The EV3 shares most of its interior tech with flagship EV9 SUV.
23 May 2024 | 2820 Views | By Saptarshi Mondal, Autocar India
Kia has unveiled the all-new EV3 electric SUV as the brand’s fourth born EV following the EV9, EV6 and the EV5. It's based on the same E-GMP modular platform as its larger siblings, carries over the family design language, and sees a lot of interior technology and equipment ...
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Kia has unveiled the all-new EV3 electric SUV as the brand’s fourth born EV following the EV9, EV6 and the EV5. It's based on the same E-GMP modular platform as its larger siblings, carries over the family design language, and sees a lot of interior technology and equipment trickling down from the more expensive models.
With a distinct two-box silhouette, the EV6 looks very much like a scaled-down version of the flagship EV9. The front end is characterised by Kia’s signature ‘star map’ LED lighting pattern that frames the ‘tiger nose’ fascia with horizontal and vertical LED lighting elements. On this EV, it's essentially just an expansive smooth panel making up the bumper. The bonnet gets a nice swooping effect and there’s plenty of chunky cladding on the bumper lending it a muscular look.
In profile, what stand out are the flared wheel arches with thick black plastic cladding, and the trapezoidal creases over the front and rear fenders. The glasshouse is large, there are flush door handles, and what’s particularly interesting, is how the glasshouse wraps around at the C-pillar; the vertical tail-lamps on the hatchback-style tailgate also appear as an extension of the same.
Kia says the slightly sloping roofline and the pronounced rear spoiler help in improving aerodynamic efficiency, as do the aero-optimised wheels sporting a very distinct block-like design. The rear end, particularly, is very similar to the EV9 with its chunky dual-tone bumper and smooth surfacing for the tail gate. The EV3 also gets GT-Line variants that come with sportier bumpers. In terms of dimensions, the EV3 measures 4,300mm long, 1,850mm wide, 1,560mm high and has a wheelbase of 2,680mm, which is roughly the size of a Hyundai Creta.
It’s a similar story on the inside as well. The basic layout of the dashboard is very similar to the EV9 – there are twin, 12.3-inch floating infotainment screens followed by a band of haptic buttons and nicely concealed AC vents on the dashboard; there’s also buttons for navigation and media controls, including some on the two-spoke steering wheel. In fact, the 30-inch widescreen setup (including a 5-inch screen for climate controls) and its software are a direct lift from the EV9.
It boasts of the typical packaging advantages of a born EV, which means the floor is completely flat allowing for lots of space. There’s a large floating centre console that serves as a storage tray with cup holders. The front centre armrest houses a retractable table and the driver’s seat features a ‘relaxation mode’ that allows the passenger to stretch out completely to enjoy their favourite streaming platforms or video games on the infotainment unit while the car is charging.
Kia says there are lots of sustainable materials for the upholstery. For instance, recycled PET bottles have been used for the seats and roof lining, there’s use of biowaste in the paint and the dashboard and the exterior cladding uses plastic from older Kia models.
As for features, the EV3 gets a 12-inch heads-up display, configurable ambient lighting and digital displays, a Harman Kardon sound system and an ADAS suite. The EV3 is also the first Kia EV to get a personal AI assistant, which will be rolled out on other EVs in a phased manner soon. It has a 460-litre boot and an additional 25-litre frunk for storage.
Based on the E-GMP platform, the Kia EV3 gets two battery pack options – the standard model gets a 58.3kWh battery pack while the Long-Range variant gets an 81.4kWh battery pack. Both models utilise a front-axle mounted electric motor that produces 201hp and 283Nm of torque, enabling a claimed 0-100kph sprint time of 7.5 seconds. The EV3’s maximum speed is 170kph.
Kia has revealed that the Long-Range variant will have up to 600km of range on the WLTP cycle, the batteries will be sourced from LG Chem – and with a 400V architecture – 10 to 80 percent charge takes 31 mins. The flagship EV9, meanwhile, boasts of an 800V EV architecture, and also gets vehicle-to-load (V2L) capabilities and paddle shifters for regenerative braking.
The EV3 will first go on sale in South Korea in June this year, following which it will be introduced in Europe by late 2024 and Asian markets by early 2025. Kia has not specifically commented if and when the EV3 will be brought to India. Kia India, however, has the next-gen Carnival MPV and the EV9 SUV lined up for launch in India this year. Kia is targeting annual sales of around 2,00,000 units globally for the EV3 and has set a target price of USD 35,000-50,000 (approximately Rs 30 lakh-42 lakh).