Sooo, considering all the major issues going on with the Kona

Walk on by. Ford eMach, Tesla Y are on my list after the battery replacement

 

There's one problem.

 

The car is awesome. Period. I would buy it again. My car is affected by the recall and I don't have a solution at this point. I am keeping as many options open to myself as possible for as long as possible.

In the end, if I get a new pack at some point, or a buyback, I'll be fine.

If you're thinking you like the car, get it and you'll love it as long as you have a non-affected pack.

As is human, some people have a hard time sleeping others don't. Hyundai could definitely be better with communication, but so could a lot of others too. Don't overthink it. It's a great car.

 

I have a 2021 Kona Ultimate. The car is excellent, zero problems and no recalls that I know of. I would buy it again.

 

I think there will be some percentage of fires in all EV's.. but the percentage is still pretty low. I think we have 18 fires out of 50,000+ cars sold worldwide which is like a 0.36% that have caught fire. Granted, you'd like that to be zero.

 

The Kona EV sales are over 100k.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/insideevs.com/news/434319/hyundai-kona-electric-sales-milestone-100000/amp/

Fires are over 18. There have been 18 Kona EV fires in South Korea alone.

 

Hyundai is buying back my 2020 Kona EV Ultimate.

I am replacing it with an identical 2021.

The Mach-E drives like a big, heavy sedan. Tesla isn't much better. Chevy Bolt EUV is worth considering, but GM and Tesla have maxed out of the federal tax credit.

 

Can the OP please clarify what he/she means by "all the major issues"?

 

Good decision after all your research - and you'll have your heads-up display - yay!
As you know I have the earliest and latest models of Kona EV, and they are both great cars. The statement "all the major issues" by this thread's original poster is not valid in my experience. I have had one major issue, the traction battery, that is now rectified. A programme is ongoing worldwide that will take time to complete for everybody, given the number of vehicles involved.

 

If the Kona would still meet all my needs, I would get another one or keep the one I have. It's an awesome car.. However, as my needs have changed, I needed a bigger car and there aren't really a lot of options when it comes to EV's so I went with the Model Y and it's awesome but not in the Kona's price range after options and taxes..

 

I would have taken a really close look at the Mach E if it wasn't for the Supercharger Network that comes with the Model Y.. Sharp looking car but less efficient than the MY and no Supercharger Network and no towing ability.. 3 strikes and that option was out for me but I still do like the looks of the Mach E.. Drove the Kona today for about 100 miles and it's a fun car.. This may have been the last longer drive in the Kona.. Heading out for a 2700 mile road trip in the Model Y on Saturday for 10 days and I'll probably get a call to hand over the car to Sedgwick shortly after I'll get back.. Sad to see the Kona go but I needed to move on to something bigger with a better charging Network and towing ability..

 

You mean like...
Inverter/motor hiss
Brakes squeaking / clicking
Gearbox clicking (playing-card-in-spokes)
Battery fires (that may or may not be solved with a new pack...)
Software updates (4+?) that require the car at the dealer all day... with no loaner.

Some of these have fixes if you can convince your dealers to do them.
I loved driving my Kona. It had a bunch of issues, therefore I'm not getting another one (though I have significant reservations about the various other options and have made my views on Teslas perfectly clear in other posts).
That said, other people haven't had nearly as much dealership trouble as me, and that has made a big difference.

 

You make it sound like all Kona EVs have all of these issues, when the one major issue is the traction battery. There does seem to be a lot of variability between dealers though, as you point out, and that could be a worry.

 

In 16 months I have had zero problems and haven't been affected by the battery recall. I am deliriously happy with the car -- a point just driven home by 5 unpleasant days driving an ICE rental ln a trip.

Without minimizing the fires -- and Hyundai's poor communication about same -- bear in mind that all those ICE vehicles out there are literally rolling molotov cocktails.

 

Not sure what the purpose of this thread is when there is no such thing as "all the major issues".

For someone thinking of buying a new 2021 or 2022, there's NO evidence that new Kona EV's being bought today still have the traction battery fire issues, the issue causing the fires on older Konas has been identified, and the other issues listed are isolated, dealer specific and/or minor versus major.

You can take ANY car (EV or not) out there and find at least a few owners who are not satisfied.

 

Go with what you intend to use the car for. My Kona is a 2019, on the recall list and so far 20,000 totally trouble free miles. If you need a car for errands, commuting or inexpensive travel for 2 people, it's perfect. If you frequently travel with or go out with another couple, the tiny back seat is a pretty significant problem and the main reason I'll be upgrading to the Mach e. For that I'll be sacrificing efficiency with the Me's 3.5 miles/kWh compared with the Kona's 4-5 miles/kWh.

The car fire issue no longer exists for the newer models (that I'm aware of) and shouldn't be a consideration.

 

True, but unfortunately the issue seems to be a significant ding on the reputation of the Kona EV. Hopefully that will gradually be forgotten.

 

The Mach E looks very interesting for the money, but I would point out if the Kona does not meet your space needs, there's something in between the Kona and the Mach E spacewise, that being the Niro.