Took a test drive of the Hyundai Kona Electric

[pdk42]

As per title, I had one of these to drive for about 4-5 hours today (wife's car in need of change). A few headlines:

Positive:

- Exceptionally good efficiency - about 225 Wh/mile. I wasn't even trying to be overly light footed either.

- Really nicely put together. Perfect panel gaps, exceptional paintwork, great door sealing.

- Very well equipped. Android Auto/Apple Car Play. Ventilated seats, heated steering wheel, HUD, traffic speed sign reading.

- Nicely refined. Quieter at speed than the Model 3.

- Decent enough pace. Not Model 3 quick, but still better than most ICE hot hatches.

- Nice enough ride.

- May delivery.

Negative:

- Interior well enough put together, but there's too many hard plastics.

- Torque steer and wheel spin - like driving a Renault 5 Turbo from 1982!

- No app.

- Feels very "traditional" in its conception and driving. Might suit some people, but I've become accustomed to the Tesla way!

- Still £37k after govt discount. Heading towards SR+ territory and I think that's a better car.

Going to drive the e-Nero tomorrow. Let's see what that's like.

 

[MostlyHappy]

As per title, I had one of these to drive for about 4-5 hours today (wife's car in need of change). A few headlines:

Positive:

- Exceptionally good efficiency - about 225 Wh/mile. I wasn't even trying to be overly light footed either.

- Really nicely put together. Perfect panel gaps, exceptional paintwork, great door sealing.

- Very well equipped. Android Auto/Apple Car Play. Ventilated seats, heated steering wheel, HUD, traffic speed sign reading.

- Nicely refined. Quieter at speed than the Model 3.

- Decent enough pace. Not Model 3 quick, but still better than most ICE hot hatches.

- Nice enough ride.

- May delivery.

Negative:

- Interior well enough put together, but there's too many hard plastics.

- Torque steer and wheel spin - like driving a Renault 5 Turbo from 1982!

- No app.

- Feels very "traditional" in its conception and driving. Might suit some people, but I've become accustomed to the Tesla way!

- Still £37k after govt discount. Heading towards SR+ territory and I think that's a better car.

Going to drive the e-Nero tomorrow. Let's see what that's like.

Thanks for sharing. Interesting.

 

[gidster99]

Before ordering the Model 3 LR (delivery Tuesday - can't wait!) I did some maths. I compared the costs over 3 years of:

1. a Peugeot 3008 SUV (second hand, but still pretty new being one year old)
2. Kia e-Niro
3. Tesla M3SR+
4. Tesla M3LR

I was looking at costs over a 3 year time horizon and took into account all sorts of things like Depreciation, Insurance, VED, Servicing, Petrol/Electricity costs, Luxury Car Tax etc.

I was doing the maths via a Limited Company to take into account the First Year Capital Allowance on EVs. And conversely I also grossed up the amount I would have to pay for the Peugeot as this would have been purchased using money that I had already paid (far too much!) tax on. So if you are only considering a personal purchase of the Tesla the maths might not work out the same for you.

But for me, on a pure cost basis the cheapest car using the assumptions I had made was the Kia. I think the key drivers of the Kia's cost victory were the lower purchase price, as well as lower insurance and no luxury tax. Of course it also saved on the differential between petrol and electricity as against the 3008, but then so did the Teslas.

Pretty much equal in terms of costs over 3 years was the Peugeot and the Tesla SR+.

So off I went (with the family) to test drive the e-Niro. I do think that the Kia garage shot themselves in the foot somewhat by basically only taking us around the block, with no opportunity to put the acceleration of the Kia to the test. Nevertheless the car was nice.

As my wife put it: the Kia is a really nice car. It is basically like a normal car that just happens to be powered by a battery.

Then we test drove the Tesla. We arranged this at Brent Cross and they let us go ourselves (ie without anyone from Tesla in the car). This was inspired as it really let us get a feel for the car without the awkwardness of having someone from the dealership around to listen to what we thought... I am not sure if this is how all Tesla places do it, but it was really great.

And of course the car speaks for itself. As my wife put it: this is in a class of its own and cannot compare to the Kia.

We never test drove the 3008.

So (and I kind of spoiled the ending somewhat in my first comment) we ordered the M3LR. And it is coming on Tuesday (did I mention that?) And even though it was more expensive, we went for the LR as I just thought I would remove range anxiety from being a thing.

