Advice on EV for daily commute

Dakota57

Hi,

I drive 100 km round trip daily using all motorway. I do 160 km round trip to a 2nd office every few weeks as well.

We have a Nissan leaf 30 kWh at home which is used for school runs, local trips etc.

I drive an old diesel which is on its last legs and I am ready to purchase a 2nd EV now.

I have decided to get a 2019 Kona 64 battery from a hyundai dealer for 26,500. There is almost 49,000 km on it and it is in warranty still.

We were looking at a new VW ID4 also as it's 0 per % interest with PCP at moment but they only offered 5000 for leaf as a trade in. I felt that was very low considering the leaf has only 100,000 km on it.

I think we will hold onto Leaf as the Hyundai dealer also said we would not get as much for trade in and would get more in private sale.

Is Kona a good deal for the price?

Might decide to sell Leaf privately later on but would need a 2nd runaround car to replace it.

Any advice welcome.

Thanks.

Larbre34

The MG4.

Its the only choice for a daily runabout EV. It is €14,000 cheaper than the equivalents from the volume makers. It has a 7 year warranty, it has a really good standard specification and it drives every bit as well as an ID.3 / Born. It also has excellent interior space for a 5-door hatch.

I think they are fantastic and I would have been a real naysayer about the Chinese brands on principle.

Basilio

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058308602/advice-on-ev-for-daily-commute

Hi, selling Kona with working AC (check dealers car) and only 26000km, under warranty as well, will do a deal below dealers price. Before purchasing Kona drove MG. Personally I had chosen range, seating position, leather seats, built quality of Korean Kona.

Dakota57

Thanks for feedback.

Just to clarify I put 500 deposit already on Kona while in dealers yesterday.

Everything was quick and finance approved. We loved the colour as well and it had dark seats which might be handy for 2 teenagers and a dog.

But I felt it was very rushed and it was the first car we looked at.

I never thought about MG4 as a 2nd car and it would have 7 years warranty as well.

Dealer said they would gave back deposit if we changed our minds.

I see they booked an NCT in for car now as well.

My question is should I go for Kona 2019 or maybe test drive another car but which one.

I might try MG4 test drive tomorrow.

Thanks

insullation

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120956258#Comment_120956258

@Basilio Do you have more details on your car or is it on car selling site to view?

Dakota57

Sorry I thought you were asking me that. Ok

Basilio

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120956845#Comment_120956845

Advertised on DoneDeal and here https://www.adverts.ie/car/hyundai/kona/191-ev-kona-long-range-only-26k-km-cream-leather/31000202

Basilio

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120956827#Comment_120956827

See for yourself, what vehicle suts your needs best. Make sure AC is blowing ❄ cold air, could be costly to fix.

10-10-20

Kona and teenagers... I'd dry-run that concept with the real-deal in the rear seats. There isn't mountains of leg-room there, I'll tell ya.

Dakota57

Thanks for that and I will definitely take all those comments into consideration.

I will make my mind up in next day or 2.

Basilio

"Kona and teenagers... I'd dry-run that concept with the real-deal in the rear seats. There isn't mountains of leg-room there, I'll tell ya."

Not all teenagers are over 6 ft and commute to the office "drive 100 km round trip daily using all motorway. I do 160 km round trip to a 2nd office every few weeks as well." as name of the tread suggests.

DownByTheGarden

Before yuou go for a Kona just make sure you "try out" the boot. Its far smaller than it looks. Probably the worst boot of any car. Like a reverse tardis. Smaller than t looks.

electricus

There’s a lot more space in an ID.3 for similar price for a 2021:

https://www.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/2021-volkswagen-id-3-pro-150-kw-style-auto/33683893

zg3409

As already said Kona boot is surprisingly small as are back seats. The car has a great reputation for range and build quality. Check if main battery was replaced under a recall, if not I would be worried, with a new battery less so.

Try the mg4 too, I don't think there is a long wait on new models, even though they come on a slow boat from china.

10-10-20

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120959448#Comment_120959448

I wouldn't necessarily be worried per se, some were not recalled as the potential defect wasn't present in the particular cells. The defect doesn't cause a loss or range or an early life degridation anyway. If a new battery was fitted then it would be useful to know at what mileage it was done at so that you know what mileage was put on the vehicle subsequently.

Dakota57

Thanks for all that advice.

Going to test drive an MG4 in an hour.

That ID3 seems a good deal. I wonder why reduced so much.

I was reading that Kia e-niro good car also.

There are so many choices but just finding the right one with 2 teenagers and one is tall as well.

I will decide by tonight as will need to update dealer on the Kona if going ahead with it.

Paul Kiernan

Can you charge at your 2nd office that you go to every few weeks? If yes then you don't need a 64kwh Kona. €26,500 seems a huge price to me for a 4 year old car! You can get a year old Ioniq or 40kwh Kona for less. EV prices seem to be in freefall at the moment, just look at ID3's. I'd cancel your Kona for now (it's not exactly deal of the century!) and take a few weeks to weigh up all your options and get up to speed on what's out there.

electricus

That ID3 seems a good deal. I wonder why reduced so much.

