New KONA EV 2021 Preferred Owners Seek Input

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acadfam2020

New Member
Hello everyone,
me and my spouse are soon-to-be new owners of the KONA 2021 Preferred version in Quebec, Canada. We are super excited!

But for now, we are in the final stages of closing the financing options with the dealership and wanted to reach out to this community to ask whether:
1) you suggest any of the Hyundai dealership's extended warranty coverage? We were offered the 8 years/ 160000km Bumper-to-Bumper option for $2850CAD.
2) you recommend and/or can comment on rust-proofing the car by the dealership through a protective coating? Especially given that our car will be outside of a garage over Canadian winters. The quote we received was $1500CAD.
Thank you for the honesty, I understand there might not be a consensus, but just hearing your experience would be priceless.

We would also really appreciate any suggestions you would have for this new adventure. We seek any comments suggestions for:
a) Extension cord suggestions (lenght of 20-40ft)
b) Must-haves for new KONA car owners (besides winter tires and rims)
c) things to look out for regarding maintanence and upkeep?

Thank you to all of you for supporting us in this new electric journey.
 
Have an actual look at what the extended warranty covers, you will be surprised that almost half the items are related to ICE vehicles and don't apply to your car. If your fine paying more for less actual coverage go for it. As far as the rust proofing check with Hyundai what they actually recommend. You will find that any undercoating on the battery pack is not recommended, so if your paying to have some anticorrosion spray squirted into just your doors and maybe rockers, $1500 sounds crazy steep for about 1/2 hours worth of labor and maybe a $100 worth of product. There is a reason dealers love pushing these high profit items.
 
A good general rule for all automotive purchases is to look upon anything the dealer tries to sell you with considerable suspicion. I'm not saying not to consider it, but many times the primary value these products offer is the padding of the dealer's profit margin.
 
That’s funny... 1500$ for rustproofing yet Hyundai Gabriel West Island didn’t even offer it to us saying Hyundai is against rustproofing for the EV

-I got the Tux floormats
-My winters are the Nokian Nordman 7 on steel wheels with tpms for around 1600 when all said and done
-got the X5 Flo charger

extended warranty ummm like said above it’ll barely cover anything in this case ... no go for me
 
acadfam2020 said:
Hello everyone,
me and my spouse are soon-to-be new owners of the KONA 2021 Preferred version in Quebec, Canada. We are super excited!

But for now, we are in the final stages of closing the financing options with the dealership and wanted to reach out to this community to ask whether:
1) you suggest any of the Hyundai dealership's extended warranty coverage? We were offered the 8 years/ 160000km Bumper-to-Bumper option for $2850CAD.
2) you recommend and/or can comment on rust-proofing the car by the dealership through a protective coating? Especially given that our car will be outside of a garage over Canadian winters. The quote we received was $1500CAD.
Thank you for the honesty, I understand there might not be a consensus, but just hearing your experience would be priceless.

We would also really appreciate any suggestions you would have for this new adventure. We seek any comments suggestions for:
a) Extension cord suggestions (lenght of 20-40ft)
b) Must-haves for new KONA car owners (besides winter tires and rims)
c) things to look out for regarding maintanence and upkeep?

Thank you to all of you for supporting us in this new electric journey.
Click to expand...
Congratulations on (just about) receiving your new Kona EV
I did purchase the extended warranty for $2k Cdn, piece of mind, I find it does cover a lot of items that can add up quickly.
If you use the EVSE that comes with the car, it is better to not use an extension cord, but if you have to make sure it is good quality rubber coated with heavy duty cord caps (ends), 14/3 should be ok for gauge with stated distance.
A few items (maintenance related and must haves) in these 2 threads (it does also include tires but you can skip those if not interested):)
https://www.insideevsforum.com/community/index.php?threads/modifications-and-tweaks.5009/
and
https://insideevsforum.com/community/index.php?threads/kona-must-have-accessories.9263/
 
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acadfam2020 said:
a) Extension cord suggestions (length of 20-40 ft).
Click to expand...
I use only the trickle charger (EVSE) that was supplied with the Kona, and on a 25 m extension. Down here that's 230VAC at 8 amps, 2% charge added per hour. As long as the connections stay dry and the cord is not coiled up and suited to the current you're using I don't see any problem. More important is not leave the EVSE unit in direct weather on a long-term basis. Best to install a wall charger if practical.

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Congratulations.
First I wouldn't recommend undercoating. Consider undercoating a gasoline engine. You wouldn't coat the engine. The electric motor is on the underside of the car along with the battery pack. Hyundai has a specific warrantee against rust thru.
I also recommend installing a level 2 charger. If you own your home you can select an outdoor certified charger head. You can get a 25' cable that would reach your 25' parking location. Clipper Creek comes to mind and has a long history. They are weather proof and come with 25' cables. There are many levels. The Kona can only receive 32amps at 240vac. No need to get any bigger. If you are going to use it much these will charge it overnight. We see many of these at hotels and inns when we travel. The one I would use is $565 USD.
https://store.clippercreek.com/level2/level2-20-to-32/hcs-40-hcs-40p-ev-charging-station
We bought a JuiceBox 40 from Costco. Liked the added warrantee from Costco. It is installed indoors and doesn't see weather. It is rated for 40amps but will never see more than 32.
I have a different type of recommendation. Several owners of Kona EV have put weather seals around the inside of the charging port. Problem is that in winter storms snow can accumulate under the charging door and freeze it shut. Most inconvenient if you need to charge. Check it out on YouTube and other Kona Forums. I first found out about it on Facebook Kona Group.
 
