Hyundai-Sime Darby Motors (HSDM) has launched the facelifted versions of their 1st generation 2021 Hyundai Kona crossover and it is flaunting a newly redesigned exterior and interior.

The B-segment SUV is being offered in two variants, the base Hyundai Kona 2.0L Standard has a price tag of RM 119,888 and the second variant, 2.0L Active has a price tag of RM 136,888.

The 2021 Hyundai Kona has a stance of 4,205 mm in length, 1,800 mm in width, 1,565 mm in height and a wheelbase spanning 2,600 mm.

The 2021 Hyundai Kona exudes a front look that is both fresh and sleek with the entire front clip getting redesigned and has been paired with contrasting body cladding, black for the Standard trim and grey for the Active trim. Also visible is a slimmer yet commanding grille, a top-mounted Hyundai badge and a U-shaped silver skid plate surrounding the centre air intake.

The rear of the car exhibits a robust yet sleek layout. It can be seen sporting a rear bumper design that continues the styling theme set by the front end, with increased cladding and a large skid plate. The top of the rear gets a roof edge spoiler that really accentuates a sporty outlook.

The four-lamp signature has been retained with the upper daytime running light graphics reshaped to give off a sharper look than before. On the Active trim, the DRLs also now double as indicators, freeing up space underneath for full-LED headlights in a scale-like design. However, for the Standard trim, it gets a projector halogen set of headlamps.

The tail lamps of the Active trim come with LED lower indicators and for the Standard, it gets the normal bulbs. Both trims’ tail lamps feature graphics set against a black background. The upper tail lights, which again feature LEDs on the Active trim, have also been revised for a cleaner and slimmer wider look.

It is power adjusted and power folded, with turn-indicators and for the Active trim, it has a remote-controlled folding function.

The Standard trim gets sporty-looking 17-inch turbine-style alloy rims with 215/55 RI7 tyres, while the Active Trim rides on 18-inch two-toned criss cross-spoke alloy rims with 235/45 R18.

The dashboard gets an all-black look with silver trims as a finishing detail around the air-conditioning vents and the spokes of the steering wheel. However, only the Active trim gets a soft-touch dashboard material. Overall, it has a minimalist-inspired style and the cockpit layout is elegantly and logically designed to ensure a better driving experience.

The 2021 Hyundai Kona gets a 4.2-inch TFT-LCD instrument cluster for the Standard trim. As for the Active trim, it gets a 10.25-inch TFT LCD display with graphics of which can be customized according to the drive mode selected.

The Active trim gets an 8-way power-adjustable seat function for the driver with all-around full black leather upholstery across the new Surfy Blue, Misty Jungle and ignite Flame exterior paints, but in the new Dive In Jeju and Dark Knight hues, it comes with light beige leather with dark red piping. As for the Standard trim, it only comes with one full black fabric leather and manual seat adjustable function.

It has practical little spaces like a centre console storage box, medium-sized glove box, front seatback pockets and front and rear door storage. Furthermore, the restyled centre console comes with a taller transmission tunnel and a new electronic parking brake to replace the previous handbrake, meaning it frees up a lot of space for a storage compartment behind it.

There are 4 cup holders. 2 in the front centre console and 2 in the rear seat armrest. As for the bottle holders, it has 2 and is located at the front door side panels.

The 2021 Kona gets one 12v power socket located in the front and one USB port also located in the front, these apply for both the Standard trim and the Active trim.

It gets up to 361-litres of boot space and with the 60:40 split-folding rear seats and dual-level luggage board that offers extra space, more and bigger luggage can be stored without there being any hassle.

Both the 2021 Hyundai Kona features Anti-lock Braking System (ABS), Electronic Brakeforce Distribution (EBD) with brake assist, Cruise Control, Hill Start Assist, Hill Descent Control, Electronic Parking Brake (EPB), Stability Control, rearview camera.

However, the Active trim tops all of that with the SmartSense driver assistance systems, which includes Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB) with pedestrian detection, Lane Keeping Assist (LKA), Blind Spot Monitoring (BSM) with steering assistance, Rear Cross Traffic Alert (RCTA) with braking and automatic high beam. It also gets four new features, which are Lane Centering Assist (LCA) and front departure alert.

Passive safety on both variants includes seat belt reminders with graphical indicators and seat belt pre-tensioners for all seats. As for airbags, the whole cabin is covered with 6 airbags in total, dual front, dual side, driver and passenger, front and side-impact beams, door ajar warning, rear parking sensors and on the Active trim, front parking sensors and an ISOFIX. 

Three drive modes available - Normal, Eco and Sport. New on both trims is the off-road-biased Traction Control Mode with an additional three settings - Snow, Mud and Sand.

The 2021 Hyundai Kona is installed with an 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system with many features for audio, Bluetooth and AUX connectivity, navigation and control system. It also supports Apple Carplay and Android Auto.

The Kona is powered by a naturally aspirated 2.0-litre Nu MPI Atkinson-cycle, Inline 4-cylinder petrol engine which produces 149 PS of power at 6,200 rpm and 180 Nm of torque at 4,500 rpm.

It has an 8-speed Intelligent Variable Transmission (iVT) automatic transmission.

The 2021 Hyundai Kona can sprint from 0 - 100 km/h in 9.7 seconds.

It has keyless-entry with a push-to-start button, rain sensor wipers, auto defogging function, rearview camera, automatic light control, welcome and follow-me-home light functionality, tilt & telescopic steering wheel adjustment.

The Active trim adds on an 8-way power-adjustable driver’s seat, automatic wipers, a head-up display, front parking sensors and heated door mirrors.