Hyundai Kona EV review: if you’re triggered by those final two letters, read on...
I’ve discovered that I have the Elon Trump-like ability to infuriate people online just be uttering two letters.
It’s been disconcerting to discover that I have the Elon Trump-like ability to trigger people online. Apparently some folks choose to read this column on our website – presumably because the print version of the magazine is sold out, or they’re trapped in Timbuktu – and this gives them the seemingly irresistible opportunity to post a comment underneath.
I can only assume that people do this in the hope that I’ll read them, in which case they should be happy to picture me twisted tormentedly in my study, peeking at my screen through interlaced fingers and occasionally howling in pain at their cruel barbs (some people do say nice things, of course, and to them I send my undying love).
What I have learnt is that I can cause the volume and volatility of these comments to explode simply by using two letters: “E” and “V”.There are, it seems, a vast number of people who are vehemently against the existence of electric vehicles and really don’t like it when I mention them. One reader named Redler commented: “Gush all you like about expensive EVs filled with toxic batteries, I will never want one. They are a pox on the environment, just like wind turbines and solar panels.” And then there are people who are not against them, like Brett: “I am not against EVs but I am strongly against the fake climate change narrative that goes with it.” There are even masters of understatement, like Michael: “People get a bit strange when they comment about EVs.”
I have even been accused of being a stooge for the EV industry and attempting to foist them upon the public via my enormous organ of influence. The fact is, I try to write about new vehicles; these days many of them are EVs and, while the early versions of the technology were terrifyingly dull, today there are many of them I would actually buy, if they weren’t so expensive (it’s worth pointing out, however, that no EVs would appear in the list of my top 20 favourite cars).
What makes them different, of course, and puts so many people off is the charging process, and to properly assess what that’s like requires a deeper dive than the usual one-week car loan. For that reason, and to appease my wife – who likes to form a relationship with one car rather than having many different partners, er, sorry, cars – I borrowed a Hyundai Kona EV for several months and had a wallbox charger installed at my house.
What I learnt over that period is that an EV, at least in this country and at this moment, with our dearth of changing infrastructure, makes the perfect second car. As it was rarely our primary vehicle, we only needed to charge it once a fortnight, and sometimes not even that often, thanks to its 484km range.
Because I became obsessed with running it only on sunlight, however, I would rarely completely charge it, only plugging in for a few hours when the sun was well positioned to maximise my solar-panel output. The satisfaction this gave me went well beyond financial, even when petrol hit $2 a litre, and is difficult to explain. Running my vehicle on solar power felt equal parts geek and green, and just a touch futuristic.
One practical and nerdy point I noticed is that I never got around to checking my tyre pressures in the Kona, because I never went to a service station. On the plus side that also meant I ate less sugary crap and perhaps produced less methane as a result. What a green warrior.
Vitally, this small SUV was also hugely enjoyable to drive, despite having just 150kW and 395Nm. It was so much fun, in fact, that my lead-footed wife fell hopelessly in love with it – beating sports cars off the line at traffic lights became her favoured hobby – and even babbled about buying it.
And it is here that we run into the problem with all EVs: the price. Our Kona EV was the high-spec Highlander, with heated seats and heated steering wheel, but many of the plastics in the interior felt distinctly cheaper than you’d find in anything else with a $66,000 price tag. Worse still, due to the general dearth of cars on the market, second-hand values have soared, so even with some kilometres on the clock we were quoted $57,000 to buy our Kona in used condition. (Incredibly, I met some people who’d slapped down a deposit on a $60,000-ish Tesla Model 3, were told they’d have to wait 13 months to get it, and were so desperate to drive an EV in the meantime that they were keen to buy our Kona at that price.)
It is at this point, presumably, that the online commenters are reaching for their keyboards to make various points: that there are ferocious flaws in the logic of EV buyers; that it’s not climate change, it’s just weather; and that Jeremy Clarkson defecates on me from a great height.
Car companies will, however, continue to launch new EVs, and I will continue to drive them because they really are the future. I will also keep reading the comments, even though I know it’s a lot like sticking my face in a wood chipper.
Hyundai Kona EV Highlander
ENGINE: Single electric motor (150kW/395Nm); 15.3kWh per 100km
TRANSMISSION: 1-speed automatic, front-wheel drive
PRICE: $66,000
STARS: 4 out of 5
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