This EV is bigger, better and can go further, but is it worth the price hike?

The original Hyundai Kona Electric introduced nearly five years ago was one of the pioneers in the long-range ‘affordable’ (in relative terms) electric-car market.

Before the first Kona Electric arrived in early 2019, just five electric cars were on sale in Australia – and only 10 electric-car models had ever been sold in this country.

Today there are 14 under $60,000 alone, and competition is hotter than ever.

Following the rest of the new Hyundai Kona line-up, which has arrived in showrooms in stages since the middle of 2023, the second-generation Hyundai Kona Electric is now in Australia.

There is a new, bigger body – which Hyundai says was designed for the Kona Electric first, and adapted to petrol and hybrid models – plus an overhauled interior, longer driving range, and more frugal electric motors.

The base price has been reduced by $500, and the mid-tier model is $2500 cheaper than before, but the top-of-the-range version is $4000 dearer. Is the Kona Electric still worthy of consideration in the sub-$60,000 electric-car market?

There are three models in the Hyundai Kona Electric line-up: a base ‘Kona Electric’ with Standard Range 48.6kWh and Extended Range 64.8kWh battery packs, and a better-equipped Kona Electric Premium with the Extended Range battery as standard.

The vehicle on test is the entry-level Kona Electric Standard Range (with 370km of claimed driving range) priced from $54,000 before on-road costs – a decrease of $500 compared to the previous cheapest Kona Electric model, but $18,000 more than the cheapest Kona Hybrid.

Buyers can upgrade to the Extended Range (505km range) – priced from $58,000 plus on-roads, $2500 less than its Elite Extended Range predecessor – or the Premium Extended Range (444km range) priced from $68,000 plus on-roads, or $4000 more than the previous flagship model.

Our test vehicle is optioned with no-cost Atlas White paint, which brings its drive-away price to $58,847 in NSW, according to the Hyundai Australia website.

The entry-level Kona Electric’s main rival is the BYD Atto 3 – Australia’s best-selling electric car that isn’t a Tesla – which is priced from $48,011 plus on-road costs for the ‘Standard’ with 345km of claimed WLTP range, or $51,011 plus on-roads for the ‘Extended’ with 420km of claimed WLTP range.

Other similarly sized, but not necessarily similarly priced, options include the Kona’s Kia Niro EV S twin, which offers 460km of WLTP range for $66,590 plus on-roads, the Volvo EX30 Plus (480km WLTP, $59,990 plus on-roads), Peugeot e-2008 GT (320km WLTP, $59,990 plus on-roads) and MG ZS EV Long Range (440km WLTP, $51,990 plus on-roads).

The cheapest Tesla Model Y costs $65,400 plus on-roads, with rear-wheel drive and 455km of claimed WLTP range.

For a full breakdown of standard equipment click here to read our news story, but highlights include 17-inch alloy wheels, dual 12.3-inch interior screens, wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, cloth seats, LED reflector-beam headlights, keyless entry and start, dual-zone climate control, and a full suite of advanced safety technology.

Compared to a base Kona Hybrid, the Kona Electric gains 17-inch wheels (rather than 18s), satellite navigation, wired not wireless Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, a 12.3-inch digital instrument display, rain-sensing wipers, voice control, auto-dimming rear-view mirror, body-coloured exterior cladding, one-pedal driving, a heat pump, battery conditioning system, vehicle-to-load tech, and a more advanced autonomous emergency braking system.

Features exclusive to the Kona Electric Premium include projector-beam LED headlights, 19-inch alloys, leather trim, power-adjustable heated and ventilated front seats, a sunroof, head-up display, eight-speaker premium audio, 360-degree camera, remote parking, and more.

Blindfold your passenger, sit them in the Kona Electric, uncover their eyes and they’d be hard-pressed to tell they’re in an electric, not hybrid or petrol, Hyundai Kona.

All Kona Electrics receive the dual 12.3-inch screens from top-of-the-range petrol versions, as well as the wand-style gear selector stalk on the steering column – which allows for a large centre console with plenty of room for keys, wallets and phones, plus two cupholders, which are better suited to larger bottles as 600mL plastic bottles tend to wobble around.

