Hyundai Kona 2021 review: Elite

At $31,600, the Elite does break through the psychological barrier that is $30,000 and it's a stout $3400 more than the cheaper stablemate Active, and $5000 more than the entry-level model. You get 17-inch alloys, an eight-speaker stereo, climate control, reversing camera, keyless entry and start, acoustic windscreen (to cut noise, it's not like a guitar), rear parking sensors, cruise control, sat nav, auto wipers, halogen headlights (really?), LED daytime running lights and a space-saver spare.

The touchscreen is easy to use and also has Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

The extra money also buys you more safety features that are particularly useful around town.

The eight-speakers have posh Harmon Kardon badges on them, so that must be good. The speakers are powered by the awesome new 10.25-inch touchscreen with a truly excellent new layout and graphics set. It's extremely easy to use and also has Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Curiously, CarPlay isn't wireless, despite the fact that you do get a Qi wireless-charging pad. 

The Kona has never been the biggest cabin in the segment but nor is it the smallest. You'll notice this most if you start at the back of the car, with its 374-litre boot, comfortably eclipsed by Renault's new Captur, Peugeot's 2008, Honda's HR-V and a bunch more besides. It's still way bigger than a CX-3's, though. If you fold down the rear seats, you get 1156 litres, which is a small improvement on the old one for the seriously eagle-eyed.

On the upside, you get four cupholders and rear passengers get an armrest for them. Being based on the i30, it was perhaps predictable that the rear seats are a tad tight in all directions. I'm 180cm tall and behind my driving position it's not the most comfortable for long journeys. Kids will be fine, as long as there are only two; three might be a stretch and will definitely be a squeeze if you toss in child seats.

Smaller kids are looked after with two ISOFIX points and three top-tether anchor points.

The 2.0-litre naturally aspirated four-cylinder engine is familiar across the Hyundai-Kia firmament and in the Kona it has 110kW and 180Nm of torque. That means a 0-100km/h time of under 10 seconds, but it feels a little more brisk than that.

The big change for the 2021 Kona is the new CVT, or Continuously Variable Transmission. Generally speaking, I find these gearboxes utterly deplorable but in the Kona - as in its Kia Seltos twin - the engineers have conjured up eight gears to make it feel like a normal automatic transmission, or like the six-speed torque converter it replaces. The CVT is meant to reduce fuel usage, and it turns out that it probably does.

The big change for the 2021 Kona is the new CVT.

Hyundai's official testing says the Kona will drink 6.2L/100km of standard unleaded, a figure I thought a little optimistic, except that Hyundai's figures tend to be the closest to reality. After a week of battling around the suburbs and a quick run down to Wollongong from Sydney, I got an indicated 6.7L/100km, which is not only damn close (as far as these figures go), but not bad for the segment.

All Hyundais have a five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty and a lifetime capped-price-servicing plan.

You can also prepay your service, which, one imagines, saves some money, but you can also roll it into your finance package. A three-service plan costs $957, four for $1276 and five for $1595. You're expected back at the dealer every 12 months or 15,000km (5000 fewer kilometres than turbo-engined cars)