Hyundai Kona

Popular SUV gets a fresh look and takes a step upmarket, while gaining a longer range in electric form On sale April Price from £25,000 (est)

- George Hill

AFTER MCDONALD'S ALTERED its brand image in 2016, adopting earthy tones in its restaurants and packaging, its popularity leapt forwards. If you take a change in direction and it pays off, it makes sense to capitalise on that success.

On its launch, the Hyundai Ioniq 5 was a big stylistic departure for the brand, and so warmly was it received that altering the second-generation Kona's style to match makes a lot of sense. Witness the visor-style front LED light bar and its matching pixelated partner at the back, plus the chunky wheel arch cladding that lends a tough look.

The new Kona isn't just different from its predecessor on the surface, though; it now shares its underpinnings with the Niro from sister brand Kia. This means it's larger than before; growing by 175mm in length and 25mm in width means it's now slightly bigger than the Ford Puma and Volkswagen T-Roc small SUVs, although it's still slightly smaller than the family-sized Niro.

As before, the new Kona is being offered with petrol, hybrid and fully electric power. The regular petrol version's turbocharged 1.0-litre engine and the hybrid's 1.6-litre unit (paired with an electric motor) have been carried over from the outgoing model, but power is expected to increase slightly over today's 118bhp and 139bhp respectively. At present, there are no plans for a plug-in hybrid version or a high-performance Kona N.