The manually-adjustable, cloth-trimmed seats in this base-model Kona Standard Range offer a good spectrum of adjustment, and achieve a balance between comfort on long drives and support in tight corners. They are not heated or ventilated, unlike more expensive models.

The tilt and reach adjustment in the leather-trimmed steering wheel makes it reasonably easy to find a comfortable driving position. However, as with the petrol Kona, taller drivers may wish the steering wheel came further out of the dashboard, and that the driver’s seat went a touch lower.

The gear selector ‘wand’ is odd to use at first, but drivers will get used to it after a week or so of ownership.

Storage elsewhere in the cabin is good, with a moderately-sized glovebox and door pockets, and a storage tray on the dashboard in front of the passenger. Amenities include two USB-C ports, a 12-volt socket, dual-zone auto climate-control air conditioning, and sun visors that extend to block sun glare hitting the side of your head.

As with the petrol version, the new Hyundai Kona has continued with cheap-feeling hard plastic on most of the cabin surfaces, from the dashboard to the centre console.

And whereas on a Kona Premium the door armrests are covered in a material that is somewhat soft – though it still can’t be called plush – buyers who can’t spend beyond the base model are penalised with even more hard plastic, now on the door armrests, which is frustrating on a long highway drive when you want to rest your elbows.

It is somewhat justifiable in the base petrol model, at $35,000 plus on-road costs. However, it is not in this electric version, which is priced close to $60,000.

Space in the rear is much improved over the previous Kona Electric, with ample head room, knee room and toe room behind my driving position at 186cm tall.

The floor in the new Kona Electric is close to flat compared to the small centre tunnel in petrol models. Unlike some electric cars, there is still a fair amount of under-thigh support, though it is still less than a petrol Kona. As with the petrol model, I found my ankles hitting the seat in front when sliding my toes forward.

The cabin is wide enough to carry three passengers abreast on shorter drives, and amenities available to them include rear air vents, room for slim bottles in the doors, a fold-down armrest with cupholders, map pockets on both front seatbacks, two USB-C ports, three top-tether child-seat points, and two ISOFIX child-seat anchor points.

Exclusive to the Kona Electric is a vehicle-to-load socket next to the rear USB ports, which includes a household power socket allowing you to plug in and power small electrical devices from a laptop, to a desk light, to a toaster.

Hyundai claims 407 litres of boot space, a match for the petrol Kona, but 75L more than the previous model. It’s a touch too short to fit a full-sized suitcase with its wheels facing forwards, but it fits sideways, with room for a couple of backpacks.

When carrying taller items that require the parcel shelf to be removed, it can be inserted into a slot that holds it upright behind the rear-seat backrest – rather than leaving it at home.

In what is a rarity for an electric car – at any price – there is a space-saver spare wheel under the floor. Nearly all rivals only come with a tyre repair kit, which cannot fix big punctures or those in awkward spots – while a Tesla Model Y doesn’t even offer that, and any puncture big or small will have its driver calling for roadside assistance.

There’s a further 27L of space in a storage area under the bonnet – often nicknamed by electric-car fans as a ‘frunk’ (front trunk, using the US name for the boot).

Standard in all Hyundai Kona Electrics are dual 12.3-inch displays for the infotainment and instruments, which are bright and easy to use with contemporary, premium-looking graphics.

The Kona is the first new Hyundai in Australia to run the brand’s latest ‘ccNC’ infotainment software, which is sharper, faster and more connected – now with over-the-air, downloadable software updates – than the previous system.

It is equipped with Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, satellite navigation and AM, FM and DAB digital radio, as well as support for Bluelink connected services, with a companion smartphone app allowing drivers to lock or unlock the car remotely, call emergency services, locate it in a car park, check the battery charge level, and various other functions.

Apple CarPlay is exclusively wired for now, but an over-the-air software update due in the coming months is planned to enable wireless connectivity. Wired Apple CarPlay worked flawlessly in our testing, while Android Auto is already available in wired and wireless forms.

The 12.3-inch digital instrument display is short on customisation. The colour and design of the dials can be changed, as can the information shown in the centre of the screen, but the layout can’t be adjusted. However, it is clear, easy to read and looks modern.

The rear-view camera is of above-average resolution, though it seems to have a ‘fish-eye’ effect that makes obstacles appear closer than they are.

