The Volkswagen Group offers the Skoda Kamiq, SEAT Arona and Volkswagen T-Cross, while the Renault Captur is one of our favourite supermini-sized SUVs. We also rate the Ford Puma highly, along with the Toyota Yaris Cross, but also consider the Nissan Juke and Honda HR-V. If you’re buying electric, then look at the Kia EV3, Cupra Born, Skoda Elroq, Volvo EX30 and Alfa Romeo Junior.

What to look for

All the gear

One of the biggest gripes among owners is the dual-clutch automatic transmission, which isn’t as slick as it should be. Progress in stop/start traffic can be disappointingly jerky; software updates can help.

Going spare

All Konas come with a tyre-repair kit rather than a spare wheel of any kind. However, a space saver will fit under the adjustable boot floor of all models; there’s an array of aftermarket wheel options.

Screen time

The dashboard consists of two 12.3-inch digital screens, which generally work okay, but they can freeze or lag in use. Again, keeping the software up to date can make all the difference.

On the range 

Hyundai claimed that Konas with the 48.4kWh battery could do 234 miles on a charge, while 65.4kWh editions had a 319-mile range. Expect more like 170-220 and 210-260 miles in reality.

Appealingly designed, the digital dashboard is easy to understand, as is the infotainment, which is very intuitive. The choice of materials is excellent; they have a premium feel, with things improving as you buy further up the range. Passenger space is excellent and so is boot capacity, at 466/1,300 litres for all models, including the EV.

The Kona Mk2 made its Driver Power debut only this year, in a decent 14th place. There were very few poor scores, but 33rd for the quality of the exterior finish and 45th for the quality of the interior are disappointing. Third for drivetrain smoothness (thanks to EV owners responding) and a first place for all-round visibility are great news, though, while fifth spots for economy and running costs are impressive, as is eighth for powertrains (again, driven largely by EV owners).

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