Kia EV6, TEST / review. This look is energizing, this is convenience, this is a revelation! But this is NOT a big Kia e-Niro

Courtesy of Kia Poland, we tested the Kia EV6 (2022) Plus last weekend, which is the version that sits between the base variant and the GT-Line edition. The car fascinated with its appearance, charging speed, driving comfort, adaptive headlights, but I must say that in terms of energy consumption this is NOT a Kia e-Niro. 

Kia EV6 (2022) Specifications:

segment: D / D-SUV,

sizes: 468 cm long, 188 cm wide, 155 cm high, 290 cm wheelbase,

battery: 77,4 kWh (sachet cells),

reception: 528 pcs. WLTP for 19 "devices 504 WLTP for 20" drives,

drive: rear (RWD, 0 + 1),

power: 168 kW (229 HP)

torque: 350 Nm,

acceleration: 7,3 seconds to 100 km / h (5,2 seconds for AWD)

disks: 20 inches,

PRICE: from PLN 215; in the tested version PLN 400, includes a heat pump and all options except the sunroof [during the meetings I gave a little less, only now I have calculated all the options, including the heat pump]

configurator: HERE cars are exhibited in many car dealerships,

competition: Tesla Model 3, Tesla Model Y, Volkswagen ID.4, Hyundai Ioniq 5.

Summation

As we save you time, we try to start all reviews with a resume. You can read the rest if it really interests you.

As you probably remember, this year the Kia EV6 was chosen by the editors of www.elektrowoz.pl. After the weekend in the car, we liked the attractive look, the good soundproofing of the interior and the driving comfort. We sighed because the interior looked much better than what we experienced in the pre-production version - it was wonderful. We liked the value for money, because the Plus version in the basic version is not much more expensive than the Tesla Model 3 SR +, and has some advantages over the latter (charging, trunk).

Instead, we felt slight disappointment in range and power consumptionbecause we configured it to be a more spacious Kia e-Niro. Realistically, 300-400 kilometers at a few dozen degrees Celsius is an objectively good result, but we couldn’t help but think that “if there is a 77 kWh battery and only rear-wheel drive, then there should be more.” The Kia EV6 is not the "big Kia e-Niro". This is a completely different car.

The overall impression is good / very good. Kia EV6 won't kill Tesla, but Volkswagen ID.4 and other models on the MEB platform can now scare... The Kia EV6 looks better than them in almost every way.

advantages:

• large battery, long range,
• the price of the basic version of the Long Range from 199 PLN,
• better price / quality ratio than vehicles on the MEB platform,
• a properly working mobile application,
• intriguing view,
• many recuperation levels to choose from between i-Pedal (driving with one pedal) and level 0 (driving like a combustion engine),
• friendly, comfortable, spacious, well-soundproofed salon,
• fast charging if infrastructure permits,
• rear trunk of 490 liters with easy access,
• front trunk (in the AWD version - symbolic),
• clear, expressive HUD,
• completely flat rear floor
• front seats with the ability to recline (used several times),
• the ability to tilt the backrest of the rear seat,
• many small improvements that are only noticed after a long stay in the car (key shape, light in the fender, upholstery of pockets, opening the rear trunk, induction phone charger positioned in such a way that it is difficult to forget about it when leaving the car, etc.) etc.),
• V2L, adapter included that allows you to use the energy stored in the battery (up to 3,6 kW, not tested).

Disadvantages:

• mileage, like other competitors with similar batteries, the legendary energy efficiency of Kia has disappeared somewhere,
• navigation offering AC charging points along the route,
• no legroom in certain front seat positions.

Overall rating: 8,5 / 10.

Features / Price: 8 / 10.

Test: Kia EV6 (2022) Plus 77,4 kWh

appearance

The car looks great. Drivers and passengers on the roads watched him with their eyes, neighbors asked me about him ("Excuse me, sir, what is this interesting car?"), For the first time in my life, three drivers showed me that the car is cool (thumbs up + smile). Actually no angle from which the Kia EV6 looks bad or ordinary... Pearl Snow White (SWP) was enchanting, black wheel arches made the car more racial, the rear wing gave it a sporty character, and the light strip through the rear signaled "I'm not afraid to be bold and avant-garde."

