Hyundai Kona Arriving In North America Early Next Year
Hyundai finally unveiled their latest sub-compact SUV to the world and North American fans will be able to get their hands on a Kona starting early next year. Initial release will start in Korea later this month before moving to North America and Europe.
Once on sale in 2018, the Hyundai Kona will be competing in the B-segment and directly rival models like the Nissan JUKE, Mazda CX-3 and Toyota C-HR. Shouldn’t be a problem for the Kona when its aggressive body styling helps the car stand out in a crowd. The automaker’s new compact SUV platform, developed for the Kona, should attract attention as well.
Created to incorporate a four-wheel-drive system while optimising interior space, Hyundai wanted to deliver a fun urban driver. Sitting on the platform are a range of small-displacement turbo-charged petrol and diesel engines.
One of them will be a 149PS 2.0-liter MPI Atkinson engine that can hit a top speed of 194km/h. Paired with a six-speed automatic transmission, the car can sprint from 0 to100km/h in 10 seconds and deliver 179 NM torque at 4500rpm.
Then there’s the 177PS Gamma 1.6T-GDI engine with a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission. On paper, it has a 0-100km/h time of 7.7 seconds, top speed of 210km/h and deliver 265NM torque from 1,500 to 4,500rpm.
Those in Europe can go for the 120PS 1.0 T-GDI turbocharged three-cylinder unit, which was tuned for fuel efficiency. Combined with a six-speed manual transmission, it can accelerate from 0 to 100km/h in 12 seconds, top out at 181km/h and produce 172NM torque from 1,500 to 4000 rpm. There’s also a 1.6 diesel that will be available to those in Europe and a few other market.
After the fuel powered Kona trims are released, Auto123 is expecting to see an electric version a few months after the initial model’s release in North America. We could see an all-electric range of around 390 km per charge.
Perhaps Hyundai will release more information when the KOan makes its first auto show debut in Frankfurt this September.
