ROOM FOR 5? (some text hidden) --NONE--

By Jonathan Crouch

Kia targets families with this mid-sized electric SUV, the EV5. Jonathan Crouch takes a look.

Ten Second Reviewword count: 38

Kia gets more serious about the mid-sized part of the electric SUV market with this car, the EV5. This five-seat EV model is visually striking, practically configured and ready to impress you with some clever interior design touches.

Backgroundword count: 135

It's about time that Kia brought us a conventionally-shaped electric mid-sized family SUV. The Korean brand's had a car in this segment since 2022, the EV6, but it's a bit of a stretch to classify that as an 'SUV' and it's clearly not a car for the kind of adventurous lifestyle a 'Sport Utility Vehicle' is supposed to epitomise. Which is where this car, the EV5, comes in. Visually, it's clearly related to Kia's largest electric vehicle, the EV9, but unlike that car and the EV6, it uses a less sophisticated 400V architecture. Globally, Kia produces two kinds of EV5, a Chinese model and a slightly differently-engineered Korean design - which is the one Europe gets. The brand reckons this car will 'redefine its genre' with some clever design touches. Let's take a closer look.

Engines and Tech Specword count: 261

Does anyone really much care how a mid-sized electric SUV like this EV5 drives, as long as it's comfortable, responsive and quiet? Kia obviously thought so with the EV6 because we were always quite favourably impressed by the drive dynamics of that car. You can't expect an EV5 to feel quite as assured through the turns because of its high-sided stance and slightly higher centre of gravity. Europe gets the Korean-built version of this model, which has a different battery package to the alternative Chinese-built EV5. That sees a front-mounted 214bhp motor with 295Nm of torque matched to a large 81.4kWh battery. 0-62mph takes 8.4s. EV range is WLTP-rated at 329 miles for the base 'Air' model - or up to 314 miles for the 'GT-Line' version. A dual motor top GT version is planned for the future. As you'd expect, all EV5s have a regenerative braking system, including a 'one pedal' driving mode. It's operated by paddles behind the steering wheel. And there's all Kia's latest drive assist features, including Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist 2.0, Highway Driving Assist 2.0 with Hands-On Detection, lane-keep assist and smart cruise control. plus the brand's 'Remote Smart Parking Assist 2' set-up where you can stand outside the car and park it with the keyfob. You wouldn't expect to go very far off road in a lifestyle-orientated electric mid-sized electric SUV of this type - and thanks to just 167mm of ground clearance, you won't go very far off piste in this one. But the 1,200kg braked towing capacity figure is better than you might expect.

To see the full road test text contact us on 0330 0020 227