Many readers who looked at the car up close used the term "it looks even better live". There were voices of enthusiasmbecause there is something in this block. The car does not fit any previous Kia. The new logo (“Mr. Neighbor, what is this KN brand?”) Brought everything new. This is especially evident in the last photo, the Tesla Model 3 is still somehow defended in the front, it looks like a car with a swollen croup in the back:

Mister Neighbor, what is this KN brand? Chinese?

This intriguing appearance of the Kia is driven by several factors: the car has a slightly better wheelbase-to-length ratio than the Tesla Model 3 (290 cm to 468 cm in the EV6 versus 287,5 cm to 469 cm in the Model 3), rims ... large and optically enlarged black wheel arches. The silhouette is not oval, like the Tesla, but is inscribed in a trapezoid.

This is especially noticeable in the Plus variant, where silver moldings appeared at the bottom of the body and then transformed into headlights. At the front, there is a border between the bonnet and the wing that merges into the windshield. Nicely designed:

“A new day begins. Come on, I'll take you on another ride. You will not regret"

Headlights adaptive, they can obscure individual sectors, so you can constantly drive at traffic lights. We drove, we were never "prompted" to change the headlights, which happened in cars on the MEB platform with adaptive headlights. Front and rear turn signals sequential (Review package required, PK03, + PLN 7) which looks really great. At the back they were hidden under silver slats, their appearance reminded us of fire glowing through paper. We were unable to capture this in any of the photographs.

The interior of the car looked good too. The materials were better than the pre-production version (the latter disappointed us), the two displays known from the Hyundai Ioniq 5 have been retained, but thanks to the black frame, they do not look like Samsung tablets 10 years ago. The steering wheel, which is slightly shifted in the photographs, looked completely normal in real life. The texture of the trim plus chrome and polished material reminiscent of aluminum gave the impression that the contact with the cockpit was contact with a pleasant product of good quality. The surfaces of the black piano, as well as the black piano, have been finger-treated:

Door pockets are padded with soft material and illuminated. The upholstery should prevent objects inside from hitting the walls, the backlight function is obvious. We liked that the light lines not only gave the interior an atmosphere, but also played a practical role - for example, they illuminated the handles at the central air vents, so you immediately knew where to catch to direct the air flow. in the other direction. A line in the center tunnel showed the side passenger where the driver's seat extended. It seems like a trifle, but it is clear that someone has worked on the details:

Ambient lighting on the Kia EV6. The photo was slightly overexposed, the lighting was weaker.

Same interior after switching from normal to sport driving. Of course, the colors can be changed, this also applies to the background in the counters (we set bright between 6-18 and dark between 18-6).

The cockpit from the perspective of the right-hand rear passenger. The backlight was weaker, the phone took in more light

The interior is made ergonomically correct, most of all we were surprised that having driven 1 kilometer in two days, we had absolutely no complaints about the stationary position behind the wheel. Yes, we often took breaks (meeting with readers, exercising), but in every car after such a distance, our neck tensed, buttocks or hips were tired, and our back was tired in the lumbar region. We have not experienced anything like this in the Kia EV6.

Driving experience

The dynamics of the Kia EV6 RWD 77,4 kWh reminded us of the Tesla Model 3 SR + in Chill mode. and the Volkswagen ID.3 and ID.4 with a 77 kWh battery and a 150 kW (204 hp) engine driving the rear wheels. The specs show the Volkswagen is slower (ID.3 in 7,9 seconds, ID.4 in 8,5 seconds to 100 km / h), but we didn't feel the 7,3 seconds in the EV6 as a dramatic change for the better. He had great merit in this accelerator pedal, which in Normal mode reacted deeply and rather sluggishly for an electric car... This is probably the first car for which we are willing to sacrifice several kilometers of range for faster response and higher sensitivity of the "throttle" in Sport mode.

