i like that its port injected, no gunk building up on the valves

Cool fact... This car in Portugal is called Hyundai Kawai... Because Kona (Cona) means Vagina in Portuguese xD

So, I've worked for Kia Motors, basically just the lesser version of Hyundai; and your knowledge of these cars is astonishing! Not many people know a whole lot about these cars and how to service them. In their simplicity means that the Technicians at Kia/Hyundai can do their jobs much faster, leading to happier customers. For the bolts regarding the "Plastic Undershield", I've never had a bolt snap or become rounded off on me even with 5+ years of rust and servicing having been done on them. I don't work for Kia anymore, but they are still a very close tie between Nissan and them for how easy they are in servicing most of the components on the cars. Great job explaining a lot about this car, and this is basically how 80% of both Kia and Hyundai's cars are made.

Your general opinion about the Kona is that it's a cheaper man's car. I'm okay with that because we bought a 2014 Veloster brand new. Six years later the car has 115K miles and we've had zero problems with the car. Only thing we have replaced is tires, air/cabin filters and two batteries. We've done all oil changes on regular schedules and the car has been outstanding. As a matter of fact, the car is still on the stock brake pads. So this is the reason why I recently bought a '21 Kona SEL. I figured if my wife's Veloster has been as good as it has, hopefully I will be just as happy with my Kona in terms of durability and longevity.......

The diagnosis port in the engine bay is largely used during the manufacturing process. It still has an OBD2 port in the interior. I was a Hyundai tech for a few years, and I've never used the diagnosis port in the engine bay, nor have I ever seen mention of needing to use it during any kind of electrical diagnosis in the OE repair manuals.

Good review, we had a Kona for two weeks while our Santa Fe was in the body shop after an accident. Since it was a loaner vehicle it was the very lowest trim available. That being said, it was nicely appointed, accelerated well enough for highway traffic, handled competently and was quite comfortable and spacious considering the outside dimensions. There was, perhaps, slightly more wind & road noise at highway speed than expected, but not so much that it negatively impacted normal conversation. Overall, we liked the car well enough that we are keeping the Kona in mind as a primary candidate for my daughter's first vehicle in a few years. By that time, used prices on these should be in a very affordable range and there should be plenty of data by that time to determine long-term reliability. I'll echo some of the other comments as well. I don't see too much added value at this price point for direct injection. The additional cost and complexity of a high pressure pump and direct injector system probably outweighs the benefit for an engine and car of this size. Not to mention the potential carbon build up (which can be alleviated by adding port injection further complicating and adding cost). One thing I really liked about your review is your focus on the mechanical aspects which may impact reliability, and ease of maintenance. I also liked that you pointed out several features for what they really are... gimmicks! Drive mode selection, AWD, and many other attributes found on modern cars are nothing more than gimmicks marketed as "must haves" in order to add a few dollars to the bottom line price.

Very interesting practical information. Whether an owner repairs his own car or pays a workshop, it is useful to get an idea of how expensive it is going to be before choosing a car. 😎

This vehicle is perfectly suited to extreme use at Wal mart or Ikea possibly Target too. I like that the drive train is simple and kinda old-school.

Love your style, delivery and thoughts on this excellent review. Keep it up, I hope you find increasing success in your YT career. These kind of technical and objective reviews are desperately needed, and the general public should be taking an interest.

There is nothing wrong with Sequential port fuel injection. I personally prefer it from a longevity standpoint, much quieter operation, much cleaner intake valves, etc. Direct injection has alot of flaws, port injection all the way.

Port injection is better and very reliable engines ! You hardly notice the difference in real life between them interms of efficiency etc.

Holy crap. I would LOVE this kind of review on ALL new cars!

You are a champ and deserve 1 million subscribers.

this is a new car. already a rusty exhaust system, there is no anti-corrosion treatment of the body, a very dirty podkopotny space, dirt flies to all units. bad engineering solutions. a good review. thank.

You should rank the easiest car to work on with and the best overall

Fantastic. It's refreshing to see and hear a review worth watching. You obviously know your stuff and can speak very well and clearly about it. I bought the 2020 myself and after watching this, I hope I never have to change that water pump.!

Hi, great channel! As for the water pump being in close proximity to the right rail, all you need to do is lower the right side of the engine .. you support the engine from above by using a transverse T, or from below using a hydraulic jack under a cushioned oil pan, then undo the right side engine mount until the right side of the engine drops sufficiently in order to access the bolts of the water pump through the wheel well after removing the splash guard. 🙂

I can't believe the level of rust on those exhaust flanges already... it's not even old!

I had a 2005 hyundai elantra as my first car, ive gotta say this is still very mechanically similar to what they made all those years ago.

