The Hyundai Kona Electric is not expected to debut until next year. Our spy photographers have been capturing the next-generation model from testing since February, but the crossover continues to wear deceptive camouflage and cladding. New spy photos show Hyundai still developing the vehicle, with this trailer towing example.
While the photos don’t reveal anything new about the exterior design, they do confirm the location of the crossover’s charging port. One of the photos shows charging an electric vehicle, with the cable plugged into a port on the Hyundai grille.
15 Photo
Black covers and cladding distort design details, but the crossover should adopt some styling cues from the Hyundai Tucson. The crossover should have bold design details like other recently revealed Hyundai models. All signs indicate that the model will continue to feature a split-headlight and taillight design.
Hyundai hasn’t released powertrain details for the Kona Electric yet, but the next-generation Kia Niro EV provides some hints as the two models are cousins of the company. The Kona Electric should pack the same 68.4 kilowatt-hour battery and the same 201-horsepower (150 kilowatt) electric motor as the Kia. The new battery will be slightly larger than Kona Electric’s current 68.0-kWh. It should produce 188 pound-feet of torque (255 Newton-meters).
Photos of the cabin reveal a dual-screen display on the dashboard. Previous spy shots revealed this feature, but the new image shows a screen displaying graphics for the first time. It’s likely the same size and layout as the Hyundai Ioniq 5 crossover, with the two likely sharing other interior styling cues. We’ll still have to look at the instrument panel below the display to see how similar the two interiors are.
Hyundai still hasn’t announced when it will reveal the new crossover, which we expect to arrive with both hybrid and conventional gas powertrains, like the current model. We expect a hotter variant of the Hyundai N in the future, but not until after the regular Kona’s debut, and we wouldn’t be surprised if it didn’t happen until early next year. As the reveal draws near, we expect Hyundai to start removing some of the camouflage.
