The unique Kia EV6 GT took the Korean automaker to new heights, promising supercar-like efficiency from a stonking 430kW dual-motor electrical drivetrain within the model’s pioneering devoted electrical SUV.
However whereas it had numerous chassis and {hardware} revisions to deal with that energy, it at all times felt prefer it was a really quick electrical car (EV) that was good in a straight line and never lots else, quite than being a correctly sorted high-performance machine – and that’s an vital distinction to make.
Now right here’s the brand new facelifted model, coming with a lot of the {hardware} that has received the excellent Hyundai Ioniq 5 N such crucial plaudits.
A few of this may be controversial – such because the simulated gearshifts and synthesised engine noises – however we’re hoping for excellent issues from the up to date EV6 GT.Â
Our first style of Kia’s newest high-performance EV befell on a few of the absolute best driving roads that Scotland has to supply.
How a lot does the Kia EV6 price?
Australian pricing for the upgraded EV6 GT has not but been confirmed, however we’re hopeful it’ll are available in someplace round – or higher nonetheless under – the present mannequin’s $99,590 plus on-roads sticker.
Certainly, in sure markets, regardless of a hike in peak energy and the additional gear fitted to the brand new GT, Kia has really priced it at a touch decrease degree than its predecessor.
Whether or not that would be the case right here or not, so long as it’s a few thousand {dollars} cheaper than the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N ($110,303 earlier than on-roads), it must be tempting for consumers searching for an exciting zero-emissions sports activities automotive.
It additionally appears wonderful worth for the sheer quantity of efficiency on supply, when you think about a fundamental EV6 Air is available in at $72,590 in pre-facelift guise.
To see how the Kia EV6 traces up in opposition to the competitors, try our comparability instrument
What’s the Kia EV6 like on the within?
The Kia EV6 has at all times been blessed with a high-quality, well-appointed inside, and with the remainder of the vary having already obtained its facelift, the GT now joins ranks with the newest passenger compartment.
Based mostly on the E-GMP platform, there’s a totally flat ground all through the EV6’s cabin, which helps with practicality points. Not simply within the rear, the place three adults may all sit side-by-side for shorter journeys with out being too cramped, however within the entrance, which permits for the floating central console space.
That is primarily based upon the armrest space between the seats, the place you’ll discover switchgear for the local weather seats, the car’s power-up button, its rotary drive selector and in addition some cupholders, a storage space and a wi-fi smartphone charging pad.
Up entrance are the dual 12.3-inch digital screens, for each the infotainment touchscreen and the instrument cluster, plus a customisable head-up show for the driving force too.
Additional, Kia has stored the intelligent strip of digital ‘buttons’ on the centre of the EV6 GT’s fascia, which might be switched from navigation and audio capabilities to climate-control shortcuts by toggling an icon on its left-hand aspect.
All the digital actual property works very properly and appears sharp, so the EV6 nonetheless feels totally up-to-date and ergonomically appropriate inside.
That simply leaves the GT-specific particulars, together with a fully superb pair of deeply sculpted bucket seats up entrance, that are mounted at simply the fitting top – sitting the driving force good and low within the Kia’s physique.
These are adorned with Neon Inexperienced stitching (a color repeated on the GT’s brake calipers on the surface of the car) and a centre stripe in the identical color, and the hue is repeated once more for the centres of the air vents, the stitching and 12 o’clock marker on the steering wheel, after which an important button within the automotive – the ‘GT Mode’ change hanging off the wheel’s left-hand spoke, which when pressed places the GT into its full 478kW attack-dog setting.
The overall fit-and-finish of the EV6 GT’s inside can’t be questioned, neither is there a lot to fault with how intuitive it’s to function a few of its methods – turning off lane-keep help and the speed-limit warning, as an example, is solely a case of holding down two buttons on the steering wheel for a number of seconds, quite than fiddling round with the central touchscreen.
By way of practicality, rear-seat passenger area is notably beneficiant, though there’s not a lot place to place your ft beneath the floor-hugging entrance seats, whereas the boot swallows a helpful 480 litres with all seats in use, rising to 1260L with the second row folded away. There’s an additional 20L of ‘entrance boot’ within the Kia, too.
Due to this fact, the one slight criticism you may degree on the GT is that, for a 478kW machine which may speed up from 0-100km/h in a claimed 3.5 seconds, the cabin isn’t notably flashy, nor massively completely different from that in an entry-level EV6.
Neither of these issues, although, are dealbreakers in our opinion.
To see how the Kia EV6 traces up in opposition to the competitors, try our comparability instrument
What’s below the bonnet?