I got paint protection film for my car for around $2500. Well worth it. People are jealous a-holes....you will be glad that you have the film on. I also got front windshield protection film for $500....wish I got it sooner to prevent a few glass chips on the windshield. Have a 240V outlet, and buy a level 2 charger....takes me 3 hours to charge 100 miles (granny charger can take 18 hours or more). Finally, get a glass protective cover for your infotainment touchscreen, you'll be using that touchscreen ALOT.
 
Ed C said:
I got paint protection film for my car for around $2500. Well worth it. People are jealous a-holes....you will be glad that you have the film on. I also got front windshield protection film for $500....wish I got it sooner to prevent a few glass chips on the windshield. Have a 240V outlet, and buy a level 2 charger....takes me 3 hours to charge 100 miles (granny charger can take 18 hours or more). Finally, get a glass protective cover for your infotainment touchscreen, you'll be using that touchscreen ALOT.
Click to expand...
I got a glass cover for the touchscreen several months ago. I like it from the perspective that is easy to clean with a microfiber cloth not so crazy about the fact that it made the screen more reflective despite claiming an antireflective coating. I'm kind of 50/50 if its something I would do again.
 
I went for the extended warranty for two reasons - 1. It's a newish car in the lineup with not a lot of long history and 2. the entertainment/info system can be very expensive to fix and probably the most likely to fail over time.
 
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Ed C said:
I got paint protection film for my car for around $2500. Well worth it. People are jealous a-holes....you will be glad that you have the film on. I also got front windshield protection film for $500....wish I got it sooner to prevent a few glass chips on the windshield. Have a 240V outlet, and buy a level 2 charger....takes me 3 hours to charge 100 miles (granny charger can take 18 hours or more). Finally, get a glass protective cover for your infotainment touchscreen, you'll be using that touchscreen ALOT.
Click to expand...
What kind of protective film? $2500 seams pretty high. Did it include a bib cover? Undercoat? Why do you know already that is well worth it?
 
Thank you everyone for the helpful tips, suggestions and tricks! All were super appreciated. We ended up not opting into the prolonged insurance. Interestingly however, the financial guy stated that the price was non-negotiable for him--apparently it's Hyundai who puts the price as $2845CAD, and any potential discounts are basically applied at the price negotiation stage of the entire car with the sales representant. And the "anti-rust" turned ou to be just a paint sealant - which we didn't find necessary for our case.
 
There are plenty of extended warranty packages available from other companies that are a) cheaper b) provide equal or better coverage c) don't need to be purchased until near the end of the base warranty.
 
Just picked up our Kona Ultimate 2021 yesterday. We purchased the hyundai extended warranty for the following reasons.
Most electronics are third party and only have 3 year warranty. Now everything is 8 years.
They threw in the paint protection for free
You get $2K back if you don't have a claim in final 3 years.
We were in a spending spree and got caught up in all the emotion :(
 
GeorgeS, I had the entire car paint protective filmed. Believe it or not, some installers charge $5,000 for the whole car. I don't know what you mean by a 'bib cover', but the underside is not covered. Entire car as in the entire paint, bumpers and plastic molding around the tires. I had some highway debris (not rocks) hit and scratch my car, as well as scratches left by some anonymous a-holes after parking my car. It brings peace of mind that the car paint was not damaged, and that the film can always be removed and replaced if need be without having the whole car repainted. If you are planning to keep the car, the film makes your car looks newer and last longer. If you are planning to sell your car, the film can be removed and it will give the car a higher resell value. For $2,500, it is not that expensive, and it makes washing your car so much easier, because dirt just slides off when you squirt water onto it.
 
John McLellan said:
Just picked up our Kona Ultimate 2021 yesterday. We purchased the hyundai extended warranty for the following reasons.
Most electronics are third party and only have 3 year warranty. Now everything is 8 years.
They threw in the paint protection for free
You get $2K back if you don't have a claim in final 3 years.
We were in a spending spree and got caught up in all the emotion :(
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If you have time maybe list your location in your avatar area and build date (on drivers door jamb), it is handy rather than asking for future reference.
Look forward to the customary picture:
https://www.insideevsforum.com/community/index.php?threads/post-pics-of-your-kona.6276/:)
 
KiwiME said:
I use only the trickle charger (EVSE) that was supplied with the Kona, and on a 25 m extension. Down here that's 230VAC at 8 amps, 2% charge added per hour. As long as the connections stay dry and the cord is not coiled up and suited to the current you're using I don't see any problem. More important is not leave the EVSE unit in direct weather on a long-term basis. Best to install a wall charger if practical.

View attachment 9416
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Following-up as the weather is turning colder here in Canada, I'm going to rely only on the outside Level 1 charger at home (no need for Level 2 for now given no regular commute), but would like to enclose it with a extension cord as you did in a weather and theft protected box. Hence would you mind sharing the dimensions of your box and the parts you purchased? Did you customize any part(s)?
 
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