2025 Hyundai Kona

Pros

• The inside is big enough for people and things.
• Includes a lot of standard technologies and tools that help the driver.
• It offers a few high-end features that its rivals don’t.

Cons

• The underlying engine isn’t fast or sluggish.
• When going over bumps, the ride might shake or bounce.

How do you drive a Kona? You can choose between two four-cylinder Konas. Our test car had a four-cylinder turbocharged engine that was improved and made 190 hp and 195 lb-ft of torque. Our Kona was one of the fastest options on the test track, going from 0 to 60 miles per hour in 7.8 seconds. It also did very well in our tests of emergency brakes.

The Hyundai, on the other hand, is challenging to drive. Its suspension is too soft and bouncy, making it hard to control and causing a lot of body roll, which takes away any fun you might have had with the car. Still, there’s no doubt that the Kona is great for easy hauling. The gear shift is easy and quick.

How does the Kona feel in your hands? We found that the Hyundai Kona’s suspension needs to be more firm. It’s fine on flat roads, but hitting a bump or dip on the highway could make your body move in annoying ways over time. This is great news: the cabin is quiet while moving, even on the highway.

The driver’s seat in our test car could be adjusted by power. It felt a little flat, and we wished there was more help for longer drives. The top-of-the-line Limited model, on the other hand, has a heated steering wheel and vented front seats, which aren’t common in crossovers at this price. Most Kona models also come with heated seats, which can be added as an option or as standard.

How is the state of the inside? The Kona’s controls are simple and easy to understand. This includes the controls for the sound and temperature devices. As you drive, the Kona tries to behave like a bigger SUV, which is fine for most people who like that kind of experience. The driving position is pretty straight. Most people should have little trouble getting in and out of this SUV because it is set up in a way that makes it easy to do so. The newest Kona, on the other hand, is a small SUV with a lot of space. The cabin has lots of space for people to spread out.

What’s wrong with the tech? The Kona has two 12.3-inch screens that both look great. Interestingly, Konas without GPS can connect to Apple CarPlay and Android Auto via Wi-Fi, but Konas with GPS can only connect via wired. The phone projection way is easier to use than the native Hyundai navigation, so we like it better. You can get a wireless charging pad for the Kona, and there are two USB ports in each row so that everyone’s devices can charge at the same time.

The Kona has a number of basic tools that help the driver, such as adaptive cruise control, lane-keeping assist, blind-spot recognition, and automatic emergency braking. When all of the features are turned on at the same time, the SUV will stay in its lane and drive itself, with little help from the driver.

What’s going on with storage? The Kona’s trunk has 25.5 cubic feet of room when all the seats are in place. There is a total of 63.7 cubes of room when the second row is folded down, which is big enough for two large suitcases. When you load higher items, the clever cargo lid can fold up and stay in place, which we love. When the middle console is fully open, it can easily hold purses and other small items. There is a basket in the middle and a small glovebox to keep your things safe.

Do you have little kids? Putting in a child safety seat is usually easy. Between the seatback and bottom seats, there are four LATCH anchors. Setting up rear-facing seats and the rest of the process go smoothly once you find them, even though they’re a little hard to find.

How much fuel does it use? We looked at a Kona that had an all-wheel-drive system and a 1.6-liter engine. The EPA says that the Kona will get 26 mpg on roads and in cities together. The EPA’s estimate is reasonable based on our slightly higher average of 27.6 mpg on our real-world test trip. This is less than what many other small SUVs get, like the Toyota Corolla Cross, but most of them need the powerful engine upgrades that the Kona does. The Kona gets better gas mileage when it has front-wheel drive and the base 2.0-liter engine, which is 31 miles per gallon, according to the EPA.

Is the Kona worth buying? Most of the time, the Hyundai Kona costs a little more than cars like the Volkswagen Taos and Chevrolet Trailblazer. The Kona is also a great deal when it comes to build quality, performance, and fuel efficiency. The quality of the building is clear all over the cabin. The Kona SEL with Convenience Package is the best deal. It’s a small SUV that feels a step or two above its price range. Kona has a lot of good points.

The new Kona’s main goals are passenger space and usefulness. Even though this SUV looks different, especially the N Line, there is little that makes it stand out.

Hyundai hasn’t said anything public about the 2025 Kona yet as of this writing. If anything changes, we’ll let you know, but based on the Kona from last year, we still think you should get the SEL trim. The mid-level model is the best deal in this group because it has a good price and a good set of features. We would need the Convenience package in order to use adaptive cruise control, a digital instrument monitor, onboard navigation, and other features.

Different Hyundai Kona styles

There are four different trim options for the Hyundai Kona compact crossover SUV. They are SE, SEL, N Line, and Limited. In this outside review, we take a close look at Hyundai’s electric version of the Kona. The SE and SEL trim levels come with a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine that makes 147 horsepower and drives the front wheels through a continuously variable transmission (CVT). Both the N Line and the Limited have a 1.6-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine with 190 hp, front-wheel drive, and an automatic transmission with eight speeds. Any model level can have AWD.