Second-generation Hyundai Kona Electric With Up To 490km Of Range Revealed

Don’t get your hopes too high though as there’s no official confirmation just yet whether it will be brought to India or not

• First broke cover in December 2022 in three forms: petrol, hybrid and N Line.

• The Kona Electric gets LED strips at the front and back along with headlights and taillights tucked at corners.

• To be offered in two broad variants: Standard Range and Long Range.

• It’s bigger in all dimensions and a lot curvier than the outgoing model.

• Inside, it gets a minimalistic design with connected screens and multiple cabin theme options.

• Feature highlights include two 12.3-inch displays, a heads-up display and ADAS.

• Gets two battery pack options: 48.4kWh and 65.4kWh; latter gets up to 490km of WLTP-claimed range.

• Older Hyundai Kona Electric sold in India is priced from Rs 23.84 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi).

Towards the closure of 2022, Hyundai globally revealed the second-generation Kona. At the same time, the carmaker also briefly disclosed that the SUV will be sold in three iterations – petrol-only, petrol-hybrid and all-electric – with design highlights for each. Fast forward to March 2023, it has now let us in on all there’s to know about the second-gen Kona Electric.

Can It Grab Eyeballs?

Hyundai says with the new Kona, it first designed the SUV’s all-electric iteration followed by its internal combustion engined (ICE) version. The SUV has become bigger and curvier than the existing model, with its front fascia now featuring a long LED DRL strip (Pixelated Seamless Horizontal Lamp in Hyundai’s speak) as seen on the sixth-gen Verna.

The Kona Electric has retained the charging port on its face while its headlights have been tucked away in the corners. Its both front and rear bumpers sport pixelated elements, while the front unit also has the radar for the advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS). The design difference on the ICE-powered Kona is in the slatted lower air dam, while its N Line avatar gets sportier touches including optional black mirrors and roof and aggressive design for the front and rear profiles.

In profile, the SUV gets striking cuts and creases but still looks similar to the latest-gen Tucson. All three versions of the new Kona get 19-inch alloy wheels housed in the squared-off wheel arches. At the back, Hyundai has given the SUV a single LED strip and taillight units placed in the corners, mimicking the front fascia.

Here’s a look at the dimensions of the old- and new-gen Kona:

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A Plusher Interior

The cabin of the new Kona is a huge departure over that of the existing model, taking clear inspiration from the Ioniq. It is seen with Hyundai’s latest minimalistic design approach with slim AC vents running across the dashboard and a connected screen setup. Hyundai has put the gear selector behind the steering wheel (akin to the one seen on the Ioniq 5), opening up more storage space in the centre console.

It also gets multiple cabin theme options including black and beige two-tone theme and black with red accents (N Line version).

Loaded With Tech

In terms of equipment, the 2023 Kona gets two 12.3-inch displays (one for instrumentation and the other for infotainment), connected car tech, ambient lighting, a 12-inch heads-up display, an eight-speaker Bose sound system with a subwoofer.

There’s also the Vehicle-to-Load (V2L) feature as seen on the Ioniq 5, which can be used to power or recharge other electrical appliances.

The safety kit of the new Hyundai SUV includes a 360-degree camera and a host of ADAS tech such as forward collision warning, lane keep assist (LKA), adaptive cruise control, and rear cross-traffic alert.

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What Else Should You Know

Hyundai will offer the international-spec Kona Electric in two broad variants: Standard Range (48.4kWh) and Long Range (65.4kWh). The smaller battery pack gets a 155PS/250Nm electric motor while that with the latter makes 218PS/255Nm.

While the carmaker hasn’t revealed the Standard Range’s figure, the other can go 490km as per the WLTP cycle. Also, the Kona Electric’s battery can be topped up from 10 percent to 80 percent in 41 minutes using a fast charger.

The Kona Electric also gets a single-pedal mode, prevalent on models like the Mahindra XUV400 EV and Volvo XC40 Recharge. It lets the driver do all the acceleration, deceleration and stopping using just the accelerator pedal. The more aggressive the regenerative braking during single pedal driving, the more energy gets restored to the battery.

Kona Nameplate In India

Since 2019, our market has got the Kona in just the all-electric guise, without even getting a refresh once. So the launch of the second-gen Kona Electric in India is unconfirmed. Hyundai is expected to focus its efforts on a new India-specific EV instead that would be a lot more affordable.

The current model is priced from Rs 23.84 lakh to Rs 24.03 lakh. It serves as an alternative to the likes of the MG ZS EV and the BYD Atto 3. We also get a locally assembled version of the Ioniq 5 priced at Rs 44.95 lakh.

All prices, ex-showroom Delhi

Also Read: Hyundai Reveals Design And Dimensions Of New-gen Verna

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