Kia begins the test phase in real traffic circumstances of the KIA EV9and Large electric SUV that the firm showed months ago in a conceptual way. This is news that comes thanks to a new batch of spy photos in which the Korean model certifies that according to the prototype it will undergo few modifications, so it will retain its almost five meters long.
While the KIA EV6 is already taking its first commercial steps, and Hyundai has already presented its second model in the Ioniq range, KIA is on a mission to present its second latest generation electric car. And it is that the KIA EV9 will be an SUV that, by concept, will inaugurate a new segment between electric carbecause at the time of its commercial release, and barring the surprise of certain other manufacturers, it will be the only large electric SUV with a family approach marketed in the world (leaving aside probably more expensive models such as the Tesla Model Xfor example).
The measurements of the concept model should therefore vary little at the time of the presentation of the production version. The brand has announced measures to 4.93 meters long, 2.06 wide and 1.79 high, while the wheelbase is limited to 3.10 meters. It is the last dimension that marks precisely the difference compared to the KIA EV6 in terms of habitability, since thanks to the additional 20 centimeters the brand will manage to improve the space on board. and thus offer a third row of seats as an option.
As the EV9 spy photos certify, the production model will retain the proportions of the Concept. In addition, and based on what little the dense camouflage that takes place on the body of the unit photographed suggests, the optical groups also promise to inherit some of the lighting characteristics of the concept model, among which the light signature vertical front, and a group of rear lights confirmed by a horizontal line that covers the entire width.
Technically, the KIA EV9 is developed on the 800V electric coach platform from the Korean consortium, the e-GMP. Among other things, the platform will allow very short loading times (we are talking about loads of less than ten minutes), as well as an overpowered GT version that will allow acceleration from 0 to 100 in less than five seconds.
Like the EV6, Ioniq 5 and the newer Ioniq 6, the larger battery should offer a capacity of approximately 77kWh. The concept model advertised a range of 300 miles on the combined cycle, but by the time the production model is presented, and thanks to an improvement in terms of efficiency, we can expect Homologated autonomy greater than 500 kilometers in the low consumption versions.
With the EV9 just beginning its road test phase, you can’t expect the model unveiling to happen anytime soon. In reality Most likely it will end up being presented in its final product form sometime next 2023.