First Drive: Hyundai Kona N

Let me paint you a picture: You’re in your mid to late-20s and you’ve been saving for a couple of years to afford that dream sports car. You’re visibly excited as you pull your new car into your parents' driveway. You rush inside, call for your mom and peel your dad off the couch to come and share in your excitement over your latest investment. To your surprise, you are met with comments that ring with sentiments like when you have kids, what are you going to do, sell it? Or shame, your poor friends would never fit. Hyundai, though, might have something to satisfy even the less enthusiastic family members. 

Traditionally, sports cars are small, lightweight vehicles that are first and foremost designed for performance and don’t typically accommodate more than two people. Fortunately, companies realized this and started focusing on producing massive performance SUVs like the Range Rover Sport SVR, Jeep Grand Cherokee TrackHawk, the Merc-AMG G63, BMW X5M… The list goes on.

However, these massive Performance SUVs are pricey. In fact, even if you are looking at the smaller performance SUV, you’ll still be paying upwards of R1m for it. Hyundai noticed this lack of more affordable-yet-fun small SUVs and crossovers and challenged its N division to come up with a solution. This is also the in-house performance arm that developed the i20 Rally car for the WRC, winning three WRC events between 2014 and 2016. 

This potential to build cars that were strong and quick in equal measure was noticeable and Hyundai began development on the i20, Tucson and Sonata, leading to the release of the I30 N in 2017 which shook the hot hatch scene to the core. However, these N editions were new and the team was inexperienced in the task of developing performance road cars. With a few years under its belt and rapid growth in crossover demand, the N division has set out to produce a performance small SUV to compete.

The Kona N is a mighty little SUV, with 2.0-litre Theta T-GDI pushing out a punchy 206 kW with 392 Nm torque, the crossover launches from zero to 100 km/h in a matter of 5.6 seconds. It is not slow. However, in the wet, I found that the car battled to find traction resulting in an alarming amount of axle-tramp and shuddering. This isn’t uncommon especially when you are dealing with performance cars in damp conditions but it tends to take you by surprise.

Hyundai’s Kona N is a lot of fun to drive. Whether you are blasting down the highway, or decide to go canyon carving in the Franschhoek pass, the Kona N will surprise you with its rigid chassis and a surprising amount of cornering grip. It feels well balanced and light which is a peculiar sensation since it is an SUV. It corners well and gives the driver a large sense of confidence.

The centre of balance is quite high, and it is noticeable in tight corners, as the car tends to understeer if you aren't careful. To reach that point, though, you'll really need to extend the car further than you would initially believe an SUV can be pushed. The exhaust tone the Kona N produces is truly a sound for the car enthusiast with its rowdy pops and bangs. I must admit, the exhaust note is incredible.

It comes as no surprise that the Kona N and the similar I30 N have been the talk of the town in recent social media news. I do have to mention that the Kona’s suspension is set rather firm, even in comfort mode. While the ride is not uncomfortable, the car does feel a little rough and unsettled on rough road surfaces.

The interior is just as impressive, with a 10,25” infotainment display that provides you with luxuries like Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. It is a seamless system and is very pleasant to use. Along with niceties such as keyless entry and start and automatic air-conditioning, the Kona does come with a heads-up display, sunroof, Krell 6 speaker sound system, and a very aesthetically-pleasing steering wheel with easy-to-use performance changing buttons and my personal favourite button; NGS or N Grin Shift. By pushing this little button, the Kona will drop down to the most performance-efficient gear, followed by a 20-second countdown on the info display until the system deactivates.

Surprisingly, this sporty little SUV has a decent amount of space and can comfortably fit five passengers and 374 litres worth of luggage. The Kona also comes standard with smart/ adaptive cruise control, collision avoidance systems, lane-keeping assistance, leather seats and front and rear parking assist. It's fair to say that this little SUV is definitely a class-leading piece of kit.

The Kona N is a practical and fun family sports SUV that I, personally, hope we will see more of in the future. I believe there is a lack of performance SUVs that provide the handling and speed of a hot hatch but do not skimp on the space, practicality, and comfort factor of a bigger Sports Utility Vehicle at a more affordable price. With a price tag of R749,900 and an impressive seven-year/200,000 km warranty and a five-year/75,000 km service plan, Hyundai shows a great deal of confidence in their product. It’s fair to say that the Kona N is a great addition to the Hyundai stable and especially and its N fleet. It's a spitefully sporty little SUV that I think will make a strong name for itself.

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