Just the current market, used prices are on the way down and lots of ID.3s traded in at end of PCP term.

Dakota57

Thanks for all those comments.

I just test drove MG4 today. Lovely car to drive and lots of room.

Only negative is a big display on dash.

Are there any EVs without this big dash. The big dash boards can be distracting while driving.

Still looking at cars here and thinking now of getting one with smaller battery.

fits

The benefit of the Id.3 over the Kona and eniro is that it was designed from ground up as an electric car and I found that it drives much better as a result. Not sure how the mg4 would compare.

Dakota57

Oh that's good to know. Yes ID3 looks good as well. I am also looking at Ioniq 28 as well now as have decided I don't need bigger battery.

Dakota57

We had another test drive on the Kona 2019 today. Also put teenagers in back and it was all good.

So going ahead with buying the car.

They ain't doing trade ins for our old diesel or nissan leaf as they are saying we will get more on done deal.

So might try and bargain down a bit the price as it is 26.500 at minute.

But happy with it and it drives great.

Air conditioning works fine as well.

Qboot

I am a happy owner of Hyundai IONIQ 38 kWh, and I could not recommend it enough. It is actually larger inside than the Kona, and has a bigger boot.

My wife uses it for her motorway trips to work (160 km one way with destination charging at her place of work). Going on a motorway at 125-130 km/h, the car will take you 200 km in winter and 240 km in summer. Going at 100 km/h, it will take you between 260 and 300 km, depending on the weather. Local driving with speeds up to 80 km/h will give you well over 300 km of range (my best was 350). Despite a smallish battery, it has great efficiency due to good aerodynamics.

It is also rather well specced, with leather seats, front seats heated, rear sensors, highway driving assist etc. It should be a few grand less expensive than the Kona too, and way more expensice than the ID3. If you can find one, I highly recommend giving it a go. I actually chose it over the Kona on account of the bigger size.

One downside is a poor "rapid" charging speed, but this has never been an issue for me, as most of my charging is destination charging, with an occasional 20-30 minute zap (instead of a 15-20 minute zap with other cars) if needed on lenghtier trips. Another downside is a slightly limited rear visibility due to a spoiler placed across the rear window, but you get used to it, and at night, it actually helps to block the beams of the traffic behind you. We have done over 45k km in this car in 16 months and never had an issue.

Dakota57

Thanks for that suggestion. I am now worried about the battery in the 2019 Kona.

I asked the sales person on the first viewing about the status of it as in battery recall.

They didn't know what I was talking about.

How do I find out if the battery was replaced? As I read online that some were replaced and others were not.

I am still interested in the Kona but don't want a dodgy battery either.

I am reading a lot online and getting confused at this stage.

Thanks.

Dakota57

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120959505#Comment_120959505

How do I know if battery was replaced and what mileage it was done at?

Thanks.

10-10-20

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120969785#Comment_120969785

Hmm, good question... I'm not sure that it's stamped in the book... you might need to ask Hyundai if you give them the reg?

zg3409

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120969655#Comment_120969655

Ideally get vin number (on windscreen) and email Hyundai Ireland asking if it's due and if it's done. Hyundai Ireland should be able to answer from car reg number too.

Kona May 2018 to March 2020 was the date range I believe may be impacted.

You can read rumours on Irish cars here

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058163405/hyundai-kona-ioniq38-battery-replacement

What worries me is that some owners in this age range were first told battery would be replaced, then later told no, a software update would "fix" the battery. Basically in my opinion Hyundai decided for some vehicles to not replace the battery for whatever reason. I would prefer a new battery car. If battery was not replaced I would worry Hyundai worldwide decided the cost of replacing all these batteries were too high and so skimped on cost by reducing the numbers of batteries replaced. They may know certain batches or dates of battery are no or low risk, they may have analysed the battery data and came up with a way of deciding and protecting the battery of every car and then only replace the higher risk cars.

Worst case car with old battery may have a higher risk of catching fire (unlikely) or may have a higher risk of failing at some stage from issues during battery manufacture that can lead to a fault or fire. I expect the updated software is very sensitive to detecting any battery that looks like it's not normal and shutting down the car or preventing charging until the cell or battery is replaced. If you only own car while it's in battery warranty it's less of a risk than an out of warranty battery.

Dakota57

Thanks all for that advice and will check it out tomorrow.

Dakota57

I noticed Kearny's in Cork do scrappage on 2nd hand Konas.

Also, their prices seem good. But a lot of their Konas do not specify what battery size.

They do specify crossover on some so thinking they might be 39 kw battery.

Is crossover 39 kw?

zg3409

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120972586#Comment_120972586

There is no easy way to tell. Done deal automatically often fills in battery size but seems to get it wrong regularly. I would not trust sakes staff. Only real way is to plug into car and check. An easier way might be to check estimated range at 100% and check screen for recent driving history and do the maths for battery size.

Dakota57

Yes I noticed done deal has some 39 kw with 64 kw added also.

Scrappage is good deal as we have an old diesel car so could give it to dealer as scrap.