Test drive: Kia e-Niro, an electric car "for real"

With its versatile SUV body and the range of its high-capacity battery, along with its price, the Kia e-Niro is currently one of the best electric cars you can buy.

With the arrival of the Kia e-Niro, the Korean SUV becomes the only one on the market to offer all its electrified versions, not counting “fake hybrids” with mild-hybrid technology.

The Kia Niro HEV full hybrid launched in 2016 was joined in 2017 by the Niro PHEV plug-in hybrid. Both models, the Niro HEV as well as the Niro PHEV, have just received an update at the recent Geneva Motor Show. And now the e-Niro finally arrives, becoming one of the best options on the market for anyone looking for an electric car that truly lets them forget about combustion-engine cars.

Sorry, I know we’re here to talk about the electric Niro. But if I don’t say it… And if you’re one of those who still doesn’t want to give up the advantages of electric driving –and the CERO environmental label from the DGT– during the week, but you also don’t want to be constantly worrying about a plug or planning your trips around the availability of charging points, you shouldn’t overlook the Kia Niro PHEV.

The plug-in hybrid Niro is also one of the best options in its class. It offers 58 km of range in electric mode, and is available from 29,200 euros for the Concept trim up to 33,450 for the top-of-the-range Emotion version. But now it’s time to focus on the electric Niro.

A look at the technical features of the Kia e-Niro

To begin with, there are two things to keep in mind. The first is that the Kia e-Niro is not the first electric car from Kia. That honour belongs to another SUV, the Kia Soul EV, which has just been renewed and will soon also be on the market, with the technology and batteries of the e-Niro.

The second is that the Kia Niro was developed from the outset with this electric version in mind, with everything that entails. For example, its technical layout, with the batteries housed in the floor.

Kia offers two versions of the e-Niro: one with a 100 kW (136 CV) electric motor and a more powerful one with 150 kW (204 CV), each one associated with a different battery. In the first case it has a capacity of 39.2 kWh, which puts the official average range at 289 km. For the more powerful e-Niro the battery reaches 64 kWh of capacity, which gives it a range of 455 km. In both cases these are already WLTP figures, since when Kia first presented the e-Niro, these figures under the NEDC cycle were even higher.

The charging times that Kia provides for the higher-capacity battery are 42 minutes with a 100 kW fast charger, and just under 6 hours with a 7.2 kW Mennekes-type charger. In both cases these are figures for going from 20% to 80% capacity. We don’t have the data for a full charge.

As for the rest of the range, there are some changes driven by the characteristics of the propulsion system. Some have been made to offset the added weight of the batteries, replacing suspension elements made of steel with aluminium ones, as well as using a higher percentage of hot-stamped steel parts in the bodyshell.

Others relate to the greater soundproofing needs of a cabin where there is no background noise from a combustion engine. There are also specific reinforcements in the floor area, namely two transverse aluminium beams, to protect the batteries in the event of a side collision.

Slight changes to the bodywork reduce the drag coefficient from 0.30 to 0.29. A specific adjustment of the steering and suspension has also been made. As a notable figure, the body height increases by 25 mm, although the centre of gravity is lower.

An electric touch for the exterior and interior

Outside, the Kia e-Niro is distinguished by its closed grille, which does not need air intake for engine cooling, and where we find the flap that hides the charging socket.

It also features specific blue-coloured trim, 17-inch alloy wheels and a design exclusive to this version, and a new bumper design, which increases the overall length by around 20 mm. The LED daytime running lights in the shape of an arrow are different. Seven body colours are offered, six of them metallic.

The interior also makes it clear that this is a plug-in version through the blue inserts. But what truly sets this version apart is the rotary dial that replaces the traditional gear lever. Next to it are the controls for the electric parking brake, for the seat climate control or for selecting the driving mode, among others.

