Hyundai Kona Electric - Reliability & safety

Long gone are the days that South Korean cars lagged behind the technology of their Western rivals, as demonstrated by autonomous emergency braking and active cruise control being standard across the Kona range. The Premium trim adds lane-keeping assistance, blind-spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alerts. Ultimate brings Hyundai's Highway Drive Assist technology, which is effectively adaptive cruise control coupled with lane-centring, that can help take some of the tedium out of driving long distances.

This comprehensive safety equipment contributed towards the Kona's five-star Euro NCAP safety rating, which included an 87% score for how it looks after adults in a collision, as well as an 85% score for child occupant protection.

Hyundai enjoys an enviable reputation for reliability, and this is borne out by the fact our 2020 Driver Power survey saw only 8.9% of Hyundai owners reporting any faults in their first year of ownership. Despite that, the brand only finished 13th out of 30 brands overall, its score dragged down by a lack of driver appeal and interior comfort in some of its models. The Kona itself has yet to feature individually in the survey. The Hyundai Kona itself came 60th out of the top 75 models, with an above average score for reliability - just 4.5% of owners reported a fault.

In fact, reliability, safety and infotainment were its strongest scoring areas, along with low running costs. Ride and handling, along with practicality and space fared least well, so Hyundai may well want to find a way to boost rear passenger and boot space in the next Kona, as well as making it more fun to drive.