The quality of the six-speaker unbranded audio system is average, and is not as good as the eight-speaker Bose set-up in the Kona Premium – let alone the unbranded, in-house-designed stereo in a Tesla Model 3, which is among the best sound systems of any electric car priced less than $100,000.

The Hyundai Kona range has received a four-star rating from ANCAP in Australia and New Zealand, based on testing conducted on a Kona Electric by ANCAP’s European equivalent, Euro NCAP, under the latest test protocols introduced this year.

It received a 62 per cent score in the Safety Assist category – just above the minimum of 60 per cent needed for four stars overall – due to “adequate” performance of key advanced safety systems.

Its results in the other three categories – 80 per cent for Adult Occupant Protection, 84 per cent for Child Occupant Protection, and 64 per cent for Vulnerable Road User Protection – just scraped above the minimal thresholds for a five-star result (80 per cent, 80 per cent and 60 per cent respectively).

However, as ANCAP and Euro NCAP scores are limited by the lowest-performing of the four test categories, the Kona could not earn more than four stars overall.

Standard safety technology in the Kona Electric includes autonomous emergency braking (AEB) with pedestrian/cyclist/motorcycle detection and intersection support, lane-keep assist, lane-centring assist, blind-spot monitoring (detecting and braking for obstacles), rear cross-traffic alert (detection and braking), adaptive cruise control with stop-and-go, traffic sign recognition with an over-speed warning, a driver attention monitor, and safe exit warning.

There is also a rear-view camera, tyre pressure monitoring (rotation type, not valve type), automatic high beams, and seven airbags (including one between the front seats).

Compared to the Kona petrol and hybrid, the Kona Electric gains a more advanced forward AEB system with junction crossing support, lane-change oncoming and side support, and evasive steering assist, and a higher-speed blind-spot collision-avoidance system.

Crucially, it also runs a newer – and less annoying – version of Hyundai and Kia’s latest speed-sign recognition system.

As with the petrol and hybrid Kona, and other recent models from the South Korean car giants, the system will beep when you exceed the speed limit the car has detected, in addition to displaying a visual warning, and showing the speed sign it has detected on the dashboard.

It continues to regularly get the speed limit wrong – detecting the lower speed on a highway off-ramp, holding onto a 10km/h limit in a car park when pulling back onto a public road, and misreading electronic speed signs – and beep at you, even if you are not exceeding the true speed limit of the road the vehicle is driving on.

However, the beeps in the Kona Electric are said to be three decibels quieter than the petrol or hybrid, which doesn’t sound like much but makes a big difference. It is still not perfect – and can be irritating – but the chimes can now be drowned out with music, and they’re far less intrusive.

There is also now an option to mute the over-speed chime, but retain the visual speed sign readout on the dashboard. Previously, switching the audio warning off would also deactivate the visual alert.

Admittedly, it is still buried in a touchscreen menu – requiring between four taps to access, or two if you bind the Driver Assistance settings menu to a favourites button on the dashboard – and the chime automatically enables again the next time you start the car.

Other Kona Electric-specific changes to the speed-sign recognition system include the ability to bind the Driver Assistance settings menu to a steering wheel button, and a setting to manually change the volume of the speed limit alerts and parking sensor beeps.

It is a step in the right direction, and it’s good to see Hyundai acting quickly to fix media and customer feedback. We’d like the audio alert to be switched off by default – or at least offer the ability to turn it off with one physical button press, without delving into the touchscreen – but this version of the technology is far easier to live with.

It’s worth noting that as with the petrol and hybrid Kona – but unlike earlier Hyundai cars with the system – it can read school-zone hours, and not flash the 40km/h school-zone limit when it is not applicable. And the car looks at how you exceeded the speed limit – creeping over, or accelerating hard through it – and varies when it begins beeping.

Similarly to other Kona models, the driver attention monitor – with a small camera on top of the steering column, facing the driver – is overzealous and too keen to tell the driver to focus on the road, when looking at the navigation map or completing a simple task in the touchscreen. We didn’t experience the same issue with sunglasses – in which wearing them would cause the system to flash an error – in this Kona Electric that we did with the petrol model.

