2019 HYUNDAI KONA ELECTRIC (2024)

Will you fit your stroller in the boot of the Kona Electric?

Well, the boot is small and I found unless you take the parcel shelf out, most strollers won't fit.

Empty the boot will hold nine shopping bags.

The boot space and its functionality are really important. I like to have a big boot space and little side wells or areas I can divide things into. So something I don’t want to move around while I’m driving such as Tulsi’s lunch bag or her wet swimming gear can be sectioned off in a little well where it’s not going to spill or get squashed by the rest of the things in the boot.

Hooks for securing shopping bags to are also favourites of mine, I like being able to secure the bag containing more fragile things like eggs so they don’t move around on the journey.

See Also

Familientauglichkeit Kona - Kona Elektro - Allgemeine Themen • Hyundai Kona ElektroHyundai Kona (2019): Diesel, Test, Preis, Abmessungen, Hybrid - AUTO BILDHyundai KONA aus 2019 gebraucht kaufen - AutoScout24Hyundai Kona Elektro 2019 Alltagstest: Elektro-Game-Changer aus Korea

I measure the boot space in freezer shopping bags, prams and dogs. Not because I think all there is to a mum’s life is food shopping, prams and dogs (although it can feel like it sometimes!!) but because these are visually mesurable items we can all associate with. For me, the car company boot measurement of litres is not an amount I can easily visualise and 400L in one car may differ in usability to that in another due to the configuration or shape of the space.

With the parcel shelf removed, the Mountain Buggy Duet twin stroller fitted with three shopping bags in front of it. The boot floor is not big enough for it to lay down.

The Britax Flexx tandem stroller fitted with no parcel shelf and two shopping bags.

The Mountain Buggy Urban Jungle single stroller fitted with no parcel shelf and four shopping bags. This stroller would fit with the parcel shelf in place but I had to remove both its rear wheels.

The Mountain Buggy Nano compact stroller fitted with the parcel shelf in place and six shopping bags around it.

There was room to fit a small dog in the boot, also with the parcel shelf removed.

The boot does have a nice flat floor space for emergency nappy changes, with little indents on either side of the wheel arches that I found useful for wedging beach bags etc into to keep wet or dirty things separated in the boot.

There is a cargo net on the boot floor too that I found very useful for holding my daughter's lunch box and coat on daycare runs and balls etc when going out and about without the stroller.

Underneath the boot floor is a polystyrene tray that you could store a few small bits in, this was the same in the non-electric Kona.

Otherwise underneath that is the home charging plug lead and connection kit.

Storage inside the cab of the Hyundai Kona Ev is greatly improved from the 2017 Kona I reviewed previously. The biggest difference is the central console, the gear lever is gone and in its place, there are four buttons, which give a lot more open space. Beside them are two cup holders that will hold a reusable and disposable coffee cup and in front of them is a cordless phone charging well with USB and AUX charging points in. Underneath is an enormous storage shelf with USB and 12V sockets, I loved this shelf for putting my handbag on while driving, it meant I didn't have to have it in the passenger footwell. Behind the cup holders is another little storge well I found useful for holding the key.

The central console storage box is quite small but I found it useful through the week and the lid doubles as your armrest.

The glove box will hold an iPad and my wallet in with the manual.

There is a lined glasses case in the ceiling and there are lit vanity mirrors in both front visors but they are not extendable.

The front door bins are a good size and would hold my large refillable water bottle with an iPad.

There are little storage wells in all the door handles too.

I find these really handy for keys or little things my daughter has in her hands when I'm putting her in and out of the car.

In the back of the Kona EV, storage hasn't changed. There are net map pockets on the back of both front seats, they will hold but not conceal an iPad.

I find net map pockets are not very useful as smaller things just fall out or get caught, they are easily damaged and they do not cover anything you put in them because it is all on display when you are not in the car.

There is a fold-down armrest in the central seat back that will hold a reusable and disposable coffee cup.

A slim, large refillable water bottle fitted in the rear door bins too.

Silence!! 🙂 The new Kona EV is so quiet, and I LOVE it! When you start the engine there is no noise at all and I found it was a much more peaceful journey because it started without any shrill alarms or revving engines.

