE ExHAust. InsIDE, It offErs N-InspIrED rACInG sEAts, A 10-InCH DIGItAl DAsHBoArD AnD An InFotAInmEnt touCHsCrEEn wHErE InFo suCH As pErFormAnCE DAtA, lAp tImEs AnD G-ForCE fiGurEs CAn BE uploADED.
AltHouGH tHE rACInG lEAtHEr-BounD stEErInG wHEEl Allows you to ImAGInE tHAt you’rE LouIsE HAmIlton, I DID finD tHE BluE N pADDlE sHIFts A tAD tIny AnD plAstICky.
A sporty CompACt SUV Is HArDly rEvolutIonAry – tHE BEAmEr X2 M35I, tHE AuDI RS Q3 AnD MInI CountrymAn JoHn CoopEr Works HAvE BEEn rEvvInG It up In tHIs sEGmEnt For quItE A wHIlE. But tHEy’rE All GErmAn, AnD tHIs Is tHE KorEAn CompAny’s first ForAy Into tHIs nICHE DIvIsIon.
THE morE sEDAtE KonA HAs BEEn ArounD sInCE 2018 In “normAl GuIsE” AnD tHE prEsEnt-GEnErAtIon HyunDAI KonA 2.0 ExECutIvE Costs R464,500, so It wIll BE IntErEstInG to sEE IF tHErE’s A loCAl AppEtItE For tHE prICIEr “Hot HAtCH-lIkE” CompACt SUV KonA N. AnD wHEtHEr HyunDAI’s otHEr rApsCAllIon, tHE I30N, CAn stEAl somE oF tHAt GTI pIE.