I’ve had my kona sel electric for abt 2 months now, and really like it. For all the big things even in my SEL Trim others have mentioned like size, handling, pep, safety technology, and the rest. But also for the ‘little’ things i’ve experienced.... If you back up with your front windshield wipers on, your back wiper goes on too. If you have music on when you back up, the volume goes way down(guess so you can hear better a any noise behind you). The driver-only feature for heating/ventilation. The fact that the EPA rating of 258 miles max is a conservative range, but really have up to 300 max when there is no diminishment by heating or such. One-pedal driving. I drive all the time in ECO with #3 regeneration almost all the time. Plenty peppy at that, and can still ‘punch-it’ if needed. Setting up charging to only allow it during off-peak hours. Just a lot of neat things about this car. Probably haven’t found them all yet. Sent from my iPad using Inside EVs
Sorry, guess i filed this in wrong place...Now i wonder if the Niro EV is as neat? Sent from my iPad using Inside EVs
Well, actually, it is! I've had Ghost, my white Niro EV for 6 weeks and 1568 miles. What a terrifically different driving experience!
I was torn between the Kona and the Niro, but ended up with the Niro. Both are great vehicles, but for me, the extra room in the Niro made the difference. Interesting how they are rated differently on range, but real world range seems just about the same. I'm getting about 300-310 miles per charge in the southern California fall. Was getting closer to 315 in the summer.
It is a tough choice between both of those cars as they are both great. I think it was the slightly better EPA rating that made me choose the kona but my memory fades. It might also have been that the kona ultimate had a few extra features that I wanted but I am no longer sure. Getting old sucks.
Yes the Niro has those features. It has a little more room overall than the Kona, especially in the back seat. The Kona has AWD, which I would have preferred. However, our state didn't get any Kona EVs when I wanted to buy one, so I gave up and bought the Niro. I love it so far.
Just a minor point but the AWD available on the Kona only applies to the ICE variant, the electric version of the Kona like the Niro EV are only FWD.
I read or heard on a video review that the Niro has somewhat softer tires and they blamed the difference in range estimate on that. The motors are slightly different if you read about part numbers in this somewhat depressing thread. Software might be different too. either way, they are both pretty close. I also went with the Niro for the greater room and less jittery steering and shorter braking distance (that could be a tire difference too) that was described in a side-by-side comparison video. Both great cars, depending on how many vehicles suffer from the tapping noise problem that has dealers replacing motors and reduction gears. It is frequent enough to not be a rare defect, but not clear if it affects ALL of them. I am at about 800 miles. It We will see what happens with mine....
