Vehicle Detail

It’s probably the most outrageously styled Hyundai the world has ever seen. The Kona is a small SUV that competes with the Nissan Juke and Seat Arona, among others, in what’s known as the ‘B-SUV’ segment. These so-called SUVs are hugely popular, hence the droves of them invading showrooms across the land.

But even in this style-led segment, none we’ve seen is as bold as the Kona. There are shades of Hyundai in there, but for the most part this is a bespoke design, and in our view not a totally successful one.

We appreciate Hyundai wanted to go bold (and applaud it for following through) – as it’s so late to the party. Going big is the only way to get noticed, we figure. But there are ways of doing that without over-styling your car, which is the trap Hyundai’s fallen into.

There are five ‘grilles’ in front, but only two are real, and the arrangement of the rear-end is plain odd. It will find as many fans as it will naysayers, no doubt. Happily, things are more conventional underneath…

HYUNDAI Kona 1.6T 177 HP 4×4 7-DCT PREMIUM 17

Verdict

Go ahead if you like the look of it. If you don't, endless rivals are about as good.

Interior & Practicality

7

Running costs

8

Performance & drive

7.2

Feelgood factor

7.1

Safety

8

Reader Rating3 Votes

6.2

Pros

Refined, and it handles better than it strictly needs to

Cons

Gets expensive, looks weird. But you might like that, mightn't you?

7.5

Wildcard