Oh: and my boys (aged 13 and 10) also promised us that, if we get the Tesla they would wash the car every week for free (inside and out). If we got the Kia, they would still wash the car. But only for money! So that also helped us decide ;-)

I wonder what cars other people considered before (presumably, if you are reading this forum) going for the Tesla?!

 

[Soua]

Before ordering the Model 3 LR (delivery Tuesday - can't wait!) I did some maths. I compared the costs over 3 years of:

1. a Peugeot 3008 SUV (second hand, but still pretty new being one year old)
2. Kia e-Niro
3. Tesla M3SR+
4. Tesla M3LR

I was looking at costs over a 3 year time horizon and took into account all sorts of things like Depreciation, Insurance, VED, Servicing, Petrol/Electricity costs, Luxury Car Tax etc.

I was doing the maths via a Limited Company to take into account the First Year Capital Allowance on EVs. And conversely I also grossed up the amount I would have to pay for the Peugeot as this would have been purchased using money that I had already paid (far too much!) tax on. So if you are only considering a personal purchase of the Tesla the maths might not work out the same for you.

But for me, on a pure cost basis the cheapest car using the assumptions I had made was the Kia. I think the key drivers of the Kia's cost victory were the lower purchase price, as well as lower insurance and no luxury tax. Of course it also saved on the differential between petrol and electricity as against the 3008, but then so did the Teslas.

Pretty much equal in terms of costs over 3 years was the Peugeot and the Tesla SR+.

So off I went (with the family) to test drive the e-Niro. I do think that the Kia garage shot themselves in the foot somewhat by basically only taking us around the block, with no opportunity to put the acceleration of the Kia to the test. Nevertheless the car was nice.

As my wife put it: the Kia is a really nice car. It is basically like a normal car that just happens to be powered by a battery.

Then we test drove the Tesla. We arranged this at Brent Cross and they let us go ourselves (ie without anyone from Tesla in the car). This was inspired as it really let us get a feel for the car without the awkwardness of having someone from the dealership around to listen to what we thought... I am not sure if this is how all Tesla places do it, but it was really great.

And of course the car speaks for itself. As my wife put it: this is in a class of its own and cannot compare to the Kia.

We never test drove the 3008.

So (and I kind of spoiled the ending somewhat in my first comment) we ordered the M3LR. And it is coming on Tuesday (did I mention that?) And even though it was more expensive, we went for the LR as I just thought I would remove range anxiety from being a thing.

Oh: and my boys (aged 13 and 10) also promised us that, if we get the Tesla they would wash the car every week for free (inside and out). If we got the Kia, they would still wash the car. But only for money! So that also helped us decide ;-)

I wonder what cars other people considered before (presumably, if you are reading this forum) going for the Tesla?!

I thought long and hard about the Kia. Looks very impressive. Spoke to the local dealer who said delivery was 12-18 months!

 

[Soua]

6 weeks wait for my M3 LR aeems very reasonable!

 

[Mrklaw]

What I had a test drive at west Drayton they just handed the keycard over and left me to it. They program in a ‘home’ and ‘work’ navigation mark to take you along the motorway but you can deviate as long as you’re back in about 30-40 mins

 

[Roy W.]

I had a Kona electric for 11 months before I got the Model 3.

The OP is spot on with his observations - very efficient, well made, and comfortable, although our car did have many paint defects. The wheel spin is horrendous!

However out of the 11 months we had it, our Kona spent a total of about a month in the workshop. Problem after problem with the drive train, which was eventually all replaced.

The problem is also common to the Kia eNiro, and is mentioned on the Kia/Hyundai forums as being a recurring problem for some.

I’ve certainly got no regrets in swapping to the Model 3.

 

[MichaelP90DL]

Oh: and my boys (aged 13 and 10) also promised us that, if we get the Tesla they would wash the car every week for free (inside and out). If we got the Kia, they would still wash the car. But only for money! So that also helped us decide ;-)

Your boys know what's up. LOL

 

[bitmanEV]

I thought long and hard about the Kia. Looks very impressive. Spoke to the local dealer who said delivery was 12-18 months!

