Kia launches EV3 compact SUV

[Courtesy of Kia Corp.]

South Korean automaker Kia Corp. unveiled its EV3 compact sport utility vehicle (SUV) on Thursday, an affordable electric vehicle that aims to popularize electric cars. The vehicle is expected to be priced at 30 million won ($21,955.) in Korea and around $35,000 in the global market after accounting for subsidies, which positions the EV3 to competitively engage in the mid-to-low price segment of the EV market that is currently dominated by Tesla Inc. and BYD Co.

“The EV3 will bridge the market chasm (temporary stagnation in demand) and become the starting point for targeting the ”early majority“ consumer segment that is more likely to adopt new products earlier than the general population,” Kia President Song Ho-sung said during an online press conference where the vehicle was unveiled on Tuesday.

The EV3 is a compact SUV with a wheelbase of 4,300 millimeters, similar to the company’s Niro EV, according to the specifications released during the press conference. It will have a 58.3-kilowatt-hour (kwh) battery for the standard version and an 81.4-kwh battery for the long-range version.

[Courtesy of Kia Corp.]

Unlike other global automakers that use lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries in their low-cost EVs to reduce costs, the Korean automaker equipped EV3 with nickel-cobalt-manganese (NCM) batteries produced by LG Energy Solution Ltd., which allows the vehicle to charge from 10 percent to 80 percent in 31 minutes using a 350-kilowatt quick charger.

The EV3’s long-range version has an estimated driving range of 501 kilometers on a single charge, as certified by the Korean Ministry of Environment.

The EV3 will be launched in Korea in July 2024, in Europe in the fourth quarter of the year, and in the United States in 2025.

Song expected that its sales price in Korea will be in the mid-30 million won range, which is inclusive of EV subsidies. Tesla‘s Model 3 sells in the high 40 million won range after subsidies in the country and the global price for the EV3 is expected to be between $35,000 and $50,000.

Kia aims to sell 200,000 units of the EV3 annually worldwide, according to Song.