Kia has adopted the even-more-powerful twin motors of the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N, which raises the EV6 GT’s already-beefy outputs from the earlier 430kW/740Nm peaks to an much more colossal 478kW/770Nm.
| Specs | Kia EV6 GT |
|---|---|
| Drivetrain | Twin-motor electrical |
| Battery | 84kWh li-ion – internet |
| Energy | 478kW |
| Torque | 770Nm |
| Pushed wheels | All-wheel drive incl. e-LSD |
| 0-100km/h – claimed | 3.5 seconds |
| Vitality consumption – as examined | 28.2kWh/100km |
| Claimed vary – WLTP | 450km |
| Max AC cost fee | 11kW |
| Max DC cost fee | 258kW |
Resulting from a barely enlarged battery pack – elevated by eight per cent from 77.4kWh to 84kWh (80kWh of that is usable) – the burden of the Kia has crept as much as 2200kg, which implies the 2 chief on-paper metrics are not any completely different, and no much less staggering, than they have been earlier than: Kia says 0-100km/h takes 3.5 seconds and the EV6 GT will high out at 260km/h.
The theoretical most quoted vary of the GT has additionally improved because of the technical adjustments, with Kia quoting 450km of one-shot vary.
After all, in case you begin having fun with the pleasures of the 478kW motors, that may quickly lower because of the consumption ramping up from the official 20.7kWh/100km, to extra like 28.2kWh/100km – which is what we noticed on take a look at.
Kia has improved the utmost DC fast-charging fee of the EV6 GT, additionally by eight per cent, to a brand new peak of 258kW. It due to this fact preserves its predecessor’s 18-minute 10-80 per cent DC charging time regardless of the elevated battery capability, due to the superior 800-volt electrical structure.
A ten-100 per cent cost on an 11kW AC connection will take barely greater than seven and a half hours.
To see how the Kia EV6 traces up in opposition to the competitors, try our comparability instrument
How does the Kia EV6 drive?
It takes all of fifty to 100 metres behind the wheel of the brand new EV6 GT to grasp the Hyundai N-inspired adjustments have made this an entirely completely different proposition to the mannequin it replaces.
There’s an inherent high quality really feel to the damping, in every thing it does, that shines by way of in the best way the GT oozes over pace humps at strolling tempo, to the easy method by which it smothers off crumbling city street surfaces at as much as 50km/h, to the overall dignified comportment it has at 100km/h and extra.
Don’t get us unsuitable, the 21-inch wheels in any respect corners are generally discernible as unsprung mass, thudding by way of greater imperfections within the asphalt, and there’s at all times an underlying firmness to the Kia’s secondary experience that speaks volumes of its singular intent to interact its driver on the restrict.
However the EV6 GT isn’t uncomfortable nor overtly noisy, in order a day-to-day EV it nonetheless does the fundamentals to a excessive sufficient customary to excel.
But the dealing with can be notably sharpened, the automotive’s weighty, informative and linear steering an actual pleasure to make use of. It instructions a front-end which is remarkably desperate to get itself became bends, in flip teaming with the actions of the rear-mounted electronically managed limited-slip differential to bless the two.2-tonne GT with an agility and liveliness at odds with its mass.
Little question about it, the revised EV6 GT is a considerable enchancment over the automotive it replaces, and one of many best-driving EVs you should buy proper now.
It isn’t, nonetheless, working fairly on the exalted ranges of the Ioniq 5 N. Whether or not that bothers you or not will rely upon how demanding a driver you might be.
Perhaps the actual fact this ultra-rapid Kia is known as ‘GT’ within the first place, and it has a extra elegant, smoother and fewer in-your-face form than the Hyundai, means all of it marries up higher into an ideological entire – a barely extra discreet means of going ridiculously quick in your EV.
In the end, although, it simply looks like Kia didn’t fairly commit (or was allowed to commit) to all the flowery chassis trickery and probably divisive methods that mimic features of internal-combustion motoring that make the 5 N such a totally pleasant steer.
The important thing points include the Digital Gear Shift (VGS) set-up within the EV6 GT, and the Energetic Sound Design (ASD) noises.
On the previous, the Kia solely has six ‘ratios’ in its pseudo-gearbox, whereas the 5 N has eight. Interrupting torque supply from its mighty electrical motors to simulate a dual-clutch transmission swapping from cog to cog, it’s system within the EV6 GT, but it surely wants extra revs.
By this, we imply that the instrument cluster exhibits a tacho whenever you’re in full GT Mode and utilizing the VGS – and the automotive ‘revs’ to a most of 6500rpm.
Blasting by way of the gears in extremely quick order, as a result of outrageous acceleration the GT can summon up from just about any street pace you care to decide on, provides as much as a driving expertise that looks like it’s copying a big-hearted turbo-diesel, quite than a high-revving petrol rngine tuned to supply loads of driving enjoyable.