Anyone who has driven dynamic electrical engineering before will be a little disappointed.... This will be especially painful for people testing Tesla or 200+ kW electrics. We recommend that these people be interested in the all-wheel drive version (5,2 seconds to 100 km / h), but it's worth remembering that the AWD version has a weaker range.

The interior itself no sound is normalthe sound of rolling tires on the asphalt is less audible in the driver's ears than in the case of the Kia e-Niro or e-Soul. At speeds above 120 km / h, air noise is audible, but it is not strong. Suspension appears to be centered, guarantees a comfortable ride, although some of the information is transmitted to the driver's body - here again associations with Volkswagen arose, the term "good", "just right" came to mind.

An important addition to the salon is HUD (projection screen, Visibility package, PK03, PLN +7). This is not a strange transparent plate mounted low on the steering column, but a clear image located at the edge of the eye of the observing eye of the road. In Konie Electric, Kia, e-Niro or e-Soul the HUD was not very useful, in the EV000 it was just good.

Power consumption and range. Ah, this range

If you are confident about buying a car, please skip this paragraph. This is the last moment for this. This may be a little disappointing for you.

As we mentioned, we drove 20-inch wheels. In the Tesla Model 3, 18-inch rims are the smallest, and each additional inch shrinks the range by a few percent. In addition, we have operated the car at temperatures close to zero, a few to tens or so degrees Celsius. So it was pretty cool (sometimes: frost) and windy. The manufacturer declares that Kii EV6 range according to WLTP is 504 units, which in real terms in mixed mode should be 431 kilometers.

Efficient machine:

• в silent driving at a speed of 100 km / h GPS (cruise control) and a small congestion (slowdown), we set a record: 16,5 kWh / 100 km, which corresponds to 470 kilometers range.
• when driving very slowly in city, the EV6 consumes 18-20 kWh / 100 km, usually closer to 19,5-20 kWh / 100 km, which gives up to 400 kilometers of range (in the city!),
• while driving on the expressway with cruise control set to 123 km / h (120 km / h on GPS), it took 21,3 kWh / 100 km, which corresponds to range up to 360 kilometers,
• on the highway when trying to keep GPS devices at 140 km / h (this was not possible; average = 131 km / h) the range was 300-310 kilometers.

Energy consumption after 200 km of motorway travel was 21,3 kWh / 100 km.

Of course, in the summer and after replacing the wheels with 19-inch wheels, these values ​​would increase by 5-7 percent, but it must be clearly emphasized that The EV6 is much more likely to land in the 20-30 kWh / 100 km range than 10-20 kWh / 100 km.Meanwhile, the Kia e-Soul and Kia e-Niro have to be pressed hard to enter the 20+ kWh zone. In mixed mode, both older and smaller models can use several kilowatt hours per 100 kilometers. Something for something: either space and appearance (EV6) or energy efficiency.

So if you're looking to upgrade from an e-Niro to an EV6, you might be surprised to find that the new model has the same or worse range, despite having a 21 percent larger battery.. Now do you see why we keep saying "EV6 is not the bigger Kia e-Niro"? We already know one person who bought the Ioniq 5, considering it "an electric horse with a bigger battery." And she was a little disappointed.

We have another test of a Kia EV6 with a Tesla Model 3 at 140 km/h. Tesla's advantage turned out to be crushing - but we will talk about it in a separate article.

Loading, wow!

The car was tested at GreenWay Polska and Tauron stations. On DC fast chargers, the car has achieved:

• 47-49,6 kW, if the charger promised real 50 kW,
• 77 kW for a while, then 74 kW, then about 68 kW in Luchmiža - you can feel like with the Kia e-Niro,
• up to 141 kW on a 150 kW charger in Kąty Wrocławskie.

