US-market 2019 Hyundai Kona Electric breaks cover in New York
After totally psyching us out in Geneva, Hyundai has announced that the US will get a version of the Kona Electric with 250 miles of range.
When Hyundai brought out the Kona Electric in Geneva, it was awfully coy about whether or not we'd be getting it here in the US. Well, it turns out the folks from Hyundai are probably a lot better at poker than we are because they've just unveiled the US version at the New York Auto Show .
Hyundai's newest little crossover is fully battery-electric and will apparently have a range of 250 miles which brings it right in line with other entry-level EVs that you can buy. Its electric drivetrain produces a healthy 201 horsepower and 291 pound-feet of torque and draws from a 64 kWh lithium-ion battery.
The Kona Electric gets other goodies too, like a full complement of LED exterior lighting and a suite of driver assistance features such as forward collision avoidance with pedestrian detection, lane keep assist and rear cross traffic collision avoidance assistance. But wait, there's more. It also gets high beam assist, blind spot collision warning and a driver attention warning system.
Inside the Kona Electric offers the fairly-typical-of-new-Hyundais technology package including Qi wireless charging, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto integration, Blue Link connected car system, rain sensing wipers and a heads-up display.
Outside, the picture is a little less pretty. The standard internal combustion-powered Kona does the rugged little crossover thing pretty well with its body cladding, but with the EV version, Hyundai decided to change it up a little. The front end features a debossed pattern instead of a grille, and it looks odd.
Still, when this thing goes on sale in California in Q4 of this year, it will give people a roomier alternative to things like the Chevrolet Bolt and Nissan Leaf. Hyundai plans to continue its rollout gradually after the initial launch by focusing on states that are very Zero Emission Vehicle focused, moving from West to East.
No word from Hyundai yet on pricing but we'd expect it to be competitive with other budget-EVs, starting in the mid-30,000 to mid-40,000 dollar range, before any tax incentives.