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Hyundai launches Kona Electric CUV in the US, now claims a range of ‘250 miles’

After unveiling the Kona Electric in Europe last month, Hyundai is now launching the all-electric compact SUV in the US and it is confirming the estimated EPA range.

Mike O’Brien, Vice President of Product, Corporate and Digital Planning at Hyundai Motor America, debuted the vehicle at the New York Auto Show today:

“Our new Kona Electric crossover is a stylish and efficient compact CUV, tailored to the needs of customers who pursue eco-focused active lifestyles requiring generous range. We’re confident it will set new standards for the electric-propelled compact CUV segment, with outstanding range flexibility, appealing design, cutting-edge connectivity and class-leading available safety features.”

The “generous range” is now an estimated “250 miles” on a single charge.

That’s down from “nearly 470 km (292 miles) of range” that Hyundai announced based on the WLTP standard during the European debut last month.

With the US launch, the Korean automaker still hasn’t confirmed the pricing of the new electric vehicle, but it did elaborate on the availability, which is unsurprisingly focused on ZEV states.

Hyundai says that the Kona Electric will be available in the fourth quarter of 2018 in California and “subsequently in the ZEV-focused states in the western and northeastern regions of the U.S. market.”

Electrek’s Take

250 miles of EPA-rate range would be pretty good for a compact SUV, but the lack of pricing information is frustrating at this point.

It has been rumored to be between $30,000 and $40,000, which should make it highly competitive, but it’s still unconfirmed at this point.

Unfortunately, I think availability will be fairly limited, much like the Hyundai Ioniq.

Early reports from Korea suggested that Hyundai was only planning a global production of about 30,000 units per year and if they are focusing on ZEV states, it could be difficult to get it outside of those markets.

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