Kia Australia has released preliminary pricing and line-up details for its all-new and all-electric EV9 flagship SUV.
As expected, the 2024 Kia EV9 shall be the costliest vehicle the Korean brand has ever sold within the Australian market, with prices ranging from $97,000 to $121,000 before on-road costs.
That aligns the brand new EV9 pretty much with the Volvo XC90 – though that vehicle is mild-hybrid (MHEV) and plug-in hybrid (PHEV) only – which ranges from $100,990 to $128,990 before on-road costs for its also three-strong trim line-up.
Currently, the costliest vehicle Kia available in Australia is the high-performance EV6 GT, which lists for $99,590 plus on-roads.
A trio of model variants shall be offered from launch, comprising the entry-level Air, mid-spec Earth and top-tier GT-Line.
The bottom Air shall be single-motor rear-wheel drive, while the Earth and GT-Line shall be dual-motor all-wheel drive. At this stage, exact specifications for Australian-market models i.e. outputs and range are still to be confirmed.
Kia Australia has previously confirmed it should be offered locally in either single-motor RWD guise with a 76.1kWh battery or dual-motor AWD with a 99.8kWh battery.
In response to global specifications, the rear-wheel drive model has a 150kW/350Nm electric motor and a claimed 0-100km/h time of 8.2 seconds, together with claimed range of 418km under the stricter WLTP test cycle.
The twin-motor setup brings outputs of 283kW and 600Nm – upgradeable to 700Nm through the Kia Connect store – with a 0-100km/h time of 5.3 seconds with the uprated tune. It also offers 497km of WLTP range – CarExpert will publish full drivetrain specifications once they change into available next week.
Being based on the Hyundai Motor Group’s E-GMP dedicated electric 800V vehicle architecture, the Kia EV9 is able to DC fast-charger rates of as much as 350kW, and there’s available vehicle-to-load (V2L) capability that permits owners to plug household appliances right into a 3.6kW three-pin socket.
Using other E-GMP models as a guide, the Kia EV9 should find a way to be fast-charged from 10 to 80 per cent at its maximum charge capability inside around 25-Half-hour.
As with other models within the Kia stable, the EV9 will get an Australian ride and handling tune consequently of an in depth 44-month program, with testing conducted at Kia’s global R&D centre in Namyang, South Korea, in addition to more recently on local roads. Engineers from Namyang made the trip Down Under to help with the method.
While full specifications are yet to be finalised for the Australian market, Kia’s local division has previously confirmed the EV9 will debut Highway Driving Assist 2.0 (HDA 2.0) in Australia, a Level 2 autonomous driving feature that mixes adaptive cruise control with stop/go, Lane Following Assist, and a Lane Change Assist function.
The latter routinely steers the vehicle to the subsequent lane after you switch on the indicator. A Hands-on Detection sensor will even detect should you don’t have your hands on the wheel while using HDA 2, and can warn you after which deactivate the system if mandatory.
Australian-spec EV9s will, nonetheless, miss out on the brand new Highway Driving Pilot Level 3 autonomous driving feature, which allows for hands-free driving on certain roads. Local regulations are in charge, as is the case in lots of markets across the globe.
The EV9 will debut Kia’s latest infotainment and telematics system, developed in-house and called the Connected Automotive Navigation Cockpit (ccNC). This supports over-the-air updates in addition to wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
While unconfirmed, the EV9 might be the primary Kia model in Australia to get Digital Side Mirrors, a feature that has already been release on select Hyundai and Genesis models – including the Ioniq 5, Ioniq 6 and GV60.
The 2024 Kia EV9 measures 5010mm long, 1755mm tall, 1980mm wide and ride a 3100mm wheelbase. Kia consequently calls it an Upper Large SUV, given its dimensions are so near those of a Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series.
Stay tuned to CarExpert for all the newest Kia EV9 coverage, including an Australian launch drive review on Thursday, 9 November at 17:00 AEDT.
Pricing
- 2024 Kia EV9 Air RWD: $97,000
- 2024 Kia EV9 Earth AWD: $106,500
- 2024 Kia EV9 GT-Line AWD: $121,000
Prices exclude on-road costs
This Article First Appeared At www.carexpert.com.au
