Hyundai KONA Electric in focus: current Australian line-up, pricing and what independent testing found

The line-up on offer in Australia

Hyundai's Australian model material lists the KONA Electric in two powertrain forms: a Standard Range variant with a 99kW motor, single-speed reduction gear and front-wheel drive, and an Extended Range variant with a 150kW motor. A Premium grade is offered in Extended Range form only. The published equipment set includes 17-inch alloy wheels with a spare wheel, seven airbags including a front centre airbag, dual 12.3-inch digital displays, satellite navigation with Bluelink live traffic, and Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility. ¹

Hyundai's Australian content describes the styling as an EV-first design with Parametric Pixel Seamless Horizon Lamps spanning the bonnet, and highlights an N Line Option Pack with an enhanced body shape and sports-inspired interior detailing. Premium-only features include 19-inch alloy wheels with a spare wheel, Remote Smart Parking Assist, a head-up display, ambient mood lighting, a smart power tailgate, a wide glass sunroof and a BOSE eight-speaker premium audio system. ¹

Range, charging and practicality claims from Hyundai

Hyundai's published Australian figures put the Extended Range KONA Electric at up to 505km of WLTP range, but only for that variant on 17-inch wheels. The Standard Range is rated at 370km and the Premium Extended Range at 444km, all under WLTP conditions, with actual range dependent on configuration, battery condition and driving conditions. On charging, Hyundai states the car can reach 80 per cent in 45 minutes on a 100kW DC fast charger, or in 65 minutes on a 50kW unit. ¹

Practicality is a recurring theme in Hyundai's Australian material: a 27-litre front cargo compartment measured in VDA, rear seats folding to up to 1241 litres, a flat second-row floor with no central tunnel, a column-mounted Shift-By-Wire selector freeing console space, and Vehicle-to-Load two-way charging via a standard interior outlet with an optional genuine accessory exterior unit. Hyundai also notes smart regenerative braking with an iPedal mode that uses the front radar to adapt to the preceding vehicle. ¹

Ownership terms set by Hyundai Australia include a five-year unlimited-kilometre new-car warranty, extendable to seven years for passenger vehicles first registered from June 1, 2025 provided all scheduled servicing is completed through the Hyundai network; EV drive batteries are covered separately for eight years or 160,000km. Battery-electric buyers also receive 24 months of included Premium Roadside Support from warranty commencement, or 24 months from each scheduled dealer service. ¹

Pricing after an $8000 cut, per Chasing Cars

Chasing Cars reported in its August 2026 review of the Kona Electric Premium N-Line that recent price reductions had slashed $8000 from the Kona Electric line-up. On Chasing Cars' figures, the flagship Premium N-Line now starts at $63,000 before on-road costs and is currently $64,990 driveaway, which it notes is $4000 more than the regular Premium version. The publication also lists the Extended Range at $50,990 driveaway and the Extended Range Elite at $53,990 driveaway in its verdict. ²

Those driveaway figures are Chasing Cars' quoted market prices at the time of its test, not Hyundai list prices excluding on-road costs, so the two bases should be kept distinct. Chasing Cars also notes a change for the current model year: for MY27, the N-Line package is available only on the Premium variant, with the base Electric and Electric Elite no longer able to be specified with N-Line upgrades as they could for the previous MY26 model year. ²

How the flagship drives, according to Chasing Cars

Chasing Cars editor at large Nathan Ponchard rated the Premium N-Line 6.0 overall, with an interior score of 8.0 and drivability of 7.0. He found the 150kW/255Nm front-driver felt strong in its body, planted on the road and smoothly calibrated in steering, braking and accelerator response, with a claimed 0-100km/h time of 8.1 seconds. Good points listed included the easy-to-navigate control layout, impressive packaging and space, nicely balanced handling, comfortable seating and solid build quality. ²

The same review flagged weaknesses tied to the tested configuration: over uneven country roads the 19-inch-wheeled N-Line frequently tramlined at the front, an issue Chasing Cars said it had not noticed in other Kona Electric variants running narrower 215/60R17 tyres, raising the possibility the trait was specific to the test car. The publication also listed slow charging speeds, a modest driving range, elevated pricing and a questionable N-Line package among its needs-work items, and suggested buyers considering the mid-$60,000s N-Line might instead look at the $69,990-driveaway Ioniq 5 RWD or the Kia EV3 GT-Line AWD at $66,490 before on-road costs. ²

Energy use and running costs in independent testing

Chasing Cars recorded the official ADR81/02 combined energy efficiency figure for the Premium N-Line at 16.7kWh/100km against the 444km WLTP range claim, and averaged 14.9kWh/100km in its own mixed urban, highway and dynamic driving. With a usable battery capacity of 64.8kWh, that equates to a real-world range of about 435km, which the publication says suggests the N-Line should match or exceed its official claim. ²

On charging and servicing, Chasing Cars measured a 10-80 per cent DC charge in 45 minutes at a maximum of 94kW and a 10-100 per cent AC charge at 10.4kW taking 6 hours 35 minutes, noting the 400-volt system lags Hyundai's 800-volt EVs. It lists service intervals of every two years or 30,000km with a six-year/90,000km servicing cost of $2227, and cited Budget Direct data showing a median first-time comprehensive insurance premium of $1129 for a new Kona between July 2025 and July 2026, with individual premiums varying by circumstance. ²

The two strands of evidence align on the fundamentals: Hyundai's Australian material confirms the variant structure and official range and charging figures, while Chasing Cars' independent test found the flagship's 444km WLTP claim realistic in its driving. Its verdict, however, is that the Extended Range and Extended Range Elite grades, at $50,990 and $53,990 driveaway on its figures, sit closer to the model's sweet spot than the mid-$60,000s Premium N-Line. ¹²