I found this to be very good for early mornings when I sneak out to the gym or late at night when I sneak out to mums group dinners (Dad's at home don't worry!) Because normally the sound of the car engine starting up wakes my sleeping daughter and my neighbours! With the Kona EV I didn't have to worry!

There is a gentle milk float type sound when you reverse and you can hear an angelic whale song as you drive along but these are very calm and tranquil sounds, you are more likely to find on the relaxation and meditation channel on an aeroplane! As I understand you can turn these off but I enjoyed them and I think they might have helped to calm my enthusiastic toddler because she slept well in this car!!

The media system in the Kona EV is fantastic, it is really easy to navigate and use and it has Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. My phone connected straight away with the media system and played straight away.

There is an EV screen which you can select and here you can see your left in the battery, that's a bit like your distance to empty in a fuel model!

The top right square, Energy Information, shows you exactly where all the charge is going. I LOVED watching this screen, from a geeky point of view, but also if I thought I would get low on charge then I could see a lot of power was going to the air-conditioning for example so I could turn that down.

If you press on the map in the top left it will show you where all the nearest charging points are, you can also see them in list format too. I found there are a lot more than the system shows so it is worth Googling where your nearest charging points are.

By clicking on the bottom left box, charge management, there is a rather cool option where you can set the climate control in the car to be a certain temperature when you come back to the car.

I think this is a FANTASTIC BabyDrive feature so you are not putting your baby in to a scorching hot car, that is sat in the sun, you can cool it down before you get there.

The reversing camera visual is quite clear, you can not mute the beeping sound of the parking sensors, you can only turn them off with a button down in the central console but that also turns off the visual in the screen in front of the driver.

I find the positioning of the sensor visual on the digital display difficult as in reality as you can not see it when the wheel is turned. For example, you are reversing and the alarm sounds you have to stop, turn back to the front, peer around the steering wheel and your hands and arms to see which part of the image is showing and obstruction, then look out the windows, at the camera, the mirrors etc. The looking around the steering wheel and your hands and arms is awkward.

Becoming a parent I soon realised there are some noises and sounds I feel are unnecessary and I could happily live without if it meant my baby stayed asleep!!

That often the distraction of my screaming, distressed baby is more dangerous when driving than not having a lane departure warning for example.

If it is the lane departure warning beeping that creates distress with my baby then which is safest?

It’s where I think we need to be able to strike a balance and choose when we can mute the warnings or swap them to a vibration in the steering wheel or flashing light perhaps?

A lot of these noises come with the increase in technology and especially linked to safety features and alerts. For me these all have their place.

Another thing I have realised is I spend my time in a lot more places where small children roam, parks, beaches, play gyms, swimming lessons, daycare centre etc. I have become more aware that when I’m reversing or manouvering in the car parks I have to tripple check for small children running around behind me or being in my blind spot when reversing. For this I LOVE reversing cameras, I just don’t like their beeping sounds!!

I have become so much more aware of safety and potential accidents or hazards since having a child and so I love the peace of mind that I get from the cameras and sensors combined with my own vision from windows and mirrors as I don’t trust cameras alone.

There is lane departure warning (LDW) in the Kona, which beeps as well as strongly keeping you within the white lines and steering the car for you. You can not adjust the sound volume for this, you can only turn it on and off with a button down by your right knee.

There is also blind spot warning which beeps to alert you to hazards and you can turn that off also with a button by your right knee.

The cruise control is ridiculously accurate in the Kona EV! It is one of the best cruise controls I have used. The controls are on the right on the steering wheel, they are easy to use and you really can rely on it at fast and slow speeds and on undulating roads.

The indicators are nice and quiet in the Kona EV which s good because with the quietness of the vehicle any noise really stands out!

The windows mechanism of the Kona isn’t too noisy but the final clunk to close is quite loud.
The doors also close with a firm shut.

With baby asleep you want to be able to get in and out or open a window without worrying the doors or window mechanisms will be too noisy and wake Bub up!

Rear cross-traffic warning on the Kona has been really useful, even though it has a baby waking beep. I have found that visibility is quite poor from the front seat headrests back in the Kona, especially if you have the parcel shelf removed and a stroller in the boot. As well as beeping an arrow comes up on the media screen letting you know the direction the traffic is coming from.

