Hyundai Kona Hybrid vs Toyota Corolla Cross GXL Hybrid FWD 2025 comparison review

So, let’s meet our contenders. First we have the Toyota Corolla Cross GXL. It’s the middle child in the Corolla Cross family, and it’s yours for $40,230 before on-road costs (or $44,446 drive-away, as of right now in NSW). It’s 2WD, has a 2.0-litre petrol-hybrid powertrain, and a continuously variable automatic transmission (CVT).

And we have the Hyundai Kona Hybrid, it’s the brand's entry-level Kona, and it’s $36,500 before on-road costs (or about $41,000 drive-away in NSW). This one pairs a 1.6-litre petrol-hybrid powertrain with a six-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission (DCT).

Now, about that price gap. There is a cheaper Corolla Cross, the GX, which is yours for around $40,500 on the road, and there's an N Line version of the base Kona hybrid for an extra $4000, but that adds sportier design flourishes and some performance features. In the end, these are the two cars we have to compare.

So what do you get for that investment? 

In Toyota town, it means 17-inch wheels and all-LED lighting outside, while in the cabin, there are leather-accented seats (that do without any heating), dual-zone climate control, manual seat adjustment, a leather-accented steering wheel and shifter, and keyless entry with push-button start.

Tech is covered by a 10.5-inch central screen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a six-speaker stereo and a 7.0-inch colour screen for the driver. No wireless charging seems an oversight, though.

Now, this might be the cheapest Hyundai Kona Hybrid, but it doesn’t feel like it, at least not based on its spec sheet.

It gets bigger 18-inch wheels and LED headlights and daytime running lights (DRL). Unlike the Toyota, it gets all-fabric seats, but it does add a wireless charging pad to go with its Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

Like the Toyota, it gets dual-zone climate control and keyless entry and push-button start, while tech this time comes courtesy of a 12.3-inch central touchscreen paired with a six-speaker stereo, and there’s a 4.2-inch driver display screen.

With all of that in mind, you’d have to say the Hyundai shades the Toyota in a straight spec battle, but only ever so slightly. The Toyota will give you a little leather, but the Hyundai pretty much matches, or exceeds, the Corolla Cross elsewhere, and it does it for less money.

Both of these SUVs are the same width, but the Corolla Cross is slightly longer, while the Kona rides on a slightly bigger wheelbase. But of course those are just numbers, the big question is, what sort of impact do they have on cargo and passenger space inside.

When it comes to boot space, the Toyota will serve up 425 litres with the rear seats in place, while the Hyundai is good for 407 litres. Where there is some daylight between the models is with towing. The Toyota is limited to 750kg braked, while the Hyundai claims a maximum 1300kg.

The big question is how do those dimensions translate to interior space?

Remember how I said the front seats of the Corolla Cross felt lightly claustrophobic? That feeling extends to the backseat, too. It's not that it's too tight - at 175cm I still had enough head room and knee room - it's just that it feels tighter and more closed in than in the Kona.

Elsewhere, there are rear vents (but no temp controls) and twin USB ports. There's no pull-down divider, instead cupholders are moulded into each of the rear doors.

The Kona, on the other hand, feels bigger, and more airy, than the Toyota, and I honestly think there a lots of smaller Aussie families that could make do with the space on offer here.

Sitting behind my own driving position, I found I had lots of leg and headroom, and the space just feels lighter and brighter than in the Corolla Cross.

Like the Toyota, you've got air vents and twin USB ports, but unlike the Corolla Cross, to use the cupholders you'll have to deploy the central armrest.

Both these hybrid SUVs achieve much the same goal, they just go about it in slightly different ways.

In the Toyota, you get a 2.0-litre petrol engine that produces 112KW and 190Nm, but the electric assistance lifts those outputs. That power is fed through an occasionally annoying CVT automatic and sent to the front tyres.

In the Hyundai, a 1.6-litre petrol engine makes just 77kW and and 144Nm, but it too gets electric help from its front-mounted motor, lifting those figures to a total 104kW and 265Nm. In this case, the grunt is channeled through a six-speed DCT automatic and released into the world through the front tyres.

Toyota claims a 7.6-second sprint to 100km/h. Hyundai doesn’t actually claim a zero to 100km/h time, but honestly, they both feel pretty similar. 

This is where it gets interesting. And for the record, we’ve left both these vehicles in their normal 'Eco' drive mode - we’re trying to keep this as balanced as possible.

So, the claims. Toyota says to expect 4.2L/100km on the combined cycle. Hyundai goes one better, suggesting 3.9L is possible on the same cycle. 

Real world, though, we’ve found the Corolla Cross reporting 4.9L/100km, and the Kona Hybrid delivering 5.0L/100km. Not much in that, then. 

And to be fair to both models, our test program involved some fairly enthusiastic and twisty driving. We have not been trying to eek out the best fuel use, so to get five litres or less I think is pretty good. 

The Corolla Cross has a 36-litre fuel tank, while the Kona gets a 38-litre tank, and both accept the cheapest 91 RON fuel. So with that in mind, and using a realistic 5.0L/100km as the guide, you should get around 720kms from a tank in the Toyota, and around 760kms in the Hyundai.

Fun fact, using today’s prices, it will cost you less than $70 to completely fill either of these two SUVs, and that will get you from Sydney to pretty close to the Queensland border. See why hybrids are so popular?

The Hyundai Kona range scored a four-star ANCAP safety rating when it was tested back in 2023, while the Toyota Corolla Cross is a five-star ANCAP-rated car from testing done in 2022.

So the big question is, how to they put that tech to use?

2025 Toyota Corolla Cross GXL Hybrid FWD (Image: Sam Rawlings)

Annoyingly, to be honest, but more so in the Hyundai than in the Toyota. Both are equipped with a long list of active safety features, but it’s the Hyundai that annoys slightly more with its chimes and bonging. Happily, they’re fairly easy to turn off.

That wasn’t my experience with the Toyota. They feel tuned for Australian conditions, to the point that you can easily forget they’re there. That said, the reversing camera isn’t the best, with an unclear image, even in perfect conditions.