After driving the all-new Kia EV6 around some of the greatest roads in northern California, we came away pretty impressed. Just before that event, we asked all of you what you wanted to know about the quirky EV, and here are our answers.
‘Pneus Roues’ wanted to know how quiet and comfortable it was on different surfaces.
Well, it’s above average for sure. Don’t take this as a scientifically accurate result, but for what it’s worth, using a phone app to measure sound levels inside the car at 55mph (88 km/h), on nicer roads, we never saw readings above 59db and that only jumped to 68db when we got onto broken pavement. Every once in a while, a tire would catch a rock and fling it up into the massive rear wheel well but aside from that, the ride was very quiet and comfortable with good damping throughout.
Read Our First Drive: The 2022 Kia EV6 Is The New EV Benchmark
‘Michael Jenkins’ wondered when it would be available at his local dealership which applies to all of you since…
Kia says that this is a 50-state car and that dealers are already getting their shipments of it so it’s possible that you’ve already got a few near you. MSRP starts at $40,900 for the base Light trim level and goes up to a maximum of $55,900 for the top-of-the-line GT-Line AWD version, not including a $7,500 federal tax credit and a $1,215 destination fee. See detailed pricing here.
Any wide-body kits for available for the EV6?
No, nothing has hit the aftermarket at this point though we think it’s important to go see one in person because at least to us, it looks balanced in a way that photos can’t really show. The wide rear fenders are awesome too, so going even wider might not be a good thing.
How are the cameras and screens on the EV6 with regard to both backing up and the 360-degree view?
Both were very good. Kia has been killing the whole blind-spot camera thing for a while and as mentioned in my review, every other company needs to please copy that design as soon as possible. It’s better than what we’ve seen from most other brands. The 360-degree camera did a nice job as well though it has some fisheye lens distortion towards the edges of the screen. Still, the top-down view and the dynamic guidelines were spot on and made maneuvering a breeze.
KMS has a great question about switching from coasting mode to regen and if that’s a seamless process or not.
Yes, and frankly, it’s great to be able to carry speed through a corner in an EV as easily as this does when in coasting mode. When you want to get regen go pull the left paddle and it switches on immediately. There are four modes including one Kia called “I Pedal” and each is progressively more aggressive than the last resulting in true one-pedal driving without the need to hit the brake yourself. You can also pull the left paddle to stop should you want to do that.
Is the EV6 an SUV in name only, does it sit as high as other SUVs? Is it comparable to CR-V, Sportage, or similar SUVs?
We’re not sure what to call it if we’re honest. It’s not a conventional SUV, no. It doesn’t sit as high as one, it doesn’t have as much cargo space, but it’s also not really trying to do those things. It’s a far better driver than most any conventional SUV shy of a Porsche too. We think it probably fits best as a crossover.