Compare the2023 Hyundai Kona NVS 2022 Audi SQ5 Sportback

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 N are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The SQ5 Sportback doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Kona N’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The SQ5 Sportback doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the Kona N and the SQ5 Sportback have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, 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, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras and rear cross-path warning.

The Kona N comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The SQ5 Sportback’s 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 10,000 miles sooner.

Hyundai’s powertrain warranty covers the Kona N 6 years and 50,000 miles longer than Audi covers the SQ5 Sportback. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the SQ5 Sportback ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

Hyundai pays for scheduled maintenance on the Kona N for 3 years and 36,000 miles. Hyundai will pay for oil changes, lubrication and any other required maintenance. Audi only pays for the first scheduled maintenance visit on the SQ5 Sportback.

There are almost 3 times as many Hyundai dealers as there are Audi dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Kona N’s warranty.

To reliably start during all conditions and help handle large electrical loads, the Kona N has a standard 640-amp battery. The SQ5 Sportback’s 420-amp battery isn’t as powerful.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Hyundai vehicles are better in initial quality than Audi vehicles. With 54 fewer problems per 100 vehicles, JD Power ranks Hyundai higher than Audi.

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 Audi vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Hyundai third in reliability, above the industry average. With 84 more problems per 100 vehicles, Audi is ranked 25th.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Hyundai vehicles are more reliable than Audi vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Hyundai 8 places higher in reliability than Audi.

On the EPA test cycle the Kona N gets better fuel mileage than the SQ5 Sportback (20 city/27 hwy vs. 19 city/24 hwy).

The Kona N offers a standard sequential manual gearbox (SMG). With no clutch pedal to worry about and a fully automatic mode, an SMG is much more efficient than a conventional automatic but just as easy to drive. The SQ5 Sportback doesn’t offer an SMG or a conventional manual transmission.

For better stopping power the Kona N’s front brake rotors are larger than those on the SQ5 Sportback:

The Kona N’s tires provide better handling because they have a lower 40 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the SQ5 Sportback’s standard 45 series tires.

The Hyundai Kona N may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 1000 pounds less than the Audi SQ5 Sportback.

The Kona N is 1 foot, 6 inches shorter than the SQ5 Sportback, making the Kona N easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The Kona N has .5 inches more front legroom and .1 inches more rear headroom than the SQ5 Sportback.

The front step up height for the Kona N is 2.3 inches lower than the SQ5 Sportback (16” vs. 18.3”). The Kona N’s rear step up height is 1.9 inches lower than the SQ5 Sportback’s (16.1” vs. 18”).

A low lift-over cargo hatch design makes loading and unloading the Kona N easier. The Kona N’s cargo hatch lift-over height is 27.5 inches, while the SQ5 Sportback’s liftover is 29 inches.

The Kona N has a standard remote vehicle starting system, so the vehicle can be started from inside the driver's house. This allows the driver to comfortably warm up the engine before going out to the vehicle. The climate system will also automatically heat or cool the interior. The SQ5 Sportback doesn’t offer a remote starting system.

To improve rear visibility by keeping the rear window clear, the Kona N has a standard rear fixed intermittent wiper with a full on position. The rear wiper standard on the SQ5 Sportback only has an intermittent setting, so in a hard rain visibility isn’t as good.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Hyundai Kona N has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. Only the SQ5 Sportback Premium Plus/Prestige offers wireless charging.

The Kona N was chosen as one of Car and Driver’s “Top Five/10Best Trucks” in 2019. The SQ5 Sportback has never been a Car and Driver “Top Five/10Best Truck” pick.