The reason that SWIMBO got her M3SR+ as she didn't want to wait that long

 

[sofarso]

Not waiting too long was one of the reasons I cancelled my polestar two order and am collecting my model three on the 16th. That plus other Tesla advantages like the charging network of course.

 

[AshD]

Mrs D picked up her Kia this week. I must admit for the cost i’m quite impressed. She’s coming from an SQ5 which is faster (only above 40) and slightly nicer inside, but the fuel, insurance and tax savings given her mileage are significant.

As others have said, what’s appealing is the fact that it looks and drives very much like a ‘normal’ car. Downside is that it was a 12 month wait.

Now where’s my M3P i ordered mid Feb, have hidden VIN (a few days later), but no idea which ship / when i’ll get it!

 

[MrBadger]

That plus other Tesla advantages like the charging network of course.

I very nearly pushed hard for misses to cancel our Model 3 order (wish I had pushed harder at times) and waited to what became of the VW offerings (no hurry to swap, but with an aging car, even one well maintained, an expensive/need to fix quick failure always at back of your mind), but the Tesla supercharger network always stifled that thought. We have only needed to use it in anger on a handful of occasions or so (other times were us not having home charging solution in timely manner) but that made an ordinary couple of trips almost ordinary.

 

[ACarneiro]

It’s fascinating, whilst there is this huge narrative in the media about how horribly expensive and unaffordable EVs are, it seems none of the manufacturers can keep with the demand for them!

 

[pdk42]

It’s fascinating, whilst there is this huge narrative in the media about how horribly expensive and unaffordable EVs are, it seems none of the manufacturers can keep with the demand for them!

We're still on the cusp of major acceptance, but the tide is definitely turning.

 

[AshD]

We're still on the cusp of major acceptance, but the tide is definitely turning.

The main thing that convinced Mrs D to swap was the fact that compared to her SQ5 she estimated that she’s save about £350 / month on fuel / insurance / tax. She does loads of relatively short journeys and clocks up plenty of miles.

Also the Kia comes with a 7yr warranty (inc battery) and £450 for 5years / 50k miles servicing - again saving money compared with the Audi dealer prices! Yet with a real world range on the e-niro of around 250 miles and 100kw DC charging capability, all is good for the few longs journeys a year.

I think people are quickly figuring out how much they can save etc. Tesla are the only manufacturer who can keep up with demand. Just tricky for folks who don’t have a driveway etc.

 

[Mr H]

It’s fascinating, whilst there is this huge narrative in the media about how horribly expensive and unaffordable EVs are, it seems none of the manufacturers can keep with the demand for them!

Apart from Nissan - nobody wants a leaf probably due to no CCS. There is a main dealer near my work that has the storage yard next door, there are at least a half dozen leafs right in the corner which would take moving dozens or cars to get to them - no rush then.

 

[Roy W.]

Apart from Nissan - nobody wants a leaf probably due to no CCS.

As well as no CCS, the current Leaf models are thermally crippled when it comes to repeated rapid charges, even at the meagre 50kW rate of CHAdeMO. Google “Rapidgate”.

In my view Nissan have fudged the problem with a firmware update for the BMS, but assuming the original restriction was there for a reason who knows what effect the fix will have on battery longevity. The whole debacle has done no end of damage to Nissan’s EV reputation.

 

[Mr H]

As well as no CCS, the current Leaf models are thermally crippled when it comes to repeated rapid charges, even at the meagre 50kW rate of CHAdeMO. Google “Rapidgate”.

In my view Nissan have fudged the problem with a firmware update for the BMS, but assuming the original restriction was there for a reason who knows what effect the fix will have on battery longevity. The whole debacle has done no end of damage to Nissan’s EV reputation.

Yes. i've seen Bjorns tests - had an original leaf for a weekend years ago, the range was comical, 80 miles if driving like a granny

 

[Roy W.]

Yes. i've seen Bjorns tests - had an original leaf for a weekend years ago, the range was comical, 80 miles if driving like a granny

I had a 24kWh Leaf for two years from 2015, as a second car. The most I got out of one charge was a whopping 94 miles, and arrived home with 3% remaining

 

[Mr H]

I had a 24kWh Leaf for two years from 2015, as a second car. The most I got out of one charge was a whopping 94 miles, and arrived home with 3% remaining

Wow, i bet Miss Daisy was impressed...