The instrumentation features a 7-inch TFT screen, complemented by the touchscreen of the multimedia system, of 7 or 8 inches depending on the trim level. Information of all kinds related to the propulsion system can be accessed: energy flow, percentages of the driving mode used (aggressive, efficient), availability of charging points within a nearby radius…

The interior not only keeps the efficient use of passenger space characteristic of the rest of the Kia Niro versions, but this electric variant even has a larger boot, reaching 450 litres, about 125 litres more than the plug-in hybrid.

Driving sensations and consumption of the Kia e-Niro

Driving the Kia e-Niro is very rewarding, mainly because of the powerful thrust the motor delivers. We carried out this first contact with the most powerful version, equipped with the 150 kW (204 CV) motor. And yes, it offers the sensations you’d expect from a car with 200 CV of power.

But what matters here is the maximum torque, 395 Nm, and practically available with no delay in response to the accelerator. To give you an idea of what this means in terms of thrust, it is more torque than one of the sports cars we have liked most among those we have tested recently, the Hyundai i30 N. Keep these figures in mind: the Kia e-Niro goes from 0 to 100 km/h in 7.8 seconds, and from 80 to 120 km/h (which gives a better measure of how easy it is to overtake, for example) in 5 seconds. That said, the top speed is limited to 167 km/h, to “protect” the range.

It should be said upfront that the Kia e-Niro with the less powerful motor, which offers the same maximum torque, also delivers more than adequate performance, although it needs 2 seconds more to accelerate. But since it is not offered with the large-capacity battery, we think the 150 kW e-Niro is the most interesting.

A direct consequence of having so much thrust available so immediately is that, despite the traction control, the wheels sometimes struggle to transmit the power to the tarmac. This means you have to be careful with your right foot and accelerate only as much as necessary. Otherwise, if you do so while the steering wheel is still turned, the car tends to try to leave its path, forcing you to turn the wheel more… or to correct and stop accelerating. Safety is never compromised, but agility is reduced, and it probably greatly limits the life of the front tyres.

This would be solved with a smoother power delivery programming, thinking above all of those days with wet tarmac. But in general terms, and despite a suspension with a soft damping setting that also reduces dynamism in corners, and steering that we would like somewhat firmer and more precise, the e-Niro is a stable, safe and easy-to-drive car.

The thing is, since the Kia e-Niro gains speed so easily, its motor invites a style of driving on twisty roads for which the chassis is not designed. Let’s not forget that the Kia e-Niro is by no means a sports car. Nor that it weighs more than 1,800 kg. In urban traffic its acceleration capability does translate into incredible agility. And on long journeys, something that is no longer a utopia for an electric car, the e-Niro is very comfortable and very quiet.

One aspect of the Kia e-Niro that I liked is how well it lets you manage the ability to lose speed using the three energy recovery levels from the paddles on the steering wheel. There is even a coasting mode, in which no energy is recovered, but there is also no drag, something that is not very common in hybrid or electric cars.

In addition, Kia offers the function called “One Pedal”, which activates the maximum level of energy recovery during braking. It allows you to use the deceleration to control speed by modulating the accelerator, which in many cases avoids having to resort to the brake pedal, whose feel requires a short adaptation period.

Another useful feature for saving energy is the automatic regeneration mode, which takes into account the level of energy recovered (and therefore the deceleration when lifting off the accelerator) depending on traffic and the distance to the car in front. To do this, it uses the camera of the adaptive cruise control system. It also requires some getting used to, since the result is that you don’t always get the same deceleration for the same movement of your right foot on the accelerator.

The different engine braking levels also vary when selecting the driving mode from the four available: Normal, Sport, Eco and Eco+. You switch between them by pressing the Drive button (in the case of Eco+, by holding it down once Eco mode is selected), which would be appreciated if it were positioned more within reach and were rotary, so you wouldn’t have to pass through the intermediate mode if, from Sport, you want to switch to Normal without going through Eco, for example.

The different modes offer well-defined characteristics in terms of accelerator response. In ECO mode an efficient function for the air conditioning is activated, which is switched off in ECO+ mode. In these two modes that seek maximum efficiency, the speed is limited to 120 km/h in the first case, and to 90 km/h in the second.