We didn’t experience any false activations of the AEB system, and the adaptive cruise control was accurate and easy to use, although it can be quite slow to accelerate when the car in front pulls away from the traffic lights.

The lane-centring technology is one of the best in the industry, though it didn’t feel quite as smooth and well calibrated as some other vehicles (including Hyundais) we’ve tested, and the regular lane-keep assist felt a touch too intrusive on occasion.

The Hyundai Kona Electric is covered by a five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty for the vehicle, and a separate eight-year/160,000km warranty for the battery.

Servicing is scheduled every 24 months or 30,000km, whichever comes first – double the 12-month/15,000km intervals of petrol and hybrid Konas.

According to Hyundai Australia, buyers will be charged $520 after two years/30,000km, $1040 after four years/60,000km, and $1560 after six years/90,000km.

Over the same periods, a Kona Hybrid will cost $798, $1596 and $2565 respectively.

Scheduled maintenance for the Kona Electric is priced in line with its competitors. Over four years/80,000km a BYD Atto 3 costs $1195 (or $756 if buyers cover less than 60,000km), over five years/75,000km a Kia Niro EV costs $1351, over four years/80,000km an MG ZS EV costs $1105, and over four years/100,000km a Peugeot e-2008 costs $1250.

The 2024 Kona Electric is too new to appear on our preferred online comprehensive car-insurance price calculator.

Hyundai claims energy efficiency of 14.8kWh per 100 kilometres for the standard-range Kona Electric, and 370km of driving range in European WLTP lab-test conditions.

Over a week of testing, the trip computer displayed 14.6kWh/100km. In city driving we observed energy consumption in the 11 and 12kWh/100km range – very frugal for an electric car – dipping as low as 8kWh/100km on one, primarily downhill 80km/h stretch.

Meanwhile, on a 110km/h highway test loop south of Sydney, we observed energy use of about 16kWh/100km – translating to 290km of highway range on a full battery, or 200km between 10 to 80 per cent charge, which simulates charging on the roadside until 80 per cent, and driving until the battery nears empty.

For context, a cheaper, lower-slung MG 4 Essence 64 electric hatch we tested on the same highway loop returned more than 18kWh/100km, while a BYD Dolphin returned 16.5kWh/100km.

You may notice that dividing the claimed 48.6kWh battery capacity by the claimed 14.8kWh energy consumption returns 328km of estimated driving range – or 333km based on our as-tested consumption. It is worth noting the claimed range and energy consumption are not measured on exactly the same test cycle, which is why differences can arise.

While the Kona Electric is frugal, its DC fast charging performance is less impressive.

On a 350kW Evie fast charger in Sydney, we completed a 10 to 80 per cent recharge in 42 minutes and 30 seconds – beating Hyundai’s claim of 45 minutes.

Although we did better than the claim, charging power peaked at just 62kW – one of the lowest of any new electric car on sale.

It is less than half of what an MG 4 64kWh can achieve (140kW), and about a third of the peak charge speeds of a similarly priced Tesla Model 3 RWD (170kW) and Cupra Born (183kW). These cars can all charge from 10 to 80 per cent in as little as 25 to 30 minutes.

It’s worth noting Hyundai’s charging claim is based on plugging into a 100kW charger – but given the car can’t achieve charging speeds close to 100kW anyway, collecting our results on a 350kW charger should make little to no difference.

The battery was preconditioned to the optimal temperature for the best charging performance on the way to the charger, though it may have cooled down slightly as the car sat parked for 40 minutes while we troubleshooted some issues with the car refusing to start accepting energy from the charger.

We believe this to be an issue with that charger, given the station next to it worked first time once another electric car using it left, and we plugged in.

Powering the Kona Electric Standard Range is a 99kW/255Nm electric motor and a 48.6kWh battery driving the front wheels through a single gear ratio.

While the output may seem low for a 1.6-tonne car – and less than the previous model’s 100kW/395Nm – it’s more than enough for urban driving.

Initial acceleration from a standstill can feel a touch sluggish in Normal mode, but above 20km/h it feels zippy. There is enough power on tap to get to highway speeds, though you will notice performance tapers off above 90km/h, particularly when overtaking.

