Why we’re running it: To see if the new electric Niro is the Volkswagen Golf of the EV world
Month 1 - Specs
Life with a Kia Niro EV: Month 1
Welcoming the Niro to the fleet - 7 June 2023
When the Kia Niro was named as one of the seven cars shortlisted for the 2023 Car of the Year award late last year, the nice man from Kia asked me if I would like to speak to UK boss Paul Philpott about the model and its success.
In coming up with some topics for that discussion, a thought struck me, and it has stuck with me ever since: the Niro EV is like the Volkswagen Golf of the electric car world.
The Golf has long been the de-facto choice in the ‘old world’ for those who just want a family car to quietly but brilliantly do it all, with no fanfare. Don’t know what car to buy? Get a Golf. It strikes me that among EVs of this size, the Niro does the exact same job. Don’t know what electric car to buy? Get a Niro.
The Niro EV is already unusual in the electric car world for being a second-generation model, and the refinement rather than reinvention shows that Kia was already onto a good thing before the switchover last year.
So much so, in fact, that the drivetrain is identical. There’s the same 201bhp, 291lb ft front-mounted permanent magnet synchronous motor that draws power from a 64.8kWh (usable capacity) lithium ion battery. Even the top speed (104mph) and 0-62mph time (7.8sec) remain the same.
All those figures are still competitive in the market, but the retained maximum charging rate of 72kW now looks a bit pedestrian compared with some EVs’.
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£43k for a Kia Nero EV, all of a sudden the Volvo EX30 doesnt look so expensive with a starting price of £33k, or a similar price for a version with Taycan matching performance.
It's funny how other cars that can be had with a range of powertrains are criticised as being compromised because they are not pure EVs, and yet in this report the Niro is praised for offering a range of powertrains? Or is it just a regurgitated press release??