Kia’s latest all-electric offering, the EV5, will be revealed at the Chengdu Motor Show next month. The EV5 is expected to start in the region of $40,000 and will be a crossover slightly smaller in size than the EV6. We already have a very good idea of what it will look like, with Kia showing it off in concept form at the Shanghai Motor Show last March.
According to The Korean Car Blog, the EV5 will be powered by an 82-kilowatt-hour battery pack and will have up to 372 miles of range. And while the EV5 will ride on the same E-GMP platform as the EV6 and Hyundai Ioniq 5, it will feature a 400-volt system as opposed to the 800-volt setup found in the aforementioned models. That means it will take slightly longer to charge, although it also allows it to be more affordable.
Undoubtedly, the BYD Atto 3 and Tesla Model Y will be the EV5’s main competitors in China. While this time last year the Model Y may have been viewed as more of an EV6 competitor, pricing has since dropped significantly. The Y now starts at only ¥263,900 ($36,916) in China, making it an affordable entry-level crossover.
Although China is the EV5’s main focus market, it will be available globally. In North America and Europe, the EV5 is expected to feature an NCM battery with Chinese versions using LFP packs.
The EV5 is expected to go on sale in China later this year. Expect US order books to open at some stage in 2024.
