Hyundai's Making a "Hot" Version of the Kona SUV

While Subaru’s been busy making their Forester more mainstream (i.e. boring), Hyundai is heading in the opposite direction. Aside from giving their Tucson the N Line treatment, the Korean carmaker is gearing up for a Kona N.

At this point, Hyundai hasn’t revealed solid details about the Kona N, but several prototype mules have been spotted running around not just at its namesake, the Nürburgring racetrack, but at snow-packed test circuits as well. With that, it’s likely this high-performance variant of the Kona will pack all-wheel drive.

As for the powertrain, speculations have been running wild to include a new 2.5-liter Theta III Smartstream engine putting out 300 horsepower. However, at this point sharing the Veloster N’s 250-horsepower 2.0-liter unit seems like a safer bet.

Additional grunt aside, the Kona N will carry beefier brakes and larger wheels.

The Kona N also looks to paint the sub-compact crossover’s trademark cladding in body color while also sprouting a larger rear spoiler. Exposed dual exhaust will complete the changes outside.

With the prototypes looking to be close to production ready, the Kona N is expected to bow sometime late this year as a 2021 model.

The Hyundai Kona is Now a Guinness World Record Holder

The Hyundai Kona has earned its place in the Guinness World Records by breaking the world record for the highest altitude climb done in a fully electric vehicle or EV.

Driven up Sawula Pass in Tibet, the Kona Electric climbed up to 5,731 meters, passing the previous record of 5,715.28 meters. The Kona Electric that achieved the Guinness Record is made in India—the first-ever all-electric SUV made there.

With this feat, the Kona Electric has proven itself as a truly reliable EV in extreme conditions. During the expedition, Kona Electric performed as a true SUV on harsh weather conditions like low temperatures, continuous snowfall, and icy terrain.

During the record-breaking run, it was charged through the convenient portable chargers. The car was charged overnight with the standard portable charger provided along with the vehicle. No performance issues were found while climbing the peaks. While descending from peaks, the smart power regeneration system in the vehicle complimented the driving range. 

The conquest personifies the Kona Electric’s powerful performance and assurance of its range and capability to outperform in any weather condition across extreme geographies and demographics.

In the Philippines, Hyundai Asia Resources, Inc. is selling the Kona Electric via indent order. It’s priced at P 2,388,000.

2020 Kia Seltos vs Hyundai Kona vs Honda HR-V vs Subaru XV

With the Seltos, Kia Philippines thinks they have one of the hottest rides around and who could blame them? The sub-compact crossover segment is absolutely lit with choices and everyone, and we mean everyone wants a piece of the action—including Chinese brands you probably haven’t even heard of.

But of course, Kia’s not going that route. Leave the sub-million crossovers to the JACs, GACs, BACs, DACs, and whatever “ACs” there are in the world. Instead, the Seltos is targeting market space occupied by more premium choices—you know, against the likes of the Honda HR-V, Subaru XV, and its platform twin, the Hyundai Kona.

Let’s see how it stacks up.

Sporting a 2.0-liter 4-cylinder engine from Hyundai/Kia’s “Nu” family, the Seltos makes 149 horsepower and 179 Nm of torque—figures that are actually very comparable with the rest of the segment, including the Honda HR-V’s 1.8-liter mill. The Subaru XV’s 2.0-liter Boxer does edge the rest in grunt, but that’s negated by having to carry close to 200 kilograms of more weight because of its all-wheel drive drivetrain.

Apart from its drivetrain advantage, the Subaru is the only one in this group to offer independent suspension at all four corners and even vented disc brakes, too. It also has the largest tire size in the group at 225/55 R 18s, while the rest ride on exactly the same size of rubber: 215/55 R 17s.

Exterior-wise, the Subaru XV is also largest in this group, sports the largest wheelbase, and has the highest ground clearance, but it’s quite surprising that the Seltos (and the Kona) matches the Subaru in overall width and height.

Despite its exterior size advantage though, the Seltos does manage to optimize its interior very well. Aside from having best-in-group front and rear headroom, it does beat the Honda HR-V in terms of front leg and rear shoulder room. Compared to its mechanical twin though, the Seltos trounces the Kona in all but front leg room.

Priced at P 1.498-million, the Seltos (at least in SX trim) is the second most expensive model. Yet, a quick scan through the standard features shows it doesn’t really stand out in any department. Its convenience features are matched almost line-by-line to the Honda HR-V RS! At the polar opposites of this group are the Hyundai Kona at P 1.188 million and the Subaru XV at P 1.668-million. But it becomes a case of “you get what you paid for” with the Kona not even getting leather seats and reverse camera/sensors. On the other hand, the Subaru XV is the only one here with collision avoidance tech (Subaru EyeSight), powered driver’s seat, and a sunroof!

Feel free to nerd out with the rest of the specs below.