Is Australia ready for a $120k Kia?

At a presentation, company executives made many comparisons with the full-sized Range Rover, cheekily pointing out the EV9 flagship is a third of the price. Certainly in some areas the specs of the two cars line up, but it seems unlikely anyone will be cross-shopping them.

They also argued there is no other EV with this much space for families, and they are probably correct: the interior here is cavernous. Subjectively, it feels bigger than even Mercedes-Benz’s EQS SUV.

The EV9 range starts with the rear-wheel drive Air at $97,000. It has a range of 443 kilometres. The mid-range Earth will follow the other models in a couple of months at $106,500. It has dual motors and all-wheel drive, and offers a 512-kilometre range.

At this point Kia drops the elemental monikers, presumably because Water isn’t a good car name, and Fire is a definite EV no-no. It opts instead for GT-Line (as used in other Kia model ranges). This variant has a range of 505 kilometres, slightly less than the Earth because its higher equipment level increases the weight by 84 kilograms.

The GT-Line’s total weight, by the way, is a monumental 2636 kilograms. The battery accounts for 566.5 kilograms of that.

The advantages of the rear-wheel drive version, beyond price, are that it has less weight on the nose, so is a little more agile, and a larger front boot because it doesn’t have to squeeze in a second motor (it’s 90 litres, instead of the GT-Line’s 52 litres).

The interior is replete with the sort of surfaces and materials you want to run your hands over (and when you do, it all feels as tight as a drum). The dashboard is arguably a little flat and characterless but has many clever details, such as soft-touch menus built into the dashboard veneer. They appear as you reach towards the central screen.

Although I didn’t drive it at night, there is apparently an illuminated logo in the steering wheel, and adjustable mood cabin lighting. The 12.3 inch panoramic display is highly customisable (interfaces, whether cars or phones, are something South Korean companies do extremely well), but the digital mirrors won’t be for everyone.

The GT-Line has three – two exterior camera mirrors designed to reduced air resistance, and a central interior rear-view mirror designed to give you vision even when the rear is packed to the ceiling with cargo, or there is a basketballer in the centre rear seat. This can be switched to a conventional mirror if preferred. Sadly, the digital mirrors are a standard fitment.

The cloth-mesh headrests are not only cool to look at, they do a great job. The two-tone “vegan leather” upholstery looks and feels classy and introduces all sorts of interesting shapes. Kia says it’s on the path to eliminating animal hide across all its vehicles.

The EV9 driving experience is stunningly quiet, despite the boxy exterior (boxy but good: the coefficient of drag is an acceptable 0.28). Also helping are foam-insulated tyres, laminated window glass and, one can assume, a very tight and rigid body and chassis combo.

The EV9 benefited from a local program to tune the ride and handling. Without knowing what they started with it is hard to determine how successful it has been, but our car gave a cosseting ride on most surfaces, even on the standard 21-inch wheels.

On tight corners there is no hiding the weight and height, but it never feels unsafe and, within limits, can provide quite a sporty drive. It helps that it bullets out of the corners, with no throttle lag. The claimed 0-100 km/h time is 5.3 seconds.

Another interesting feature among many: the phone app allows you to access the EV9 cameras when the car is parked, so you can look at what is happening around your car even when you are on another continent. Because you can.

The EV9 comes with a seven-year unlimited kilometre warranty on everything except what Kia defines as the “high voltage parts”, which are covered for seven years or 150,000 kilometres, whichever comes first.

Is Australia ready for a $120k Kia? It’s worth noting the EV6 – which starts at $72,500 and quickly gets into the $80ks – has had a couple of record months. Brand perception – and loyalty – has been severely shaken by the EV transformation, as long as a company can offer the right product.