The automaker’s largest EV to date is on its way to production, but when will we see it here?
Kia
- Kia will produce the EV9 electric SUV and introduce it in Europe in 2023, offering three rows of seats and about 300 miles of range.
- The EV9 shares the automaker’s E-GMP platform with the Hyundai Ioniq 7, which was another large SUV concept revealed in 2021.
- Kia has not yet said whether the EV9 will be offered stateside, but it is widely expected to make it here.
Just a few months after revealing the Kia EV9 concept at the LA auto show, the automaker says it will offer a production version of the three-row electric SUV in Europe starting in 2023.
The Kia EV9 was one of two large electric sport utility concepts revealed by the automaker in November 2021, along with the similarly sized Hyundai Ioniq 7. The two concepts share the E-GMP platform with the automaker’s smaller offerings, including the Kia EV6 now in production, but feature much more generous footprints, not too far from those of the Hyundai Palisade and Kia Telluride.
The EV9 is certainly the boxier of the two concepts, featuring a flat roof and rhomboid wheel arches—kind of like a Kia Soul on steroids—but the real point of the concept was to preview an electric seven-seater, one which the automaker plans to put into production in the near future.
Curiously enough, Kia has confirmed only plans for Europe at the moment, but we have a hard time picturing an American-sized three-row electric SUV not offered here, along with its Hyundai sibling.
Kia and Hyundai presented two large electric SUVs in concept form last year, and are expected to offer both in production form.
Kia
At the time we glimpsed the EV9 concept, Kia had not revealed the battery specs of the SUV. But we expect it to be a bit larger than the 77.4-kWh pack found in the EV6, as the EV9 has more room and a longer wheelbase. Given the EV6’s 310-mile range with that battery, we can probably expect the EV9 to offer at least that many miles in the EPA cycle, and perhaps a few more.
When it arrives in Europe next year, the EV9 will likely be all alone in its segment as a non-luxury electric SUV with seating for seven—the few other models found in this size category are from luxury automakers, and are priced accordingly.
The EV9, on the other hand, is expected to land with a starting price around $50,000 prior to any incentives, which should represent nothing short of a clap of thunder in the EV market, given how much a Tesla Model Y costs at the moment.
No word yet on when we’ll see a production version of the EV9. Perhaps the LA auto show later this year?
Keyword: Kia EV9 Three-Row SUV Is Headed to Europe in 2023