Karen: 2019 Hyundai Kona Electric Ultimate
With Albert the Audi out of service for a whining coming from the rear motor, I was finally cornered into the reality that we needed a second road car in our household. Since this was going to be “my” car, input from my husband was neither required nor desired.
Service Stats
In Service Date: 1/28/2023 In Service Mileage: 18,353 Current Mileage (Jan 2023): 18,353 Out of Service Date: -- Out of Service Mileage: -- Service Life: ongoing Avg. Miles/yr: ?
The History & Story
My husband and I had been sharing a single out of town car, our 2019 Audi etron named Albert, for over two years when the fates stepped in and let me know it was time to have a plan B. With the Audi sitting at the dealer waiting for repair and a Turo experience that went to hell in a handbasket, it became clear that we needed another out of town vehicle that we could depend on. Enter Karen, a lightly used 2019 Kona Electric Ultimate with head up display, ventilated seats, and a heated steering wheel -- finally, I get to have a heated steering wheel!
So why the name Karen? Well, when we arrived at the dealer the 12v was dead. The dealer put in a new aftermarket 12v and the car starts, but it also has a dead HV battery. They push it up the hill to their 50kW DC charger and charge it up so that I can take it for a test run. After buying the car, my best friend Brad and I had intended on taking the forgotten birthday gift my husband left at the house up to my father-in-law. Except that one of Karen’s fobs had a dying battery and would randomly set off the alarm. While we were charging in Greensboro to make it up to Virginia, the alarm went off. I hit the unlock button on the door and the alarm stopped, so I closed the door. Seconds later the lights blinked and the car had locked itself. Luckily this car has roadside until Oct/2024, so they sent AAA out to pop the lock. This delay killed our plans to go to my father-in-law’s birthday dinner. As a result, this car is a Karen because only a Karen would ask to speak to the manager (alarm going off) while being fed (she was charging).
Karen’s seen less than 700 miles so far, but her efficiency is magical: 3.6 to 4.2 miles per kWh - we averaged 4.0mi/kWh running 70MPH with the adaptive cruise control set and the heat at 68F coming home from Greensboro. I took a trip to Winston-Salem and saw the coldgating of 56kW until around 70% with the temps only in the 40s (overnight was lower and car was left unplugged). I have a lot of learning to do with this car, and I’m slated to go to Florida for work any day now... so it won’t be long before I know how she does on a truly long trip.