And how much does the Kia e-Niro consume? Well, just as with combustion-engine cars, more than the official figures say, even if they are WLTP. But not by much. The 15.9 kWh/100 km it is homologated at are not easy to achieve, but it is easy to get below 17 kWh/100 km without having to push too hard.

During a test including some city driving in areas where cars without a CERO label are banned, motorway and some secondary roads driven at a good pace, we measured 17.8 kWh/100 km. And without practising any kind of efficient driving, making frequent use of “Sport” mode, and with the climate control and even seat ventilation switched on.

Range and prices of the Kia e-Niro

All versions of the Kia e-Niro currently come with a direct discount of 1,850 euros, to which an additional discount for financing the purchase can be added, which is 2,520 euros for the Concept trim, and 1,815 euros for the rest. With all discounts applied, these are the available versions and their final price:

• Kia e-Niro 100 kW Concept: 31,150 €
• Kia e-Niro 100 kW Drive: 33,355 €
• Kia e-Niro 100 kW Emotion: 35,855 €
• Kia e-Niro 150 kW Drive: 36,855 €
• Kia e-Niro 150 kW Emotion: 39,355 €

For the same trim, the version of the Kia e-Niro with the more powerful motor and the larger-capacity battery costs 3,500 euros more. An investment that is interesting more for the extra range than for extra power that does not seem necessary. You may think that the 289 km range of the 100 kW version will be enough. But believe me, the investment is worth it. Remember that the range of electric cars varies greatly, depending on driving style, weather…

As for equipment, here you can indeed “save” the 2,500 euros difference between Drive and Emotion. The first already comes with a very complete standard specification, with nothing you’ll miss. The Emotion adds LED headlights, an 8″ multimedia screen instead of 7″, a JBL sound system, aluminium pedals, a wireless phone charger and front parking sensors.

It’s up to you whether you can do without these options and don’t want to approach the 40,000-euro threshold to get the top-of-the-range electric Niro, which does have an additional advantage. For 1,750 euros you can fit the Luxury pack exclusive to this version, which adds blind-spot detection, rear traffic alert, leather upholstery, heated front and rear seats (the front ones also ventilated) and a heated steering wheel.

Rivals of the Kia e-Niro

As a first consideration, the 31,350 euros of the entry version places the Kia e-Niro in a very advantageous position relative to its “sibling”, the Hyundai Kona Electric, which with the current offer of 3,400 euros is available in the 100 kW version from 36,100 euros. The top-of-the-range version, the Kona EV Style 150 kW, with the same discount, goes up to 42,900 euros.

Another direct rival of the Kia e-Niro, although its body is not in SUV format, is the Nissan Leaf. The Acenta version, with a 40 kWh battery and 110 kW motor, is offered from 32,600 euros. With the 62 kWh battery, the Nissan Leaf E+ is available from 40,750 euros in N-Connecta trim.

The Kia e-Niro thus becomes one of the best alternatives on the market, also on price, for anyone looking for an electric car for all uses. With a lower price, but also a smaller size and a more city-oriented approach, there is the Renault ZOE, the best-selling electric car in Spain last year. With more range, and a clearly higher price, is the Tesla Model 3, which has just landed in our market.

Another possible alternative is the BMW i3, which until the arrival of the Kona EV and the Kia e-Niro was for us the best option for anyone looking for an electric car. The two Korean models surpass the BMW in versatility and range, although the i3 still retains a plus of quality and exclusivity that keeps it a worthwhile alternative. It is offered from 39,900 euros with a 125 kW (18 CV) motor and from 43,650 euros for the BMW i3s, with 135 kW (184 CV).

The problem with the BMW i3? Its 260 km range, which not long ago could be considered a benchmark, has already been far surpassed. If the 300 km range limit is enough for daily use, better a Volkswagen e-Golf with 100 kW (136 CV), available with all discounts for 35,480 euros.

Image gallery of the Kia e-Niro

Technical specifications of this car

CrossoverKIA e-Niro1 version · from 42,525 €