Kia’s new seven-seater EV9 unveiled: an SUV with ‘lots of room for all’
Overview
Kia has just unveiled details of its new three-row EV9 electric SUV.
The large EV, the biggest of its kind in the Kia range, is due here in the fourth quarter of this year – that is late autumn into winter.
It is based on the concept shown back in 2021 at the Los Angeles Motor Show but obviously they have taken giant steps since then.
As the brand’s flagship it breaks ground on several fronts as well as substantially expanding Kia’s electric-car range here – the most recent being the EV6.
As you would expect from a Kia the new design philosophy comes across at the front with clear-cut lines.
There are the striking vertical headlamps and the EV9’s signature “Digital Tiger Face”.
Side-on, the EV9 SUV contrasts large wheel arches with smooth surfaces. The flush door handles and a tapered back roofline are designed to produce that sense of smoothness (and lower air resistance).
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Judging from the pictures, it sits quite tall and should provide a serious on-road presence.
Kia says its “Opposites United” culture played a pivotal role in how the interior was developed.
It has been able to prioritise space, comfort and technology for all passengers as the car is to be built on the brand’s Electric Global Modular Platform (E-GMP).
It allows for a long wheelbase with large stretches of completely flat floor.
That, in turn, opens up lots of room for all occupants on board.
That level of space is needed to back Kia’s claim that all passengers get equal treatment in this three-row SUV.
Kia says there is “lounge-style comfort in all three rows of seats”. It can come as a six-seater or a seven-seater, depending on market and perceived demand.
Kia seems to have carried out a lot of research on what families are looking for in a car of this size, especially when it comes to the seating configurations.
It has responded by creating and insisting that there is an “equality of space” and comfort for all occupants – without placing all of its focus on the driver.
If you are sitting in the first and second row, you can simultaneously recline the seats – to “relax and rest when the EV9 is charging”.
And the second row can swivel 180 degrees so you can chat face to face with those sitting in the third row.
Among the items available to third-row occupants are cupholders and charging points for mobile devices.
The open, floating panoramic dashboard stretches from the steering wheel to the centre of the vehicle.
Two 12.3-inch touch screens integrated with one 5in segment display control of the vehicle’s functions and keep conventional buttons to a minimum.
The extended display high-definition audiovisual, navigation and telematics (AVNT) screen is designed to make people feel at home with all the digital bits and pieces. There is an array of hidden type-touch buttons beneath the AVNT screen.
Those buttons provide a start/stop function along with AVNT and heating, ventilation and air-con (HVAC) control.
There are plenty of storage options in the centre console (including a roomy compartment at the bottom).
The EV9 will make its global premiere later this month.
During the event, Kia says it will reveal all product information.
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VW to roll out series of new EV models as it plans €180bn spend