Great job 👍🏼 but I must give your brother some credit,after all it’s his toothbrush ! I have considered this car and you have helped me with this video. Thanks 🙏

Ive had one for a few months now. I really like the car

Really good review. My son has a 2022 Kona 2.0 SEL like the one you reviewed.... he likes it but at only 9800 miles the transmission totally failed internally, had to wait 2 weeks to get a brand new one... must be a design flaw so hope the new one they put in was a redesign

Another great review, I like that this has a 6 peed auto not a CVT and it looks to be serviceable too, that along with port injection might make this ride something to look at.

Thank you for this car review. The only one that actually earns the title. I'd love to see a Tata truck or some other sturdy good old hardware in comparison. Of course I realise that's maybe a bit of a special vehicle to come by.

This is literally a Hyundai Elantra/Kia forte on stilts and 5k more expensive. It’s the same drivetrain, same interior and I swear the same wheels. It’ll sell like hot cakes. That 2liter is actually a really good simple engine tho tbh. Kinda what you want.

Outdated - port injected vehicles are the best because they allow converting them to LPG which is popular in eastern europe, using LPG you basically go 2x cheaper, but have a bit more maintenance to do.

Remember: In 2021 $25000 is the same as $18200 in 2005 or $16700 in 2001 (adjusted for inflation in USA). I think it's a pretty good deal considering the things you get now compared to in 2001....

Great review. We bought new. So far, so good. Zippy enough. Better gas mileage and lower maintenance than the older Subaru Forester it replaced. Slips more on rainy roads, but we're not racing anybody or sliding around dirt roads like the Subaru commercials. .

I did not even know they still built a non-GDI engine. Good to know. It's interesting if you look at the 1.6 GDI versus the 2 l non GDI the fuel economy is basically identical. Although the GDI 1.6 turbo makes about 30 more horsepower. I really like how most things are easy to get to on this engine. I took a look at a 2019 Kia optima, that thing has immense amounts of room around the 4-cylinder engine. Would certainly make long-term maintenance very very easy.

There is an OBD-II port inside the car, located in the fuse panel on the driver side. OBD-II is required on all cars sold in the US. Honestly can't say what the port under the hood might be.

One interesting thing is that the Elantra is basically the same car with same engine and transmission but it actually has a dedicated cooler mounted to the transmission unlike the Kona that has lines going to the radiator. I really don't know why they did this when they can already do a dedicated cooler.

The use of plastic is universal across manufacturers at all price points. Thanks to the germans, this is where it’s going.

My 2003 Focus had variable intake and port injection 2.3 liter was great car. Simple / reliable.

I would love to see a mechanical review of 2019 Hyundai Elantra . This car has been reliable for 4 years of use. I think it is worth a look

This is great, I was looking at maybe getting a 2018.

Very informative. Learned a few things I didn't know. 👍

THANK YOU FOR THIS INFORMATION

This is awesome. Please do more mechanical reviews!

I’m Glad that it’s Port injected and not GDI. Has a timing chain and not a belt. I think mine is 16 valve. I’m happy with my 20 Kona . Love it’s PEP. My 2017 Outlander had no PEP in its step.

In January I pulled one of those out of an intersection with my EcoSport.

Thank you, sir! You're a gold mine! 🙂

Sounded like a Cummins Diesel on start-up

Thank you so much for your wealth of knowledge and research of these vehicles.

Very nice explanation! I wished you'd do the 1.6L turbo review as well, as I have it. :) But I'll have to deal with it, can't ask to do it haha Thank you! This review was Very informative!

Love the detail in this. Super cool.

As a disabled veteran, I need those "lazy man" features to be on the road safely.

What region are you situated in? Is rust a major issue around there?

Overall, it seems like Hyundai engineered this vehicle to be affordable to buy new and inexpensive to maintain and repair. Kudos to Hyundai for that. The exceptions are the tight clearance for the drive belt and it being a pain in the butt to change the headlight bulbs for an average Jane/Joe. I've heard of worse though. That engine is idling VERY loud and rough. Either it's driven too hard, poorly maintained, or it has the dreaded defective piston rings. I have the same engine in my 2018 Elantra and it idles so much smoother and quieter sounding. That super loud tick is not the fuel injection system unless something is wrong with it. The 2019-2021 2.0L engine is under a recall for defective piston rings that cause oil consumption and ultimately engine failure.

"Starting of course with this big blank area that has nothing over here in the engine bay." 🤣👍

At 6:07 Am I hearing engine knock for the first few moments? Like a metallic knock noise

The PCV valve is actually the one closest to you with a hose coming off and going under the intake.

Another excellent review here.So complex these modern vehicles.So many potential problems with time and mileage.Best course of action is to buy new and sell after maybe five years.

These are the kind of cars that make Aliens refuse to visit us.

