2022 Kona EV - Any More Details?

Detailed specs for the 2022 EV for the U.S. have not been posted yet. But the front sensors have not been available in the U.S. in past model years on any trim level, plus I see the same for 2022 ICE models (for which the details have been posted). Suspect that's a big clue we will not be getting the front sensors here for the '22 EV.

 

So you scrape it or hit the curb 10% of the time? Those are not good odds

 

The inventory of 165 2021 Kona EV's within 25 miles of me that I reported a month ago (post #33 above) is now 123. So they seem to be selling, but slowly. One of the dealers actually still has one 2020 remaining.

I still have not been able to find any definite word regarding the availability of the HUD for MY2022 in the U.S.

 

Heat pump?
It seems so important, but nobody seems to know.
I was looking at a 2021 Kona, everyone said it has one.
Nope....

 

I really scratch my head as to why it's never been offered on Konas in the U.S. given it is available on the Kona in other countries, as well as on the E Niro in the U.S.

I suspect it's not coming for MY22 as there has been plenty of mention about other changes, but not one mention about the heat pump.

 

It's always been my understanding that, after omitting the heat pump in 2019s it was included in at least the subsequent model year in U.S. Northern states.

 

I'm in New Jersey, and according to Hyundai's website there are more than 1600 MY20 and MY21 Kona EV's available from dealers within 250 miles from me, not one with the heat pump. There is no mention of it in the MY21 brochures, and there was no mention of it in the MY20 brochures. I've never seen or heard of even one example. Of course I'm curious where your info came from as I would like to buy one

 

I'm not sure if it's worth the trouble of heating the car with a heat pump at all. Theoretically, this will allow you to extend the range a bit in winter, but according to my calculations, it will not pay off financially. Assuming that we take into account the horizon of 10 years of operation, we're charging the car mostly at home, that we use heating 50% of the time a year and it consumes an average of 10% of energy while driving, thanks to this option we "recover" only about 50% of heat pump's catalog cost (in my country this option costs about 1200 USD). So if someone is not constantly charging on expensive chargers and there is no big problem with the available range, the heat pump simply won't pay for itself. BTW, I assumed that the COP of the heat pump is 3:1.

 

I'm not looking for the heat pump to "pay for itself". I'm looking for it to avoid having heating the car eat into my range in cold weather. What makes you think this will extend the range only "a bit" in the winter? And why do you think this range extension is only theoretical? If your car is not equipped with a heat pump, don't you use significant amounts of power from the high voltage battery to heat the car in cold weather?

 

I understand that it is possible to order a heat pump exclusively because of its effect on the vehicle's range, and that's OK. However, if this particular factor is not absolutely important, then the question arises about the profitability of such an option. Hence my estimate.
The whole bill really depends on three factors: the climatic zone in which the vehicle is operated, the price of electricity it is charged with and the user's habits in terms of thermal comfort. An additional factor is the minimum ambient temperature at which the heat pump provides energy gain in relation to resistance heating.
In a temperate zone, for example in central Europe, the average annual temperature is around 6-8 ° C, and days with temperatures below -15 ° C, when the heat pump no longer provides any benefits over resistance heating, can be counted on the fingers. From my practical observations, the cabin heating in this climate zone is actually used for half a year or less (if the car is equipped with heated seats and steering wheel and the driver use it partially instead of cabin heating). But I assumed half a year to make thing simpler. Correct me if I am wrong, but I am convinced that on average when the heating is on, it accounts for 10% of the energy consumed. I assumed a very high annual mileage of 30,000 km, mean consumption of 15 kWh/100 km and previous assumptions, as well as the average annual efficiency of the heat pump at the level of 3: 1 (for one unit of energy used to drive the pump, we get 3 units of energy in the form of heat heating the cabin). The rest is arithmetic. If you use free chargers or significantly lower annual mileage, the purchase of a heat pump becomes even less profitable, especially if it would involve additional costs for service or removal of potential failures.

 

If I read it I almost certainly read it on this forum. I would also add, once again, that Hyundai has never made a feature of the heat pump. It could be that it exists but is simply not highlighted in product listings.

 

I can confirm the heat pump has never been available on the Kona EV units made for sale in the United States, although of course we have yet to see the 2022 specs yet. Count me as another buyer who would want it if it were made available.

 

The Sales Manager at the dealer told me the reason we don't see things on U.S. spec Kona EV's like the heat pump, electrically folding mirrors, front sensors, etc. is that Hyundai USA felt a need to cap the price of a fully loaded Kona, because their experience with cars in this size range is that the high spec cars don't move as buyers in this price range usually are looking for something larger. He said the Ultimate was just a small fraction of the total Kona EV sales, and Hyundai USA was resistant to adding even more features to the top trim and thereby raising the top prices even more.

He also said he would not be surprised to hear of the HUD disappearing for 2022 for similar reasons.

I usually question anything a dealer tells me, but this all does seem to make some sense.

 

This is historically consistent.

 

Yes, premium priced small cars do seem to fare better outside of North America.