2024 Hyundai Kona First Drive Review: All Grown Up

Growing up doesn’t have to be a bad thing. Sure, you have more responsibilities, but hopefully you learn some tricks to make life easier and have a few more dollars to spend on cool toys. With the 2024 Hyundai Kona, the crossover enters its second generation and grows up big time. No longer the brand’s entry-level SUV—the subcompact Venue bears that distinction—Hyundai’s designers took the opportunity to expand its footprint and get fancier.

Taking inspiration from its upmarket Ioniq EV models, the new Kona has matured into a handsome, sporty-looking compact SUV that packs significantly more room and utility into a package only slightly larger than the outgoing one.

The Basics

Hyundai has been killing it lately. Sales are up consistently year-over-year, and its SUV lineup has expanded from just two models—the Tucson and Santa Fe—in 2017, to seven today, which together make up 73% of the Korean automaker’s total volume. With an ambitious goal of 11 new EVs by 2030, Hyundai developed the new, second-generation Kona compact SUV as an EV platform first, reversing the normal ICE-to-EV development flow.

The Kona Electric was only available for a preliminary drive—more on that later—but the gas-powered Kona offers a choice of two carryover engines and four trim levels, with a single option package. The entry-level SE and SEL models use a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine making 147 horsepower and 132 lb-ft of torque routed through a continuously variable automatic transmission for prices starting in the $20,000s. N Line and Limited models get the 1.6-liter turbocharged four-cylinder now making 190 hp and 195 lb-ft of torque and an eight-speed automatic transmission (goodbye DCT) in the low $30,000s. All-wheel drive is available for a $1,500 upcharge on all trim levels and can send up to 50% of the car’s available power to the rear axle in Sport mode. Notably, the Kona Electric is front-drive only.

Outside, the Kona grows 5.7 inches in length over the previous model, an inch in width, and 2.5 inches in height. That gain contributes to longer overhangs, as the wheelbase stretches just 2.3 inches. Its exterior design is somehow sharp and smooth, preserving the original Kona’s signature reverse-shark C-pillar and composite light design at the front and rear. I think it looks great, particularly in tennis ball (Neoteric) yellow and Mirage Green.

Inside, the gains in useful space are substantial: three more inches of rear legroom thanks in part to a thinner front seat design, another three inches of front headroom, over six cubic feet of extra rear cargo room with the rear seats up, and 17.9 more with them down. Speaking of the trunk, it has clever storage clips to secure the cargo cover vertically while you're not using it. It's a simple, clever solution that every hatchback and SUV should have.

Driving Experience

Stepping into the Kona, it’s immediately apparent that Hyundai was going for a classier vibe. In the Limited AWD trim, you’re greeted by a leather seat, Hyundai’s four-dot steering wheel, and a configurable center console with flip-out cupholders similar to those in the Palisade and Kia EV9. Selecting drive and getting going with Hyundai’s new shift-by-wire stalk takes a little practice but is reasonably intuitive. My only gripes are that the wireless charging pad’s enclosure is slightly small for a phone that’s plugged in—there's no wireless Apple CarPlay, weirdly enough, more on that later—and that even on the top trim, there are some cheap-feeling plastic bits on the door card armrests. The front passenger also gets a storage slot above the glove compartment, but it’s half an inch too narrow to accommodate a standard iPhone 13 in a case.