KUALA LUMPUR: Hyundai-Sime Darby Motors Sdn Bhd (HSDM) has unveiled its first fully electric vehicle (EV) in Malaysia – the Hyundai Kona Electric – set to be available from the first quarter (Q1) of next year.
The highly anticipated EVs are priced from RM149,888 for Kona e-Lite; RM169,888 for Kona e-Plus; RM169,888 and RM199,888 for Kona e-Max, and are fully exempted from import and excise duties, sales tax as well as road tax as announced in Budget 2022.
The e-Lite is equipped with a 39.2-kilowatt hour (kWH) battery with 7.2kW onboard charge (OBC); the e-Plus) utilises a 39.2kWH battery with 11kW OBC, and the e-Max is powered by a 64kWh battery with 11kW OBC.
The e-Lite and e-Plus’ batteries support a driving range of up to 305km and 484km for the e-Max variant. With a direct current fast charging feature, they are capable of bringing up battery levels from zero to 80% in less than an hour.
Conventional alternating current charging of the battery will take about 6.5 hours for e-Lite, 4.5 hours for e-Plus, and 7.5 hours for e-Max for a full charge, HSDM said in a statement yesterday.
It said the lithium-ion polymer battery is protected by an eight-year warranty, or 160,000km, whichever comes first, in addition to a two-year or 50,000km, whichever comes first, vehicle’s warranty.
HSDM managing director Low Yuan Lung said the company has seen a lot of interest from customers for a well-thought-out EV. “We look forward to a positive response to the launch of our first fully electric model in Malaysia.”
Sime Darby Motors Malaysia managing director (retail and distribution) Jeffrey Gan said the launch of the Kona Electric reflects its strategy to be a key enabler of the transition to EVs as an important element of the automotive industry’s decarbonisation efforts.
This strategy is also aligned with the government’s push towards low carbon mobility by incentivising the adoption of EVs under Budget 2022. – Bernama