South Korean automaker Hyundai launched its first electric car, Kona SUV, in India recently. The car was unveiled at an introductory price of Rs. 25.3 lakhs (ex-showroom, Delhi). For the unacquainted, Kona is the first fully-electric SUV to be launched in the country. Hyundai claims that the running costs of Kona electric is around 80 percent lower than the petrol-powered Creta. A recent report by leading auto portal claims that the running cost of the Kona Electric is 1/5th of that of the Hyundai Creta petrol.
The automaker claims that the cost per kilometer of Kona EV is less than Re. 1 compared to a petrol car that has a running cost of up to Rs 6 per kilometer. As it is an electric car, the buyers do no need to visit a fuel pump. Moreover, Hyundai Kona EV manages to score over other petrol cars even in terms of after-sales maintenance costs. This is because it is an electric car and devoid of complex moving components such as valves, spark plugs, or any kind of hoses. And less moving components directly mean less wear-and-tear and hence lesser expenses.
When it comes to a regular fossil fuel-powered car, maintenance costs are generally high but that is not something that Kona EV owners will have to worry about. Being an electric car, all it has is a battery and motor as key functioning parts even though very sophisticated technologies play an important role in the car. In future, petrol and diesel prices are expected to rise even more and the running costs of cars using these fuels will go up even further. The only major hurdle with electronic cars in India is the absence of charging infrastructure. However, the government, as well as Hyundai, is working to overcome this problem. For now, Hyundai will provide two chargers with the Kona EV. This includes a portable wall charger and an AC wall box charger.
While the portable charger can be plugged to any 3 pin 15 A socket and gives a range of 50 km under three hours of charging, the AC wall charger can do the same within an hour. Moreover, South Korean manufacturer will also provide charging solutions support to buyers including installation and power supply upgrades required at the buyer's home. Besides, Hyundai will also provide fast-charging infrastructure in select cities. All Hyundai dealerships selling this EV will have a 7.2 kW AC charger. Coming to warranty, Hyundai offers Kona Electric with a 3-year warranty and unlimited kilometers besides an additional cover for 8 years and up to 160,000 km for its high voltage battery.