Hyundai Kona 2017 review

Is water wet? Small SUVs seem to be the segment in which designers really let their hair down (we're looking at you, Toyota C-HR), and the Kona is another example of boundary-pushing design.

And by boundary-pushing, we mean it's both loved and loathed - but we're in the love it camp. As mentioned above, there's plenty of Subaru XV in there - from the plastic cladding that Hyundai calls armour to the vaguely wagon-shaped body - but there are also enough differences to ensure the Kona stands out from the pack.

Most notable, of course, is the new front face design, with thin-strip DRLs, separate headlight clusters and a reshaped grille all giving the little Kona a sporty, aggressive stance when viewed front on.

Inside, much has been done to make the small cabin seem bright and airy, and it all feels very well put together, but there are plenty of cheap-touch plastics covering the dash and doors, and a fairly sparse backseat that lacks air vents, power sources or USB connections - no matter how much you spend.

It is perhaps the first time - and certainly the first in recent memory - that the Hyundai isn't the price-leader in a segment. In fact, provided you're prepared to shift gears yourself and make do with an entertainment system that looks like the slit in Ned Kelly's helmet, you could find yourself in a Mazda CX-3 for about $4k less.

Instead, the Kona will arrive in four trim levels (the Active, Active with Safety Pack, Elite and Highlander), with each available with one of two engines and in two- or all-wheel drive.

The Active kicks off from $24,500 ($27k drive-away) in its cheapest guise and climbs to $28,000 for the better engine and all-wheel drive. Your investment buys you 16-inch alloys, LED daytime running lights and dusk-sensing headlights outside, while an Apple Car Play and Android Auto-equipped 7.0-inch touchscreen handles the entertainment.

Power windows in both rows, roof rails and cruise control also arrive as standard, joined by cloth seats and a leather-wrapped steering wheel and shift knob.

As the name suggests, the Active with Safety Pack ($26,000 - $29,500) adds Hyundai's SmartSense safety package, which includes blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, lane keeping assist, AEB with pedestrian detection, forward-collision warning and a driver-attention warning, as well as powered and heated wing mirrors.

The Elite model ($28,500 - $32,000) builds on all that with bigger 17-inch alloys, leather-appointed seats, push-button start and climate control, along with rain-sensing wipers, seat-back pockets and a luggage net.

Finally, the Highlander ($33,000 - $36,000) gets the biggest 18-inch alloy wheels, a head-up display, heated and cooled front seats, LED headlights with high-beam assist, a heated steering wheel and a wireless charging pad for your (compatible) phone.

At 4165mm in length, the Kona is shorter than both the Mazda CX-3 and Honda HR-V, but at 1800mm it is slightly wider than both, and clever use of the space inside means the backseat actually isn't too tough a place to spend a time.

Sitting behind my own (5ft 8inch) driving position, there was a little clear air between my knees and the seat in front, as well as above my head. The power controls for the rear doors do protrude into the window seats though, which would be an issue should you go three-across in the backseat. Which you won't. Because you're not a bad person.

Up front, there are two cupholders, as well as a single USB, Aux-in connection and power source, all of which sit in a little storage bin that's part of the central dash setup. There's another, deeper bin separating the front seats, too.

Two more cupholders live in the pulldown divider that splits the backseat, and there's an ISOFIX attachment point in each window seat. Each door has room for small bottles, too.

At 361 litres VDA, boot space is bigger than that in a CX-3 but smaller than in a HR-V, and that number grows to 1143 with the rear seat folded flat. A space-saver spare is housed in the boot.

Two on offer here, both petrol-powered, and each available in any of the Kona's trim levels.

The cheaper option is a 2.0-litre petrol unit good for 110kW at 6200rpm and 180Nm at 4500rpm, and will pair with a conventional six-speed torque converter automatic, sending its power to the front wheels.

Option two is a turbocharged 1.6-litre engine producing 130kW at 5500rpm and 265Nm at 1,500rpm. It pairs with a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic, and sends the grunt to all four wheels.

The less-powerful option is also the thirstiest, with the 2.0-litre engine sipping 7.2 litres per hundred kilometres on the claimed/combined cycle, and will emit 169g per kilometre of C02.

Opt for the turbo and your claimed/combined fuel use drops to 6.7 litres per 100km, while emissions fall to 153g per kilometre of C02.

Let's start with the 2.0-litre option, shall we? The numbers don't look all that pretty on paper, sure, but actually the 110kW and 180Nm on offer is pretty capable of pulling the Kona around. There is some harshness when you really bury your foot, though, and you can hear the engine straining, but around the city and its surrounds it does the job just fine.

That said, the turbocharged engine does offer more bang for your more bucks, and the extra torque on tap makes country driving a breeze, with quick overtakes no problem at all. The dual-clutch gearbox performed admirably, too, albeit after some slight stuttering when it was cold in the morning.

Like all Australian-delivered Hyundais, the Kona has been locally tuned, and they've done a stellar job here across the range. On really bad surfaces you can find the outer edges of the suspension, but generally speaking it does a great job of soaking up lumps and bumps while always feeling connected to the road below it.

Even more impressively, the little Kona actually feels genuinely dynamic, holding through corners with nary a wobble from the body. We'd want to drive them all back-to-back again to be sure, but if the Kona isn't the most dynamic-riding model in its segment, it's going to be damn close.

There are some slight annoyances though, and one is the general refinement. The naturally aspirated engine does get loud and raspy when you ask too much of it, and while the turbocharged unit is much better, it's still quite loud under hard acceleration. There's road noise in the cabin on the wrong surfaces, too (although its far more obvious on the smaller, 16-inch alloys).

They're minor things, though, and more generally speaking, the Kona is an easy, comfortable drive in or out of the city.

If your budget extends only to the Active, expect six airbags, a rear-view camera, rear parking sensors, tyre-pressure monitoring, hill-start assist and downhill brake control, as well as the usual suite of traction and braking aids.

The Safety Pack adds safety (surprise!) including blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, lane-keeping assist, AEB with pedestrian detection, forward collision warning and a driver-attention warning.

Spring for the Elite and you'll add front fog lights, while the Highlander gets auto high beams and front parking sensors.

Like all Hyundais, expect a very good five-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty with service intervals pegged at 12 months or 15,000kms. Your first five services are capped, too, at a total $1395 for the 2.0-litre engine, and $1405 for the turbocharged option.