Kia is once again banging the drum to stir up excitement for its battery-electric EV9 flagship SUV, with the company announcing some more details on its futuristic seven-seater.
While we already know the EV9 will come with two choices of powertrains, with the base rear-wheel drive model kicking out 150kW/350Nm, while two AWD variants push out at least 283kW/600Nm from a pair of electric motors.
The GT-Line flagship pushes out 350Nm from each of its motors, bringing the combined torque figure up to 700Nm, which is enough for a 5.3-second sprint to 100km/h.
We also know that Kia is going to squeeze a 99.8kWh battery into its E-GMP platform, the same one you’ll find in cars like the EV6, which offers range figures of 541km in base form.
What we didn’t know, though, is that the EV9’s 800-volt architecture offers some clever bi-directional and vehicle-to-grid, vehicle-to-load and vehicle-to-building/home charging that effectively makes it a mobile powerplant.
We also don’t know exactly what range figures the EV9 AWD variants will offer, though expect these to take a tumble from the RWD’s 541km range.
The 800-volt setup also allows owners to add around 239km of driving range for the RWD variant in just 15 minutes, with the right DC fast charger, or equivalent to 219km in the AWD versions.
Space and practicality look to be well-and-truly covered by the EV9’s large platform that measures in at 5010mm long, with a wheelbase spanning 3100m that allows for seating for up to seven people.
Kia says that the EV9 will be optioned with two choices of interior layouts, with a six-seater picking up a set of 180-degree swivelling second-row seats that turn into a pair of lounges in ‘pause mode’.
‘Enjoy mode’ allows second row passengers to recline along with those seated in the front, with the ventilated seats picking up a set of leg rests.
In terms of boot space, the RWD base model has 90L of storage under the bonnet, which drops to 52L in the two AWD variants, combined with 333L of cargo space in the rear, expanding to 828L with the third row folded.
Kia says that the materials used throughout the cabin are now more sustainable, with the company opting for bio-polyurethane made from corn and castor oil, and recycled PET textiles for fabric surfaces instead of leather.
The EV9’s technology kit is headlined by a trio of screens, with Kia providing a 12.3-inch instrument cluster, 5.1-inch display for the climate control settings, another 12.3-inch infotainment display, a head-up display and a 14-speaker Meridian sound system.
While it’s a very minimalist design, Kia hasn’t done away with physical buttons completely, with nine controls remaining in place for volume, as well as temperature and fan speed inputs.
There’s also a handful of physical buttons at the base of the centre console for the hill descent control system, auto hold, parking sensors and the rear-view camera inputs.
Now that we know pretty much every detail there is to know about the Kia EV9, we’ll be sure to report back when we’ve heard confirmed range figures for dual-motor AWD variants and, of course, pricing details ahead of its 2024 arrival here in Australia.
