A big thank you to David, who agreed to do a parallel drive with me in his brand new Hyundai Kona Electric. This was a round trip of about 270 miles, from Ontario in the Inland Empire of Southern California to Baker and back again.

During the trip, we checked out some new chargers that are about to go online, tested the Kona out on EVgo's 175 kW CCS charger, reviewed the Kona's interior and features, braved 20 to 30 mph headwinds on the return trip, and made some surprising discoveries about the Kona's maximum DC charging rate and freeway efficiency.

The Kona Electric has a lot going for it, and I'm really hoping Hyundai can send as many as they can to the United States. It's a worthy competitor for the Bolt EV in the sub $40,000 electric vehicle segment, and it presents a strong value proposition compared to the $35,000 Tesla Model 3.