With the smallest wheels and chunkiest tyres in the Kona range, the Electric Standard Range is more comfortable over potholed city streets – and sharp edges or imperfections on the road surface – than petrol versions.

Over speed bumps and undulations in the road the suspension is soft, though with 150kg more weight to carry than the petrol versions, it takes longer for the car to settle, and the way the body moves around on its suspension doesn’t feel as well controlled.

It is a similar story on a winding road – the extra weight means the Kona Electric isn’t as agile as the petrol version, with more body roll, and feeling less keen to turn into corners.

That said, it still feels confident, with accurate steering that is light at low speeds for parking – albeit not as light as the petrol – but weights up at higher speeds.

The previous Kona Electric was known to chirp its front tyres easily, but the reduced 255Nm torque output of the new model (compared to 395Nm previously) is a much better match for the eco-focused Kumho tyres on this Standard Range model.

They offer reasonable grip in day-to-day conditions, and aren’t flustered unless you ask brisk acceleration of the car in wet conditions, or turn into a tight corner a bit too quickly.

We spent most of our time with this car in the one-pedal drive mode (called i-Pedal), which is the strongest of four regenerative braking settings and – as the name suggests – brings the car to a full stop without the driver touching the brake pedal.

There is also an ‘Auto’ mode, which Hyundai says automatically adjusts the level of regenerative braking based on your distance to the car ahead, or the gradient of the road (travelling up or down a steep hill, for example).

The disc brakes (or ‘friction brakes’) feel confident in an emergency stop, though the pedal may be a touch too firm for some drivers’ liking.

Tyre roar and wind noise are reasonably well suppressed, though it is not completely whisper-quiet at highway speeds. After driving the car through torrential rain, we also wish the windscreen wipers were faster and more effective.

The reflector LED headlights on this base-model variant, while white in colour – compared to the yellow of an old-school halogen bulb – are not the brightest, and don’t illuminate much on the left side of the road. The Kona Electric Premium has more effective projector LED headlights.

The Hyundai Kona Electric is not the quickest, longest range, most generously equipped, or roomiest electric car at this circa-$60,000 price point, but it is a good all-rounder that is worthy of your consideration.

It builds on the strengths of the previous model – excellent energy efficiency, an easy and refined drive, and good technology – while resolving its shortcomings, namely passenger and boot space, and a limited 300km claimed range in the base model.

However, there is still room for improvement.

It’s good to see Hyundai hasn’t marked up the price for the new model – at least for this entry-level version – despite the bigger body and longer feature list, but it still can’t match the equipment level or driving range of a BYD Atto 3 that costs $3000 less.

It is also slow to charge, the four-star safety rating is below par, and further refinement for the advanced safety systems is needed – including the speed-sign recognition tech, which is easier to live with than earlier versions in other Hyundai and Kia cars, but still more annoying than it should be.

And while cheaper models in the line-up are more affordable than their predecessors, the top-of-the-range version – at more than $70,000 drive-away – is a hard sell.

On balance, the Hyundai Kona Electric is a well-rounded electric car that should be on the shopping lists of buyers looking in this category, but it’s worth exploring all options in this class before signing on the dotted line.

Our pick of the new Kona Electric range is the entry-level Standard Range on test here, as we think it delivers the best balance of price, equipment and driving range for most buyers.

More expensive models in the line-up – particularly the top-of-the-tree Kona Electric Premium Extended Range – creep into the pricing territory of larger, better-equipped and longer-range electric vehicles, including the Tesla Model Y ($65,400) and Model 3 ($61,900).

A Hyundai Australia spokesperson told Drive prior to publication that the company has 650 new Kona Electrics in stock and on their way to dealers, with “strong ongoing supply”, and wait times of less than three months for factory orders if a customer’s desired specification is not in stock.

Before signing on the dotted line, we recommend test-driving the BYD Atto 3, which is a similar size and price to the Kona Electric, and a Drive Car of the Year 2023 award winner.

It is also worth considering the MG 4 hatch ($39,990 to $59,990 plus on-road costs) and, if your budget can stretch this far, a Tesla Model 3 RWD sedan ($61,900 plus on-road costs). Neither is an SUV, but both are among our favourite electric cars at this circa-$60,000 end of the market.