North American Utility of the Year finalist: Hyundai Kona
We were fortunate enough to get the opportunity to drive the brand-spanking-new Kona way back in June of 2017 at an event in South Korea, and its potential was clear even then. Since then, of course, the little crossover has taken many markets including Canada’s by storm, thanks to its combination of fuel economy, good looks, city-friendly driveability and surprising performance chops.
It might be stretching things to call the Kona a “utility” vehicle – it’s pretty small, classed as a subcompact crossover, its trunk is smaller than the HR-V’s for example, and we wouldn’t recommend taking it on any overly-ambitious off-road adventures – but its appeal is more directed at urbanites. In that domain, it’s got no reason to back down from any model in its class with a Toyota, Honda or Mazda name on the back. The Kona was chosen our Auto123.com Subcompact SUV of the Year for 2019, and Kelley Blue Book named it the Best Buy for 2019 in the Subcompact SUV category.
Our review of the 2018 Hyundai Kona