The satnav in the Kona is quite simple to use and you can turn down the volume or mute the sound with a button on the left side of the screen.

Battery and road noise is excellent in the Kona EV! It is such a fun car to drive and nippy and has an immediate response. I noticed you do have to put your foot on the brake to change gear and it uses button controls instead of a gear lever.

When you brake the response is immediate too, no more slow braking, so that took a little getting used to. When you brake or go downhillthe battery gets recharged by the engine braking, which I found fascinating to watch, you can control by how much and how hard the engine braking is by using the paddles behind the steering wheel that you usually use for manual gears. It is on a scale of 1-3 and I found 2 was a happy medium between ride comfort and good charging.

The 2019 Kona EV is a five-seater small SUV, with three top tether anchorages on the back of the rear seat backs. They are within plastic guides and were nice and easy to connect to. I did find to pass the top tether straps through to the boot I either had to bring the seatback forward slightly or open the boot so there was room for it to pass between the parcel shelf and seat back.

There are ISOFix points in the two outer seats; they are not within plastic guides which did make them slightly trickier to connect to.

I could only fit two child seats in the back of the Kona EV, I could just sit between the two child seats but I would not want it to be an everyday thing or for a long journey.

I found two forward-facing or two rear-facing child seats fitted nicely in the back of the Kona EV, however the legroom for front passengers was severely compromised.

If you have rear-facing child seats in the two outer rear seats, the front seats are only usable for a 170cm passenger or driver. We really struggled with space in the 2017 Kona previously because my daughter was then in a rear-facing child seat and my husband is 184cm! Now she is forward facing we didn't find it quite as bad, but when I was driving hubby did opt to travel in the back.
If your child seats are already turned to forward facing you may find the Kona more practical and user-friendly than we did. Especially if your child is not using a stroller either!

The ceiling did feel quite low when I was sat in the back too.

Posting baby in and out of their child seat was actually fine in the Kona from inside and outside. I thought with the car being so small I would struggle but it was actually fine.

Australia being a country of weather extremes; blazing sun and torrential rain, mean you may find it easier to put Bub into their seat from inside the car sometimes. If it’s hot you can get the air-con going, cool the car down and not stand out in the sun while you fasten them in or shelter from the rain and not get soaked yourself whilst you’re doing it. So it is important to test whether Bub can be easily installed from either direction!

There is room to feed Bub in the back with one child seat installed.

The seats are upholstered with perforated black leather like fabric so it would be wipe-cleanable if it were not for the perforations! Both front seats are heated and cooled which is a nice feature but it does make cleaning more difficult as crumbs and sand get into the perforations.

The rear windscreen is almost vertical like in a ute, allowing the sun to really come in onto rear facing passengers.

The front seats of the Kona are comfortable and very adjustable. There are electric controls on both front seats, and you can also adjust the lumbar support too. I did find the seat back pivots at your lower back rather than the bottom of the seat, which I find a little bit uncomfortable when you don’t have it in exactly the right spot!

You can’t wear a ponytail at all in this car and it really was quite annoying as the headrest really sticks forward.

I had spent hours styling my hair this morning to get this ponytail just right too… said no new mum ever!!!

In the back the seats are comfortable and the backrest is at a comfortable, slightly reclined angle.

The steering wheel is fully adjustable in/out and up/down and cruise control is ridiculously accurate on flat and hilly roads.

There are four air vents across the front dashboard of the Kona EV, two underneath the media screen and a round one at either end of the dashboard. There are none in the rear of the car.

The air-con controls are nice and simple to use and have a feature I love, a button that allows you to select Driver Only, so you are not wasting battery blowing air out of the other vents when there is only you in the car!

There are also heated and cooled seats in the front and a heated steering wheel which is a nice option.

There is a lined glasses case with lit vanity mirrors in both front visors.

The rear light is centrally located in the ceiling behind the sunroof and I could reach that while driving which is great.

I often will reach back to turn on the interior light if I am driving at night time, I find my little girl gets less distressed traveling at night that way. It helps if I can reach the interior light from the drivers seat so I can turn it on and off whilst driving. I often find my daughter will need it on as we start our journey in the dark but once she falls asleep I can turn it off.

