Upwardly-mobile Kia has revealed its new electric flagship seven-seater EV9 family SUV with a range in excess of 300 miles as it accelerates plans to become a greener brand.
With practicality a key unique selling point, users can even swivel and recline the seats to relax, snooze or chat face-to-face while its battery is being charged en route.
The bold new EV9 is said to have a ‘lounge-style’ hi-tech interior and will be sold in the UK and Europe as one of the very few seven-seat EVs on sale. A six-seat model will also be available.
However, it won’t be cheap, with prices expected to start from £60,000.
Video: New 2024 Kia EV9 full-size electric SUV Detailed
The Korean car giant once famed for its value for money and budget pricing is now upping its game – and prices – to take on the likes of premium car-makers BMW and Mercedes-Benz.
The EV9 – the big brother to the existing EV6 – makes its official global premiere in late March, though full UK specifications and pricing is yet to be confirmed ahead of sales starting in late 2023.
Kia bosses have hinted that entry level prices could start at around £60,000 while the highest-specced models could top £70,000, with some commentators, such as highly respected Autocar, suggesting top of the range models could even crash through the £80,000 barrier.
It has prompted the question: ‘Would you pay £70,000 for a Kia?’.
Announcing the new zero-emissions SUV the firm said: ‘The Kia EV9 is our first three-row electric flagship SUV, which encapsulates bold styling and sophisticated elegance inside and out.’
It said the new EV9 represented ‘a pivotal step forward’ in the company’s journey going green and electric.
Although no official spec or performance figures have been release, expect power from a 100kWh battery giving a range of around 337 miles with rapid charging giving 62 miles in six minutes.
There will be a choice of rear (single electric motor) and four-wheel drive (twin motors) variants and peak acceleration of 0-to-62mph in around 5 seconds.
Autocar speculated: ‘A full-fat EV9 GT will follow close behind to rival the BMW iX M60 and Mercedes-AMG EQS SUV, potentially boosting power beyond the hottest EV6’s 577bhp.’
The new EV9 is built on Kia’s Electric Global Modular Platform (E-GMP).
Its long wheelbase and completely flat electric vehicle architecture allow generous cabin space and ‘lounge style’ comfort for occupants in all three rows of seats.
Kia said it took feedback from families to evaluate the EV9’s seating configurations for all occupants, and not just the driver.
It added: ‘Occupants sitting in the first and second-row seats can simultaneously recline their seats to relax and rest when the EV9 is charging.
‘The seats in the second row can be effortlessly swivelled 180 degrees so that occupants can interact with those sitting in the third row. The third-row seats also offer cup holders and charging points for mobile devices.’
It promises a spacious, light, airy cabin with elegantly simple, premium quality materials and a user-friendly design. The open, floating panoramic dashboard extends from the steering wheel to the vehicle’s centre.
Across the dashboard, two 12.3-inch touch screens are integrated with one 5-inch segment display and cover high-definition audio visual, navigation and telematics.
The emphasis on digital touch means physical buttons are kept to a minimum – which may not please traditionalists and those non tech-savvy motorists.
It should also have plenty of storage, including a spacious compartment located at its base.
It is the first all-new Kia created by former BMW stylist Karim Habib.
The boxy but contemporary design based on Kia’s design philosophy called ‘Opposites United’ which it says combines and creates a tension between the natural world and modernity, and between rugged capability and serene calmness.
On the vehicle this translates to a bold grille and striking vertical headlamps and a digital take on Kia’s ‘tiger face’ design: ‘Flush door handles and a tapered back roofline gives a sense of smooth and efficient motion.’
The simple, clean lines of the tailgate have slim rear lights that mirror the design of those at the front.
For occupants the EV9 interior promises new forms of space and comfort combined with the latest hi-tech to ‘re-imagine what a family SUV can offer’.
The big new EV9 is just one of 14 EV’s being launched globally by 2027 of which nine are coming to the UK ahead of a fully electric line-up by 2030, with some built in Slovakia from 2025.
Small ‘affordable’ electric cars are ‘economically difficult’ to produce
At prices starting from around £60,000, Kia’s EV9 is the latest EV that will be priced far out of the budgets of the majority of motorists.
With the price of electric cars the biggest hurdle hampering demand, there is a desperate need for more affordable new models to be brought to market.
A Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) mandate is expected to be introduced by Government in 2024 and will require car makers to increase the share of sales of EVs each year.
In theory, this should force the hand of manufacturers to sell less expensive battery vehicles, though Kia’s UK boss says there are major difficulties in achieving this.
Chief executive Paul Philpott said earlier this year that smaller affordable electric cars are ‘economically difficult’ to bring to market due to the high cost of batteries.
Kia’s Niro EV, which starts from £36,795, was the third best-selling electric car in Britain in 2022, while its cheapest battery-powered car is the Soul EV, which starts from £32,845.
Famed for its pioneering seven-year warranties, it’s a sign of how things really are kicking off at Kia which has for the first time broken through the landmark 100,000 cars a year barrier in the UK and is now the nation’s 6th biggest seller, having increased its sales last year by 10.3 per cent against a market fall of 2 per cent.
Kia has sold nearly 1.4 million cars in Britain since it launched in the UK in July 1991.
Philpott said: ‘Since Kia first entered the UK car market 32 years ago, the brand has gone from strength-to-strength.’
Source: dailymail
