-2021 Hyundai Kona receives subtle cosmetic and feature updates

-Likely to launch in India next year

Hyundai has unveiled the facelift of the Kona electric internationally. The EV SUV made its global debut in the year 2018 and was also the first electric vehicle to be introduced in the country in July last year. Two years after its debut, Hyundai has now updated the Kona with some design updates and feature additions.

On the outside, the Kona facelift looks sharper sans the grille and slimmer LED DRLs. The revised bumpers house the newly designed three-fraction LED headlights with wider air vents at the bottom. The side profile of the car remains relatively untouched with the only noticeable change being the body-colored wheel cladding replacing the plastic ones. Moving to the back, the tail lamps look sleeker with the additional lights getting a new internal design. The Kona has also grown in length by 40mm and is now in proportion to the hybrid version of the crossover.

The Kona comes equipped with a new 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster behind the steering wheel with a similarly sized optional touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity. The standard fitment includes a smaller eight-inch infotainment system. For enhanced connectivity, the SUV gets extended features of BlueLink car tech which will enable the owners to control and configure their vehicle with their smartphone.

There have been advancements in driver assistance system which now includes blind-spot and rear cross-traffic collision avoidance, a vehicle departure alert for the adaptive cruise control, safe exiting alert system for passengers and a rear seat passenger alert system. There are also eight new exterior and two new interior color shades to choose from.

The facelift receives no mechanical updates and continues to draw power from two available battery options – 39.2-kWh and 64-kWh with the former making 136bhp and the latter making 204bhp. The smaller battery pack offers a WLTP cycle of 305kms while the bigger one provides power for 484kms.

The current India-spec Kona is offered only with one battery pack option of 39.2kWh and is available at a starting price of Rs 23.75 lakh (ex-showroom). The facelift could be introduced for the Indian market sometime next year. Until then, customers willing to opt for alternate fuel vehicles can choose from the MG ZS EV and Tata Nexon EV.

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