Hyundai Kona Electric launched in Malaysia – three variants, 305 to 484 km range, fr. RM150k to RM200k

Hyundai Sime Darby Motors (HSDM) has officially introduced the Kona Electric in the country. The fully-imported all-electric SUV arrives in its facelifted guise and goes on sale in three variant forms.

As previously highlighted, these will consist of a base 39.2 kWh model called the e-Lite, a higher-specification 39.2 kWh version called the e-Plus and a range-topping 64 kWh unit known as the e-Max.

Specification-wise, the 39.2 kWh variants feature a 136 PS and 395 Nm motor, which offers the SUV an operating range of 305 km on a single charge (WLTP cycle). Performance figures include a 0-100 km/h sprint time of 9.9 seconds and a 155 km/h top speed.

As for the 64 kWh model, output from the same permanent magnet synchronous motor is upped to 204 PS, with torque remaining the same at 395 Nm. A larger battery gives the variant an operating range of 484 km (WLTP) on a single charge, and performance numbers are also up, to 7.9 seconds for the 0-100 km/h run and 167 km/h in terms of top speed.

In terms of charging, the Kona Electric features two charging ports, a Type 2 AC and a CCS2 DC. The base Lite has a 7.2 kW onboard charger, and regular AC charging with via the single-phase 7.2 kW route will take around 6.5 hours to get the six module (90 cells) battery from 10% to 80% SOC.

The Plus 39.2 kWh and Max 64 kWh variants have a 11 kW onboard charger, and regular AC charging takes 4.5 hours for the 39.2 kWh and around 7.5 hours for the 64 kWh, which has a 10 module (98 cells) battery. Going with DC fast charging with a 50 kW charger takes 60 minutes for the 39.2 kWh model and 90 minutes for the 64 kWh version. With a 100 kW charger, it’s 47 minutes for both batteries.

Standard equipment across the range includes LED headlamps, LED tail lights, LED daytime running lights, rear foglamps, auto headlamps and wipers and Remote Start, with the same 17-inch alloys and 215/55 rubbers to be found on all three variants.

Inside, common to all three are leather upholstery, single-zone automatic air-conditioning, steering wheel audio controls, three USB ports, a 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster and an eight-inch central touchscreen display, with a six-speaker audio system and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto support.

The Lite makes do with manual front seat adjustment and doesn’t feature a head-up display and wireless charging, which the Plus 39.2 kWh and Max variants have. The latter also comes with 10-way driver and eight-way front passenger electrically-adjustable seats.

Safety-wise, all the Kona Electric models come with six airbags and the usual raft of items, including ESC, ABS, VSM, traction control and hill-start assist. All three variants also come with the automaker’s SmartSense safety suite, but there are differences in specification with the Lite and the two higher-range offerings.

The Lite comes with Lane Keeping Assist, Lane Following Assist, Leading Vehicle Departure Alert, High Beam Assist, Rear Occupant Alert and Driver Attention Warning, but its forward collision assistance assist is limited to only vehicles and pedestrians, as it features only a camera but no radar.

With a radar, the Plus and Max get the full complement, adding on rear cross-traffic collision avoidance assist (RCCA) and blind spot collision avoidance assist (BCA), which can apply the brakes where necessary, in addition to providing warning.

The Plus and Max also come with Safe Exit Warning (SEW), which alerts passengers to oncoming hazards as well as smart cruise control with stop and go, and the forward collision assist on the duo adds on the capability to track cyclists.

No shortage of exterior colours for the Kona Electric facelift, with nine choices in all, all in two -tone (with a black roof). These are Ignite Red, Atlas White, Cyber Gray Metallic, Surfy Blue Metallic, Pulse Red Pearl, Galastic Gray, Jungle Green and the quaintly named Dark Knight and Drive in Jeju.

Finally, pricing, and HSDM has announced that for the Kona Electric will begin from RM149,888 for the e-Lite, while the e-Plus will go for RM169,888. The range-topping e-Max is priced at RM199,888, all on-the-road without insurance.

All the Kona Electric variants come with a standard two year/50,000 km warranty, with a battery warranty of eight years of 160,000 km, whichever comes first.

GALLERY: Hyundai Kona Electric e-Max 64 kW