New 2023 Hyundai Kona: pricing and specifications revealed
The second-generation Kona has arrived and it’s priced from £25,725
The Kona has been a hit for Hyundai since the first generation model launched in 2018. But now it’s time for the all-new model, and the Korean firm has just announced pricing for the petrol and hybrid versions.
Hyundai has made huge gains in the electric-car market with its Ioniq 5 model. But the company hasn’t forgotten the more affordable end of the EV spectrum, and it will make a fresh push in that area of the market with the Hyundai Kona Electric, which will follow the internal combustion engined models later on.
While mild hybrid and a full hybrid will go on sale first, it’s the zero-tailpipe-emission edition that led the design process, because Hyundai’s team, led by SangYup Lee, elected to work on the Kona Electric first and then adapt it for the combustion-engined variants. Hyundai says details of the all-new Kona Electric range will be released early this summer.
The Kona range consists of four trim levels, Advance, N Line, N Line S and Ultimate. Kicking off at £25,725 the Advance comes with 17-inch alloy wheels (18-inch on hybrid models), along with body-coloured door handles, mirrors, spoiler and skid plates. There’s dual-zone climate control inside, front and rear parking sensors with a rear camera, and keyless entry. Sat-nav is standard as is a new infotainment system using a dual 12.3-inch screens. The set-up is also Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatible and there are front and rear USB C charging ports.
Every Kona model gets safety systems like downhill brake control, attention warning, collision avoidance assist, lane keep assist and pedestrian alert. Blind spot assist, rear traffic assist, parking distance warning and safe exit warning are optionally available in higher trim levels.
The £27,525 N Line is a more sporty offering within the Kona range, featuring a bespoke front and rear bumper design, side skirts, 18-inch alloy wheels, twin-exit exhaust tips, black door mirrors and roof, plus body-colour wheel arches. There’s a new look in the cabin, too, with aluminium pedals, heated N Line cloth seats front and rear. Ambient lighting, a powered tailgate, heated steering wheel and a wireless smartphone charging pad are also standard on the N Line.
Next up is the N Line S. Starting at £29,925, the N Line S adds Alacantara and leather upholstered seats (heated and ventilated) with electric adjustable and three-zone air conditioning.
Ultimate is the range-topper in the Kona lineup, although it has the same £29,925 starting price as the N Line S. For that you get a full-width daytime running light at the front, LED headlights, black leather seats, a sunroof and an uprated sound system. A few additional options become available on the Ultimate, including a memory driver’s seat with Hyundai’s ‘Premium Relaxation’ front seats and remote park assist (on hybrid models).
Hyundai says it has listened carefully to feedback from Mk1 Kona owners who requested extra cabin space and a larger load bay. So the second generation of the car is bigger than the model it replaces – longer by 175mm, at 4,355mm, and with a 60mm stretch in wheelbase, to 2,660mm.
The growth is noticeable in the cabin, where those sitting in a bench-style rear seat have more head and kneeroom than in the old car. Hyundai has certainly delivered gains in boot capacity; it jumps from the old car’s 332 litres to a more impressive 466 litres (only a few litres shy of the Kia Niro EV). A waterproof box under the bonnet has also been added for storing wet cables.
The looks of the Kona have been made more muscular and dramatic. There’s a sharper, flush front end and then complex surfacing along the flanks. Lee’s team delivered a crease line that rises from just aft of the front wheel right the way through the front and rear door, and then into a silver trim piece that wraps around the C-pillar into a spoiler at the end of the roof.
Inside, the front cabin is dominated by Hyundai’s twin-12.3-inch displays mounted in a single panel that runs across the top of the fascia. The firm has tried to make the cabin environment like a ‘lounge studio’ and there’s no doubt that it feels a more premium space than the old car’s. There’s greater use of neutral-colour fabrics, padded materials and backlighting in the newcomer.
The car sits on Hyundai-Kia’s K3 platform, as used by the latest Niro. Hyundai’s EV has a 65.4kWh battery and a 215bhp front-mounted motor, delivering up to 305 miles of range. The electrics are based on 400V tech, instead of the 800V systems in the Ioniq 5, so charging times will be slower. We also expect to see a standard model appear with a 154bhp motor and a 48.4kWh battery.
Other tech includes a new version of the i-Pedal system, which allows selectable amounts of brake-energy recuperation, and vehicle-to-load charging capability, so users can power appliances such as a laptop. Auto Express understands that UK examples are also likely to get a heat pump as standard.
Three powertrains are available on the Kona, ahead of the Kona Electric model. Firstly, there’s a 1.0-litre petrol with 118bhp with either a six-speed manual transmission or a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic. This can be chosen on any trim level, but the turbocharged 1.6-litre petrol unit - which puts out 195bhp - can only be equipped on N Line S and Ultimate versions. Like the lesser-powered petrol Kona it can be had with the same manual or automatic transmissions.
The Kona Hybrid lives on and comes with a hybridised 1.6-litre engine with 139bhp and a six-speed automatic gearbox - it’s only available on Advance, N Line and N Line S models.
The increase in size, improvements in cabin quality and latest-gen powertrains mean that the Kona is being nudged slightly upmarket for this generation. But the firm’s European CEO Michael Cole told us that he expects improved residual values to bring monthly payments for the car in at roughly the same levels as before.
There’s no word yet on whether Hyundai plans to follow up the current Kona N with a performance variant of any type. Cole admitted, however, that reaction to, and sales of, the forthcoming Ioniq 5 N could help to legitimise further all-electric performance models. This could, in theory, extend to an N variant of the Kona Electric. “Looking ahead, N can’t be just one car,” he said. “It’s got to have at least a few vehicles. So we have to look and ask, ‘After Ioniq 5, what comes next?’ And that decision is still open.”
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