It is also useful when there are lights situated above the doors where the handles are usually positioned. These are good for when putting baby into their child seats when visibility is poor, so you do not have to reach across them to a light situated in the ceiling centrally etc.

The rear window is almost flat, a bit like in a ute, which allows the sun to come in much closer to rear-facing infants and make it bright and hot in the back, the windows are tinted and we did not have to use an added shade but it is something to be aware of if you are putting rear-facing child seats in.

With rear-facing child seats installed in the back visibility is hard really from the driver's headrest back. Also if you have put a stroller in the boot that will fill the whole back window really too so you can not see much out of there either! The view out of the front is good though, being an SUV it does sit a little higher. I relied heavily on the side mirrors and reversing camera when maneuvering.

There are handles above the rear doors that are good for hanging a child's toy form.

The 2019 Hyundai Kona Electric is FANTASTIC to drive! I LOVE it!! I felt really disappointed to get back into a normal car and just wish every car is electric! They are so much nicer to drive! The responses are instant, fast andsmooth. There is notransition, between gears, slow acceleration or lag. It is seamless and very exciting! It feels like it is sooo much more about tech thanengineering.

It's like getting the newest and fastest new laptop or phone that does everything super fast when your old one would take a minute to open a new web browser!

Tulsi loved learning about the technology with me and watching the screen too. She especially liked helping when it came to charging! It was nice that she could be part of that process, instead of petrol stations where she is not allowed to touch the fuel pump. Charging was very simple and I found I could plug it in as part of my everyday life.

While we were at the zoo, supermarket, shopping centre at the park, it really was much simpler than I thought it would be and was just part of everyday life and it will only become easier as more charging stations are put in.

I love the fact this could be the end of the fuel station stops! No longer will I have to stop for fuel on the way to or back from somewhere and take Tulsi out of the car just to pay for the fuel! You can just charge your car while you are doing your tasks.

The general aesthetics of the Kona are great! The concealed charging point in the front grille is great and I love the big dividing central console in the interior and waving goodbye to the gear lever and replacing it with the button gear system makes the interior space feel more open and I am a big fan of the large shelf too! The Kona EV is a good looking car for a small family SUV.

In summary, the Hyundai Kona Electric is a FANTASTIC electric SUV and showed me just how easily electric cars fit into family life. In practicality, the interior size of the Kona does make it difficult to transport a family around because legroom and boot space is very limited.

The 2019 Hyundai Kona EV is equipped with six SRS airbags as standard; dual frontal and side airbags for both front passengers and curtain air-bags for the front and rear side passengers.

All models of Hyundai Kona from 2017 onward have been given a five-star rating by ANCAP and scored 35.07 out of 37 overall. There is no separate testing for the new 2019 EV model and no Child Occupancy Protection testing.

When they tested the petrol or diesel models the breakdown scores were 14.07 out of 16 for the frontal offset test, 16/16 for side impact test and 2/2 for the pole test and pedestrian protection was rated Acceptable.

The Kona range comes with electronic stability control (ESC), including anti-lock braking system (ABS), brake assist system (BAS), electronicbrakeforce distribution (EBD), hill-start assist control (HAC), traction control system (TCS), vehicle stability management (VSM), Hyundai SmartSense ™ including; blind-spot collision warning (BCW), driver attention warning (DAW), forward collision-avoidance assist (FCA) – City/Urban/Interurban/Pedestrian, high beam assist only on the top-spec model (HBA), lanekeeping assist – Line/Road-Edge (LKA-L/R), rear cross-traffic collision warning (RCCW), impact sensing auto door unlock, tyrepressure monitoring system (TPMS) – individual tyre pressure readout, pretensioners, load limiters and height adjustable upper mounts on front seat belts, pretensioners and load limiters on rear (outboard) seat belts and seat belt reminder for the front and rear seatbelts.

Some of these safety features are also features that drive me crazy as a mum! Like the lane departure and forward collision alert or the parking sensor beeping sound.
I want all the safety technology AND to be able to mute the sound when Tulsi’s asleep!