And the ASD is nowhere close to as profitable as the identical system within the 5 N, which imitates the four-cylinder 2.0-litre turbo-petrol engine from the revered i30 N sizzling hatch.
Within the Kia, there’s only a thick, cloying, buzzy noise that doesn’t sound very like any engine in any respect. You’ll be able to change it by way of 4 modes – loud, medium, quiet and off – however even within the first of those, it’s subdued and never massively engaging.Â
Kia may’ve made this automotive sound just like the fantastic outdated Stinger V6, however didn’t. And that’s a disgrace. In isolation, then, you’d drive the Kia EV6 GT and rightly assume it was sensible.
However it could actually by no means fairly replicate that magic trick the Hyundai pulls off, the place – at its absolute best – it could actually make you overlook it’s an EV and as a substitute hoodwink you into believing you’re driving an enormous petrol sizzling hatch.
Within the Kia, that otherworldly dynamic second by no means fairly comes. It’s very, very near greatness… however misses it by a matter of mere inches.
To see how the Kia EV6 traces up in opposition to the competitors, try our comparability instrument
What do you get?
As you’d count on with a Kia, particularly in a top-end variant like this, you get just about every thing however the kitchen sink thrown in.
Whereas we’re nonetheless awaiting affirmation of the value of the revised EV6, and due to this fact the specs for our market, we’d count on the automotive to have the prolonged equipment record outlined under, plus way more moreover.
2025 Kia EV6 GT gear highlights:
- 21-inch alloy wheels
- LED exterior lighting
- Curved Show
- 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster
- 12.3-inch touchscreen infotainment
- Augmented actuality head-up show
- Apple CarPlay – wi-fi
- Android Auto – wi-fi
- Twin-zone local weather management
- 8-way powered GT entrance bucket seats
- Heated, ventilated entrance seats
- Heated rear seats
- Heated steering wheel
- Arms-free powered tailgate
- Tilt-and-slide large sunroof
- Superior good cruise management
- Alloy sports activities pedal
- 64-colour ambient lighting
- Wi-fi smartphone charging pad
- 14-speaker Meridian premium sound
To see how the Kia EV6 traces up in opposition to the competitors, try our comparability instrument
Is the Kia EV6 protected?
The Kia EV6 vary was subjected to ANCAP security testing in 2022 when it picked up 5 stars, however that score explicitly excludes the GT flagship.
Nonetheless, with its wholesome customary roster of superior driver help methods (ADAS), it’s more likely to be each bit as protected as the remainder of the EV6 lineup.
Normal security gear consists of:
- Multi-collision braking
- Autonomous emergency braking
- Automobile, pedestrian, bicycle owner detection
- Junction turning help
- Lane following help
- Lane-keep help
- Blind-spot help
- Rear cross-traffic help
- Protected exit warning
- Protected exit help
- Parking collision avoidance help – reverse
- Driver consideration alert
- Lead car departure alert
- Clever pace restrict help
- Entrance and rear parking sensors
- Rear-view digital camera with dynamic parking pointers
- Encompass view monitor with 3D mode
- Blind spot view monitor
- Excessive beam help
To see how the Kia EV6 traces up in opposition to the competitors, try our comparability instrument
How a lot does the Kia EV6 price to run?
Not solely is the Kia EV6 GT an electrical car, making it low cost to run – supplied you could have entry to house charging – it comes with the Korean agency’s wonderful customer support back-up.
| Servicing and Guarantee | Kia EV6 GT |
|---|---|
| Guarantee | 7 years, limitless distance |
| Roadside help | As much as 8 years |
| Capped-price servicing | 7 years or 105,000km |
A seven-year, unlimited-kilometre guarantee, as much as eight years of roadside help cowl, and capped-price servicing for seven years or 105,000km imply there can’t be many 3.5-second 0-100km/h automobiles which might be extra reasonably priced to run than this.
To see how the Kia EV6 traces up in opposition to the competitors, try our comparability instrument
CarExpert’s Tackle the Kia EV6 GT
Make no mistake, the up to date Kia EV6 GT is a improbable efficiency EV and one of many very most interesting autos of its kind.
Sensible appears on the surface, the same old high-quality cabin inside, and a much-improved chassis plus much more energy and vary all add as much as a compelling zero-emissions bundle.
There’s the tiny, nagging feeling, nonetheless, that if Kia had simply gone all out on the VGS, ASD and chassis tuning, we may’ve been speaking about an all-time nice right here.
As it’s, we’ll accept the actual fact Kia has regardless created one thing fairly very good, and due to this fact we’re extremely completely happy that the 478kW GT exists.
Curious about shopping for a Kia EV6? Let CarExpert discover you the most effective deal right here
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