Kia has revealed Concept EV5 The electric SUV, which previews a smaller sibling to the recently revealed EV9.
Revealed as part of Kia’s China EV Day, the production EV5 will initially be released in the Chinese market later this year.
Kia said that details on global availability of the EV5 “will be made in due course.”
The company says the EV5 concept gives us a glimpse of the aesthetic and design direction the brand wants to follow in all its future electric models.
The EV5 concept has ambitious interior elements that Kia says will create a relaxed cabin that blurs the line between interior and exterior.
These elements include carbon doors that open on rear hinges to reveal swivel seats equipped for various configurations, as well as a panoramic sunroof that doubles as a solar panel.
“The Kia Concept EV5 takes its influence from the contrast and complementarity of the natural landscape and man-made architecture… The SUV combines an emotional form language with an innovative and user-focused interior architecture,” said Kia executive vice president Karim Habib, head of global design center company.
Although this is a concept element, the EV9 has similar swivel seats in its cabin and this is a feature that could be integrated into the production version of the EV5.
The exterior follows the same design cues as the EV9, with a ‘Digital Tiger Face’ featuring two small cube light clusters next to each headlight.
Although the two-row EV9 is naturally shorter than the three-row EV9, it shares a similar squared-off line.
As the EV5 concept car represents Kia’s sustainable ambitions, plant-based materials feature such as seaweed extract and recycled PET bottles on the seats, doors and dashboard, as an alternative to animal skin.
As the name suggests, the EV5 will likely sit below the sleeker EV6 crossover in Kia’s range.
Although Kia hasn’t released the concept’s dimensions, it looks like a mid-size SUV like the combustion-powered Sportage.
Although still to be confirmed by Kia, it can be assumed that the EV5 will run on the same E-GMP electric platform as the rest of the Kia range.
Hyundai Group’s E-GMP platform, which already supports the EV6 and Hyundai Ioniq 5 and the related Ioniq 6 and Genesis GV60, enables fast charging with its 800V electric architecture, and offers multiple battery pack options, and single and dual motors. configuration.
The EV5, along with the EV9, is part of a range of seven all-electric models that Kia plans to launch before 2027.
The EV9 joins the EV6 and Niro EV in Kia’s local EV lineup later this year, with 400 examples earmarked for Australia by 2023.
Kia previously said it aims for 25 percent of its global sales volume to come from electric vehicles by 2029.