Hyundai Kona Electric sacrifices acceleration for range

Hyundai refreshed its Kona SUV a couple months ago, and now, its battery-powered sibling receives the same treatment. What’s new and exciting?

The car sports new LED-based lighting and comes in nine previously unavailable paints. The wheel arches are now painted to match the rest of the body, and the redesigned bumpers are 40mm (1.6”) longer than the old ones.

Inside, the seven-inch digital dash display stays, but you can now opt for a larger 10.25-inch one. The infotainment has the same diagonal size and supports Android Auto and Apple CarPlay straight out of the box. The second seat row gains access to LED lighting and USB ports, and new safety aids are also on the list.

The powertrains stay the same. The entry spec still makes do with a single electric motor rated at 136 PS (134 hp / 100 kW) and a 39.2-kWh battery. The top trim profits from a 204-PS (201-hp / 150-kW) motor and 64 kilowatt-hours of power storage. The torque is capped at 395 Nm (291 lb-ft) for both. The driving range becomes marginally better at 305 and 484 kilometers (189.5 and 300 miles, respectively), but purely thanks to new, slicker tires; the tech stays stock.

The new tires affect acceleration dynamics: the entry spec now needs 9.9 seconds to hit 100 km/h (62 mph) instead of 9.3, and the top spec needs 7.9 seconds instead of 6.7. The former maxes out at 155 km/h (96 miles per hour), while the latter can do 167 km/h (104 mph). Charging the EV from 10 to 80 percent takes 47 minutes using a 100kW station.

Sales will begin in 2021.