GDI in America isn't so bad but here in Canada GDI sucks for our winters the 1.5L L series turbo engine honda made had to be reprogrammed and recalled because they were literally dripping fuel from the fuel rail in cold weather since the cylinder doesn't warm up as fast when you spray cold fuel at it vs MPI which the cylinder sleeve warms up before fuel gets in.

Thanks for the fantastic review. Please do a mechanical review of the Mazda 6 Turbo.

I normally don't write, but sometimes I find well made review videos, and you sr do an excellent job at it. Have you done one with a VW Tiguan, if not please do.👍👍

I have been looking at so many small SUVs looking for bad and good review and they all have them no matter what the price range is and they all have plastic parts and they're all very expensive to repair no matter what to me safety and comfort would be the most important thing because they're all made pretty much out of the same thing all these manufacturers no matter what the brand is pretty much buys from the same places overseas and puts it all together here in the states so I think it's more of a preference

What do you think the highest quality made car is in this range? ($17,000-23,000) Thanks for the very high quality video!

i won't be surprised if the muffler goes missing (and rusted) after next winter

They put that engine in everything.

In Europe the gasoline Kona comes with the 3 cylinder turbo engine (GDI) with 120 hp.

Subscribed! - Info that a car guy needs

Great review and breakdown, thanks! Did i missed it, where is the air conditioning compressor?

The Center differential button is actually a gimmick, LoL, I can't stop from laughing about this XD

Thanks for the great video! I'd love to see one of these for the Forte GT/Hyundai Elantra Sport with the 1.6T Gamma engine and DCT. You've now covered the 2.0MPI Atkinson and the 2.4 Theta2, not much left but the Gamma 1.6T and the 3.3 V6 from Hyundai/Kia

I love this video series! Could you possibly do a video on a XV50 (previous gen) Toyota Camry? I'm considering one as my next car and I am curious how well it is built.

Just to note, Hyundai names their engines after Greek letters; Tau, Gamma, Kappa, Omega, Alpha, Beta, etc... So this is the "Nyoo" engine rather than "En You" engine.

This car screams 'throw away car' after a few years of use or having an run-in with a dusting of snow at an IKEA car park... XD But then again, Hyundai is doing something right becuase all this cost cutting and their vehicles are on the road longer than more expensive alternatives! Bravo Hyundai!

Excellent explanation.

Awesome mechanical reviews ,You are doing a terrific job , Can you please review a 2017-2020 hyundai elantra sport 1.6T with a manual transmission if you can find one thank you so much

Thank you for these videos

AWESOME review. That's all that there's to say.

Absolute KZfaq World Record for starting a sentence with “Now...”

Is hyundai reliable brand??

What an explanation. Best ever !

Does the car need to be stopped before pushing the awd lock button? I have a 2022 Kona SEL with AWD. I live on a short steep private road that turns into a muddy mess (think mud bog) when it rains. Wondering if I should leave it in automatic mode or use the lock button?

can you do some of the other compact mall crawlers (hrv, crosstrek, etc)

Is there an emergency manual release for the fuel filler cap door?

AaaaWwww Geez you mean you are NOT gonna take a street CUV off roading on an inclined trail? [I'm kidding!].. good review. I just bought a 2022 Kona N Line and was impressed how hefty the body panels and hood are! My 2019 Ranger was alum and lots of flex in the doors..

I wish the 2.0 got a power boost with the 2022 generation refresh The changed the 1.6t since it was originally detuned to 176hp. Now pushes closes to it's actual 205hp rating. (196 for the Kona now) The 2.0 could benefit from another 15-20hp

Nice review. Can we see such detailed review of Volvo 740/760?

@4:02 I just want to be clear. Jacking on the subframe behind the FRONT wheels will not damage the car.

Nice knock on startup, sounds like my 400000 miles Avalon.

Please do a review of the current gen Honda Accord!

Looks an awful lot like the Chrysler/Hyundai/Mitsubishi "World Motor." Does it use the new r1234yf?

I like your tooth brush pointer.

Brilliant video again!! Learn a lot from them 🙂

Great video as usual

I was wondering if I could find the feul pump replacement. As I've removed the seat but couldn't see any exces.

Thank you. Awesome review as always! Could you review Changan Cars? Specifically Changan CS15. Thanks in advance :)

very beautiful illustrations

8:54 HYUNDAI YOU GOT EXPOSED 😂😂😂

Great review! Thanks

Where does the air temperature sensor go mines is hanging in front my radiator and my ac isn’t working

I like port injection Direct injection problem carbon buildup, high fuel pump problem more parts more problem

Please review front end styling. It appears to be upside down and needs to be repaired.

I watch these so I know which car to buy 5 years down the line. Lol

Wow, you threw a toothbrush at the car. You hurt it's feelings! 😂😂😂

Is the weird gas tank shape the reason why the first half tank goes so quick

Can you do the Honda Hr-V 2019-2020 AWD?