The last test made a special impression on us. As we approached the site, we noticed that the Volkswagen ID.4 was already using the charger. The charging station is located on the A4 motorway, the car was registered from Germany, which means it was driving for a long time, the battery must be warm. note that with a 54% charge, the power was 74,7 kW, plus 24,7 kWh of energy:

I don't know how much the Volkswagen was charged, so I decided to achieve the same level of charge in the EV6. The effect? 54 percent of the batteries were charged after 13:20 minutes, during which time 28,4 kWh of energy were loaded. Since the ID.4 can barely handle 75kW, the Kia EV6 had no problem with consistent energy replenishment at 141kW. (+89 percent!).

This means that under certain conditions Volkswagen can stand in the charging station 1 / 3-1 / 2 longer than the Kia EV6. The EV6 would have completed the aforementioned 24,7 kWh in about 11,7 minutes while this Volkswagen stood there. at least 14 minutes, because that's all I have certificates. How long did it actually stand? 18 minutes? twenty? This makes a big difference if we have access to a 20 kW charger, 150 kW charger, not to mention:

Navigation and multimedia system

Eh. I have navigated in different cars, I was annoyed by the QWERTZ keyboard in the MEB models, but in Kia I cannot convince myself to navigate. This time around, the mapped routes sometimes differ from the Google Maps routes, which in itself makes me suspicious. Two who it is impossible to dictate the address (Polish is not supported). Third, trying to insert a pushpin actually causes a crosshair to appear and panning of the map, which can sometimes be intermittent. And four: loading.

When I was driving the S8 route between Wroclaw and Warsaw and planned a route to Warsaw, the car informed me that I would not go there. He suggested looking for a charging point. I agreed to this. I was not far from the Syców Wschód junction, so the car found me several GreenWay Polska charging stations. I was glad because just 3 km from me, just after the exit to the intersection, there were two chargers - one on the right and one on the left. I chose the right one.

It turned out that the BMW i3 is using it. I decided that since I have such a choice, I will move on to another. After walking a long circle around the Aroma Stone Hotel Spa, I noticed him: it was, it was ... Type 2 socket on the wall, This place. Mercy, Kyo, Why do I need to be on the road if I want to recharge quickly, Type 2 socket? Isn't it possible to somehow differentiate between different types of charging points (fast / slow, orange / green, large / small) or just display only DC chargers?

When looking for chargers nearby, the Kii EV6 navigation system offered me a whole list of charging points, including 11 kW wall-mounted units. If I used them, I would bloom on them longer than all the time I was driving.

The plus is that the car has not only the base of the GreenWay Polska station, but also chargers from PKN Orlen and other operators are also displayed, including UPS, Galactico.pl. Getting information about the traffic situation is also an advantage, although here again the car's decisions about alternative routes tend to differ from those of Google Maps. In any case, it's good when the car knows about the traffic jam:

Multimedia system it works smoothly, normally, sometimes with slight fluctuations (Bjorn is hooked on the Ioniqu 5, maybe it's the mileage?), but this is not the superfluidity that we know from smartphones. The interface looks aesthetically pleasing and modern in both dark and light colors, which is not so obvious even in 2021.

Were satisfied with the number of optionswith which you can control the behavior of the car, incl. flap opening speed, brake mode, HUD elements, recuperative force, chair recline in comfortable entry / exit mode. Those who like to play with options will have fun in the Kia EV6..

But the media control screen itself probably requires more holistic thinking: the radio is elsewhere, the music from your phone via Bluetooth is elsewhere. The touch control panel, used in conjunction with the air conditioner, looks like a master of ergonomics, but this is not always the case. When we wanted to change the volume, we lowered the temperature because the air conditioner was on. When we were looking for the next radio station (SEEK) or wanted to turn off the air conditioning (arrow #1), we sometimes turned on the seat ventilation or heated steering wheel with the edge of our hand because we were resting it. next to the touch buttons (arrow number 2):

Fortunately, these are little things that we hope can be learned. What matters is that the multimedia system is not susceptible to freezes and spontaneous reboots... They are especially painful in cars on the MEB platform when driving at night, because the car displays a white background and sets the screen brightness to maximum. Ouch.

