2024 Hyundai Kona N Line Review: Cool Design, Unremarkable Drive

Hyundai has built a surprising amount of brand equity with its N series of performance cars. The Veloster N, Elantra N, and Kona N are all excellent little performance cars at affordable prices, making “N” a household name in the world of automotive performance letters. It might not be quite as famous as BMW M or Mercedes-AMG, but it’s on its way. However, cars that will bring that brand equity down are cars like the 2024 Hyundai Kona N Line, which is about as sporty as a pair of Crocs.

In its defense, the Kona isn’t a sports car, it’s an affordable, compact crossover. However, slapping the N Line badge on it with some go-fast looks and a sporty-looking interior does tend to change expectations. Despite all of its visual bark, though, the Kona N Line has absolutely no bite. Will that matter to most of its customers? Probably not. What will matter, though, is how it drives and even when viewed as a normal, economical hatchback, there isn’t much substance there either.

The Basics

For 2024, the Hyundai Kona is redesigned. Rather than the old car’s squinty headlights, it has a massive LED light bar that spans the width of its face. Mimicking that front light bar is its taillight bar, which also spans the rear’s entire width. It also has an updated interior with a new infotainment screen, a new shifter, and a less cluttered center console. The Kona’s funky design language falls in line with that of recent Hyundais such as the Ioniq 5 and 6.  The N Line, though, is designed to be a slightly sportier version. While it is a bit more powerful, it is not a full-on, hot hatch-rivaling Kona N.

It sure does look like a hot hatch, though. The N Line’s spoiler, aggressive wheels, and larger front air intakes should garner a double-take from most passersby. I wouldn’t go as far as to say it’s good-looking—there are far too many weird angles that don’t go anywhere purely for the sake of looking aggressive, but it’s certainly more eye-catching than something like the Honda HR-V or Volkswagen Taos. My six-year-old thought it was cool looking, which is about all you need to know about its looks.

The interior is more mature, though. The black and red seats are a bit boy-racer, but the rest of the Kona N Line’s cabin is simple, easy to understand, and made decently well. Of course, there are some cheap plastics and a few questionable material choices (what’s with the fuzzy speaker fabric on the dashboard?) but, for the most part, it’s a nice place to be and everything feels appropriate for the price. The steering wheel is nice to hold, the flip-out cupholders are a nice touch, the touchscreen is easy to use, and there’s a big center console tray for storing all of your stuff. If I have a gripe, it’s with the digital gauges, as the speedo and tach are both just cartoonish circle outlines that grow as you accelerate, and they look childish. Its rear seat space is surprisingly good, though.

The N Line trim does bring more than a spoiler and red seat stitching. Rather than the anemic 2.0-liter Atkinson-cycle four-cylinder engine in the Kona SE and SEL, the N Line (along with the Limited) packs a 1.6-liter turbocharged four-pot, with 190 horsepower and 195 lb-ft of torque, up from the former’s 147 hp and 132 lb-ft. The N Line also gets a proper eight-speed automatic transmission rather than a continuously variable unit. While this gearbox isn’t excellent—it was sluggish to shift most of the time and was a bit dimwitted when trying to hustle it—it’s much preferable to a CVT.

Driving the Hyundai Kona N Line

Without knowing anything about the Kona N Line, you might expect it to be fun. After all, it has a spoiler and all cars with spoilers are fun, right? Well, in the case of the Kona N Line, no, it isn’t fun. However, I knew it wasn’t going to be fun going into it. After all, it isn’t the proper Kona N, but instead, a regular Kona in athletic wear.

What disappointed me, though, is that it isn’t even great at driving for a regular, affordable, compact crossover. Its engine, while punchy enough, groans like a two-stroke lawnmower when you push it hard, and its transmission is borderline infuriating to use at times. On more than one occasion, when overtaking someone or using a highway on-ramp to merge with traffic, I’d get nothing from the throttle pedal for at least two seconds, as the trans searched for the right gear. That isn’t just annoying, it can be frightening when there’s a car bearing down on you.