2022 Hyundai Kona N - River-dancing in the Kona N Review by Mark Fulmer
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River-dancing in the Kona N
Mark Fulmer
Executive Producer, Editor
THE AUTO CHANNEL
Sacramento, also known as River City, has some levy roads that are simply a great place to test drive Hyundai's spunky all new Kona N - the SUV with both torque and nimbleness to satiate the driver with inner roadster dreams.
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It starts with it turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-4 engine creating 276 horsepower and 289 pound-feet of torque. That spins an eight-speed dual-clutch smooth shifting automatic transmission. Keeping that power capable during sporty corner carving is Hyundai's N-Corner Carving Differential (eLSD). Speaking to my friends in Berkeley: no, that has no connection to those swirly colors from the 60's. The eLSD merely distributes more power to the outer wheels during the curves allowing greater speed and traction. For those who live in F&F movie dreamland, there's a launch button.
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Inside The 10.3-inch digital gauge cluster can be configured to display the various performance pages...
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The eight-speaker Harman Kardon sound system can also be tuned to whatever your ear prefers and/or is capable of withstanding.
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The front seats are a combo of leather and suede with the driver having 8-way power adjustments and both seats have adjustable lumbar support for those long freeway cruises.
Front head room 39.6 in.
Front leg room 41.5 in.
Front shoulder room 55.5 in.
Front hip room 53.3 in.
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Rear-seat passengers get spacious headroom, legroom and shoulder room. Yes, that is a full sized 88 keyboard... and no, the Kona does not come equipped with one it's just there for size comparison... and for fun when writing this review is finished.
Rear head room 37.8 in.
Rear leg room 35.2 in.
Rear shoulder room 54.5 in.
Rear hip room 52.2 in.
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With the rear seats folded the Kona has 45.8 cu.ft. of very useful cargo space.
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With all seats in place, you get a decent 19.2 cu.ft.
Safety systems are a-plenty as you would expect in any performance vehicle:
Blind spot and lane departure warnings
Pre-collision safety system
Post-collision safety system
Dual front side-mounted airbags
Stability control
Traction control
4-wheel ABS
Emergency braking assist
Rear height adjustable headrests
Rear center 3-point belt
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This Kona N is a real treat for drivers who like to be more than just surface-involved with their machine and appreciate its driving modes.