Compare the2023 Hyundai Kona Electric VS 2022 Toyota Prius Prime

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Kona Electric are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Prius Prime doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Kona Electric has a standard blind spot warning system which uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them and moves the vehicle back into its lane. Only the Prius Prime Limited offers a blind spot warning system.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Kona Electric has a standard rear cross-path warning system, which uses sensors in the rear bumper to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side, helping the driver avoid collisions. Only the Prius Prime Limited has a rear cross-path warning system.

Both the Kona Electric and the Prius Prime have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, driver alert monitors and available rear parking sensors.

The Kona Electric comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Prius Prime’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 2 years or 24,000 miles sooner.

Hyundai’s powertrain warranty covers the Kona Electric 5 years and 40,000 miles longer than Toyota covers the Prius Prime. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the Prius Prime ends after only 5 years or 60,000 miles.

The Kona Electric’s corrosion warranty is 2 years longer than the Prius Prime’s (7 vs. 5 years).

Hyundai pays for scheduled maintenance on the Kona Electric for 1 year and 11000 miles longer than Toyota pays for maintenance for the Prius Prime (3/36,000 vs. 2/25000).

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the statistics that show that Hyundai vehicles are more reliable than Toyota vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Hyundai third in reliability, above the industry average. With 10 more problems per 100 vehicles, Toyota is ranked fifth.

The Kona Electric’s electric motor produces 80 more horsepower (201 vs. 121) and 185 lbs.-ft. more torque (291 vs. 106) than the Prius Prime’s 1.8 DOHC 4-cylinder hybrid.

As tested in Consumer Reports the Hyundai Kona Electric is faster than the Toyota Prius Prime:

	Kona Electric	Prius Prime
Zero to 30 MPH	2.9 sec	3.7 sec
Zero to 60 MPH	6.6 sec	10.8 sec
45 to 65 MPH Passing	3.4 sec	6.7 sec
Quarter Mile	15.2 sec	18.1 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	95 MPH	78 MPH

The Kona Electric can travel with zero emissions on a full charge for 258 miles. The Prius Prime has to start its internal combustion engine after only 25 miles.

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Hyundai Kona Electric higher (10 out of 10) than the Toyota Prius Prime (7). This means the Kona Electric produces up to 11.8 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Prius Prime every 15,000 miles.

For better stopping power the Kona Electric’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Prius Prime:

	Kona Electric	Prius Prime
Front Rotors	12 inches	10 inches
Rear Rotors	11.8 inches	10.2 inches

The Kona Electric stops shorter than the Prius Prime:

	Kona Electric	Prius Prime
60 to 0 MPH	135 feet	139 feet	Consumer Reports
60 to 0 MPH (Wet)	145 feet	147 feet	Consumer Reports

For better traction, the Kona Electric has larger tires than the Prius Prime (215/55R17 vs. 195/65R15).

The Kona Electric’s tires provide better handling because they have a lower 55 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Prius Prime’s standard 65 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Kona Electric has standard 17-inch wheels. Only 15-inch wheels are available on the Prius Prime.

The Kona Electric has standard front and rear gas-charged shocks for better control over choppy roads. The Prius Prime’s suspension doesn’t offer gas-charged shocks.

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the Kona Electric is 1.4 inches wider in the front and 1.4 inches wider in the rear than on the Prius Prime.

The Kona Electric’s front to rear weight distribution is more even (54% to 46%) than the Prius Prime’s (55.5% to 44.5%). This gives the Kona Electric more stable handling and braking.

The Kona Electric Limited handles at .83 G’s, while the Prius Prime Limited pulls only .76 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Kona Electric is 1 foot, 5.3 inches shorter than the Prius Prime, making the Kona Electric easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The Kona Electric has .2 inches more front headroom, 1.3 inches more front shoulder room, .5 inches more rear headroom, .6 inches more rear hip room and 1.5 inches more rear shoulder room than the Prius Prime.

The Kona Electric’s power parking brake sets with one touch and releases with one touch or automatically. The Prius Prime’s parking brake has to be released manually.

The power windows standard on both the Kona Electric and the Prius Prime have locks to prevent small children from operating them. When the lock on the Kona Electric is engaged the driver can still operate all of the windows, for instance to close one opened by a child. The Prius Prime prevents the driver from operating the other windows just as it does the other passengers.

To improve rear visibility by keeping the rear window clear, the Kona Electric has a standard rear wiper. The Prius Prime doesn’t offer a rear wiper.

The Kona Electric has a standard automatic headlight on/off feature. When the ignition is on, the headlights automatically turn on at dusk and off after dawn. The Prius Prime has an automatic headlight on/off feature standard only on the XLE/Limited.

Standard air-conditioned seats in the Kona Electric Limited keep the driver and front passenger comfortable and take the sting out of hot seats in Summer. The Prius Prime doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats.

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Hyundai Kona Electric and the Toyota Prius Prime, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The Kona was chosen as one of Car and Driver’s “Top Five/10Best Trucks” in 2019. The Prius Prime has never been a Car and Driver “Top Five/10Best Truck” pick.

The Hyundai Kona outsold the Toyota Prius by 52% during the 2021 model year.