System Audio Meridian? The subwoofer occupies a niche under the boot floor and the system sounds good. It's not ultra-clear sound, it's not bass that makes the body tremble. This is normal / correct, so I'm a little afraid to think about what would have happened without him.

Autonomous driving = HDA2

The Kia EV6 features a semi-autonomous driving system called Highway Assist 2, HDA2... You can enable this regardless of cruise controlif you like to use the accelerator yourself. It works with the HUD, so we can see the route information on the windshield right before our eyes.

HUD on Kia EV6. On the left windshield: information about the approaching vehicle from behind, the steering wheel is illuminated in green, symbolizing the active HDA2 mode, next to the HDA NAV sign and the cruise control is set to 113 km / h (GPS 110 km / h). The penultimate one is information about the set distance to the vehicle in front, the last one is the current speed and the current speed limit.

We drove with an earlier (?) Version of this mechanism in a Kia e-Soul, we drove with HDA2 in a Kia EV6. In both cases, this is a great convenience for the driver, who can look at the phone or take care of eating sandwiches. When the car is driving alone, arms and neck are not so tight, we arrive at our destination less tired..

What was intriguing about the HDA2 Kii EV6 was that electronics can independently change lanes... Unfortunately, this only applies to the selected routes and works with a greater delay than in the Mercedes EQC. And you need to keep your hands on the steering wheel, so the idea of ​​a machine gun is falling apart somewhere. But the most amazing thing for us was that we mastered some bows, well the car often corrects the track. Because of this, the steering wheel is constantly working, which can make a person feel insecure while driving - the hands of novice drivers work in exactly the same way. When the road is straight or there are sharp curves, the Kii e-Soul works as it should.

This will be better seen in the video that we will publish soon.

Mobile App: UVO Connect -> Kia Connect

The cryptic name disappears UVO ConnectAppears Let's Connect (Android HERE, iOS HERE). The application has everything that this type of software should have: the ability to check traffic statistics, location, schedule the start of the air conditioner, lock, unlock, suspect what the energy was used for. It worked without any reservations, hung for a moment once:

Traveling with your family, i.e. back seat and trunk

In previous measurements, we found that the Kii EV6 sofa is 125 centimeters wide and the seat is 32 centimeters above the floor. The adults seemed to be uncomfortable in the back because their hips would not be supported:

But you know what? There is actually only one problem with this rear seat: if someone tall sits in front and lowers the seat, then the passenger in the back will not hide their legs under him. Because it is impossible:

Everything else works better than simple measurements would suggest: 47 centimeters of seat length (along the axis of the car) and soft padding make it fold slightly, so the knees will be high, yes, but the hips will be supported at a fairly large distance... There is also plenty of knee room. AND when dreaming, you can recline (separately for right, left and center separately) and run away from this world for a moment. I know because I also tested this first by working on a laptop and then resting a bit:

Add to that the laptop slot on the back and you have the perfect vehicle for travel and work. Only for a 2 + 2 family, because the middle seat is 24 centimeters wide. Even a child without a seat will only "be" on it.

Kia EV6 against Tesla Model 3 or Model Y?

In the text, we have repeatedly referred to the Tesla Model 3 (D-segment), although the manufacturer regularly emphasizes that the Kia EV6 is a crossover, so it should be compared to the Tesla Model Y (D-SUV segment). We did this for convenience, because most measurements show that The Kia EV6 sits roughly halfway between the two cars. a little closer to the Y model. This includes height (1,45 - 1,55 - 1,62 m), rear boot volume (425 - 490 - 538 litres), trunk access, but no more legs on the back.

The Tesla Model 3 is the more popular car, we haven't driven a Tesla Model Y so this is a reference. The more you need a big trunk and a tall body, the more you need to pair the EV6 with the Model Y.

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