| We saw the 2024 Kona in real life for the first time on December 28, 2023. |
We'd been on a waiting list for the 2024 Kona for nine months. Manufacture of the car had begun in South Korea in the fall of 2023. |
The dealership called us in mid-December to tell us our car had arrived at the Port of Vancouver and would be in Castlegar shortly. We weren't expecting such an early delivery. We were getting an electric car for Christmas! |
Our fantastic sales person at Castlegar Hyundai, Olia Chapman, took our picture after we bought the car. Dec. 28. |
Groovy. A new car is in our driveway! Dec. 31. |
I built a small shelter for the Level 1 charger that came with the car. Jan. 6, 2024. |
Our trusty, 20-year-old Toyota Echo looks like it's feeling sad next to the Kona. Jan. 7. |
Jan. 21. |
The car's navigation system takes care of finding charging stations along your route. We were going to make our first big road trip in the Kona. A short ski holiday with friends at Silver Star Mountain near Vernon, BC. Jan. 22. |
Charging at a fast DC charger in Kelowna, BC on the way to Silver Star. We went for a quick bite across the street during the 35 minutes it took us to charge back up to 80% of our battery capacity. Jan. 28. |
The old world (gasoline fuel pumps) lingers in the background. |
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We packed our L1 charger in the Kona's 'frunk' so that we could trickle charge the car at the chalet at Silver Star. Jan. 29. |
The chalet our friends Nick and Leanne invited us to share. Feb. 1. |
So many newfangled features to get used to in the new car. Our old car had a standard transmission and cranks to roll down the windows! |
Now, we're "living in the future / We feel wonderful / We're tipping over backwards," as Talking Heads sang in 1977. |
The Kona feels large to us. It's 6 inches wider than our old car, and 7 inches longer. But the Echo was tiny. For an SUV, the Kona is small, about as small as they make these days. And compared to most vehicles on the road it's not large at all! |
On our way home we took the shorter, northern route through the Monashee Pass, Nakusp, and the Slocan Valley. We had to wait 15 minutes for the ferry across Lower Arrow Lake. |
We charged in Nakusp next to a Hyundai Ioniq 6. An Ioniq 5 was also charging when we pulled in. |
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It took us 45 minutes to charge. We went for a bite and then did some grocery shopping while charging. Another nice break during a long drive. |
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