Nissan Juke vs Hyundai Kona - An interesting mass-market crossover fight

The crossover segment offers slightly more than the hatchback and remains a bit shy to the SUV division. It is a mix of both the worlds with an affordable price tag. That’s why it has become popular in many markets like ours. Both the Nissan Juke and Hyundai Kona belong to the crossover class of vehicles. Even though the Juke is much older than the Kona, it’s the Hyundai that looks more mature.

Exterior

In its quest to make a vehicle that would stand out from the usual, Nissan, perhaps, went a bit overboard. The Juke definitely carries a design that’s like none, but it’s also something that wouldn’t be liked by everyone. The boomerang-kind of a design with turn indicators that are mounted on the hood and headlight situated below them is what makes the Juke a bit odd. Even at the rear, it seems Nissan tried to force the same design to the brake light setup, which looks better than the front. The Juke is available in 4 color options - Pearl White, Black Obsidian, Red Alert, and Solar Yellow.

Being the younger one here, the Hyundai Kona, undoubtedly, looks better. Just like the Juke, Kona, too, follows the same design idea - putting the turn indicators above the headlights - but the sleek and modern concept along with the LED DRL, helped Hyundai to pull it off nicely. At the rear we see a traditional brake light setup. However, Hyundai has positioned the turn indicators lower and into the cladding that extends from the rear wheel arch. This is a bit confusing, though, the front turn indicators are up and high, the rear ones are down and low. What's going on here? Unlike the Juke, the Kona comes in 10 color options - Red, Phantom Black, Acid Yellow, Blue Lagoon, Ceramic Blue, Chalk White, Dark Knight, Lake Silver, Tangerine Comet, and Velvet Dune. Overall, the Hyundai Kona scores good points in the looks department.

Interior

There are many design elements that Nissan has used to make the interior of the Juke as sporty as possible. Most of the things here are round in shape. The dials of the instrument cluster, air-con vents, door handles, etc. are all circular. There’s also a slight hood above the instrument cluster to add a bit of sporty character. The deep bucket seats hold you in place comfortably even when you’re driving enthusiastically. Nissan has integrated its I-con system, that sits below the display at the centre console, which allows you to control climate and driving mode with one touch.

The Hyundai Kona, again, feels much mature even from the inside. The cabin appears to be simple and functional. The all-black scheme used gives a perfect touch of contrast by implementing nice colorful surrounds for the air-con vents, and the gear lever. These are matched by the color of the stitches on the seats. The tone of the surrounds depends on the color of the car you pick. It would have been even better if Hyundai gave an option to choose the color, but that’s alright. There’s a screen on the centre console that takes care of the navigation, connectivity, and audio.

Engine

The Nissan Juke comes with a 1,598 cc, 4-cylinder, petrol engine that produces 116 PS of max power and generates a peak torque of 154 Nm. It comes mated to Nissan’s XTRONIC CVT unit for changing gears. There’s no option for manual transmission. However, Nissan has provided three driving modes to keep you engaged - Normal, Sport, and Eco.

On the other hand, the Hyundai Kona gets its power from a 2.0-litre 4-cylinder Atkinson engine that gives a power output of 149 PS and 180 Nm of torque. Like the Juke, the Kona, too, is available in only a 6-speed automatic transmission.

Safety features

Nissan has given a few safety features in the Juke like disc brakes on all four wheels, dual front airbags, Anti-lock Brake System (ABS), Electronic Brake Force Distribution (EBD), Brake Assist (BA), Immobilizer, and Intelligent Key (I-key). Nissan has mentioned that you can also opt for front seat-mounted and roof-mounted curtain side-impact supplemental air bags.

Some of the safety features that you’ll find in the Hyundai Kona include dual front along with side and curtain airbags as standard, Anti-Lock Braking System (ABS), Smart Key with Button Start, Immobilizer, etc.

So, after reading this detailed comparison, what are your thoughts on the two crossovers. Do let us know, in the comment section below.