Hyundai Kona Electric vs Chevrolet Bolt – which one to choose? Edmunds.com: DEFINITELY electric Hyundai [video]

Hyundai Kona Electric and Chevrolet Bolt - two electric cars with ranges of over 350 kilometers on the battery. Edmunds.com has put them together to help users make the right choice. In Poland, the decision is simple, only the electric Hyundai will be available on our market, but nevertheless, we believe that it is worth reading the review. Especially that it contains quite a lot of interesting information about Kona.

Kona Electric and Bolt are very similar cars. They both belong to the B segment (Kona: B-SUV, Bolt: B), have identical wheelbases, and the Hyundai is just under a centimeter longer. Both cars also have the same power (150 kW / 204 HP) and batteries with similar capacities (Kona: 64 kWh, Bolt: 60 kWh, including 57 kWh of usable capacity). The ranges of the cars are also similar: Bolt drives 383 kilometers on a battery, Kona Electric - 415 kilometers.

Although they have similar specifications, the cars look different: the Kona Electric is lower and wider.

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Kona Electric vs Bolt - chassis

The Hyundai electric chassis has covers that reduce air resistance in this part of the car by 40 percent compared to the combustion version. The rear suspension of the car is multi-link, which gives higher steering precision and better driving comfort.

Bolt's undercarriage is shielded as well, but the car's battery isn't as big as the Kony Electric's - meaning it can be thicker. The underside of the car is much less smooth than that of Konie Electric. But the biggest difference is at the rear axle: it's the torsion beam. This type of suspension is cheaper than a multi-link and allows for greater luggage capacity, but it translates into poorer traction parameters of the car.

Luggage compartment capacity

The luggage capacity of both cars is similar, they can easily fit three large travel bags. Both cars also allow you to enlarge the useful space by removing the floor. There are clearly more extra centimeters in Bolt.

Chevrolet Bolt boot capacity after floor removal (c) Edmunds / YouTube

interior

Backseat

The rear seat of the Kony Electric has less space than the Bolt. This is especially true when a tall driver is sitting in front - an adult passenger may have problems with a comfortable journey.

Chevrolet Bolt rear seat space (c) Edmunds / YouTube

Hyundai Kony Electric rear seat. Tall driver + tall passenger behind him = trouble (c) Edmunds / YouTube

Front seats and dashboard

The driving position in Bolt is very good, but the seat does not impress with its comfort. It gives the impression that you are sitting on it, not in it. In addition, the backrests do not hold the passenger sideways, and their shape is moderately ergonomic. The interior material feels cheap, and the bright plastics reflect off the windshield in front of the car when the car is driven in direct sunlight. That is why Edmunds recommends choosing a rather dark interior.

In Konie Electric, on the other hand, the armchairs were highly praised. They felt that they were better than those in Bolta. The materials used were also more premium, and the design used in the cockpit made a better impression. While the interior was bright, it did not reflect that much in the windshield. To one reviewer, the cabin seemed more "traditional" and closer to internal combustion cars, while the Bolt was designed from scratch as an electric car.

Driving experience

Reviewers liked Bolt's riding modes and the possibility of powerful regenerative braking, which makes the brakes superfluous. Chevrolet's high torque was also praised for making the car a lot of fun to drive. The body did not tilt particularly strongly in sharp turns, and one of the drivers, a curiosity, had the impression that he was sitting ON the car rather than in it - which told him that he should not be in such a hurry.

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The Kona Electric had less regenerative braking than the Bolt - even at the highest setting. This is the only downside, however, as the car was precise and the road felt much less twisted than when the reviewers were driving the Bolt on it. The car gave a feeling of solidity, although Bolt did not fare badly against this background. In the corners, it was felt that the Kona Electric had more torque than the Bolt (395 Nm of the Kony Electric vs 360 Nm of Bolt).

Summation

Although the reviewers liked the power of recuperative braking in Bolt, The Hyundai Kona Electric was considered the clear winner. The car was better equipped, more modern, and offered a greater range. Additionally, in the United States, the car is likely to be cheaper than Bolt, which completely solves the problem of choice.

Worth Watching:

The Nissan Leaf was excluded from the list due to its short range (243 km). The Tesla Model 3 Standard Range (~ 50 kWh) was also not included, as the car is still not produced.

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