Kia first unveiled the upcoming EV5 electric SUV in August, but the Korean automaker left us hanging by only showing off its styling, choosing not to release any specifications at that time. Now, at Kia’s EV Day event, Kia has decided to throw us some bones—sort of. In addition to introducing the smaller EV3 and EV4 concepts, Kia’s EV Day event brings us some greater clarity on what to expect from the EV5, the third model in Kia’s electric family, following the EV6 and EV9.
Since the vehicles will be built in China and Korea, and because these two markets will be the first to receive the car, most of the specs discussed here are relevant to China and Korea. The EV5 rides on the same E-GMP platform that underpins the EV6 and EV9. In China, the EV5 will come in three variations: a short-range front-driver, a long-range front-driver, and a long-range model with all-wheel-drive. The base spec carries a battery with 64.0 kWh of capacity, and power is delivered to the front wheels through a 215-hp motor. Kia estimates a range of 329 miles by China’s wildly optimistic CLTC standard.
The EV5’s single-motor long-range model bumps battery capacity up to 88.0 kWh, while retaining the same 215-hp electric motor on the front axle; here, range balloons to 447 miles by CLTC standards. The long-range AWD variant slaps a second, less powerful motor at the rear, boosting total output to 308 horsepower. With the same battery as the single-motor long-range model, CLTC-estimated range is pegged at 404 miles. Korean-market EV5s will be offered in the same variations, but with slightly smaller batteries and slightly lower outputs. We also know a bit more about what features the EV5 will contain.
A heat pump will be offered, in addition to three-zone climate control. On the dashboard, a 12.3-inch digital gauge cluster combines with a 12.3-inch infotainment touchscreen, while climate duties are relegated to a separate 5.0-inch display. Other than on the steering wheel, Kia promises as few physical buttons as possible in the cabin. The interior has some other clever tricks up its sleeve. While Kia touts a bench seat in the front row, it’s not so much a proper three-person bench as it is a driver’s seat and a passenger seat wide enough to replace a traditional center console—in China, at least; other markets will get a traditional armrest-style center console. Seating surfaces can be made from recycled PET plastic or plant-based leather.
Massaging seats will be available, too. But when it’s time to camp out under the stars, that’s when the interior gets interesting. The second row can fold completely flat, turning the rear half of the vehicle into what Kia calls a bedroom (albeit one that’s a little tight, we wager). Roughing it doesn’t sound so rough, thanks to niceties like a combination refrigerator-warmer and a luggage divider that does double duty as a table. Kia also confirmed that a hopped-up EV5 GT is in the works, but declined to say anything beyond that. Patience is a virtue, we suppose. Now, in terms of the U.S. market, things get a little murky.
At Kia’s on-the-record EV Day press conference on October 10, President and CEO Ho Sung Song told journalists that the EV5 would be coming Stateside—a sentiment that was reinforced with additional confirmation from a second high-level Kia employee during a separate roundtable that same day. However, on October 11, Kia appeared to walk back these confirmations, saying in a statement that the automaker “is considering to export the EV5 to North America starting from 2025. There is no plan to produce the EV5 in North America.
” A source with knowledge of Kia’s plans told Car and Driver that the EV5 will skip over the U.S. entirely and instead head to Canada and possibly Mexico, due to the manufacturing-related intricacies of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, which altered how EVs sold in the U.S. are incentivized. It’s possible that plans could change between now and the estimated “North American” arrival of mid-2025, but we wouldn’t hold our breath.
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