I recently drove 762km in an Australian Kia EV EV6 Air (2022/2023) model electric car, a large portion of that distance was on motorways during a family holiday.
The car was a media loan review vehicle borrowed from Kia Australia and the temperature during the May loan period was between 8C – 20C.
According to the published specifications by Kia Australia, the EV6 Air base model has a WLTP range of 528km and an average city/motorway energy consumption of 16.5 kWh/100km.
As you can see in my photos of the car Energy Information history above the longer drives averaged between 13.6-15.0kWh/100km.
During my total time driving the Kia EV6 Air I averaged 14.1kWh/100km energy consumption in Eco/i-Pedal mode, which is impressive as it’s substantially better than the promised 16.5 kWh/100km.
What this means is that if you don’t drive with a lead foot you can achieve the promised 528km range and possibly even a bit more.
I’ve also recently driven the Hyundai Ioniq 5 Dynamiq which is built on the same platform as the Kia EV6.
Both are excellent cars but I would say the Kia EV6 has more enjoyable handling especially on twisty roads compared to the Ioniq 5 which has a less fun driving feel.
The Ioniq 5 is the more sensible urban family option whereas the EV6 is the sporty fun choice more suitable for singles and couples without kids.
The three time lapse videos below show some of my longer journeys including real time data for GPS driving speed, elevation and car location on a map:
Holsworthy (Sydney) to Bombo Quarry (Kiama) and then to Sydenham (Sydney) – 208km return trip including climbing up to and down from 400m altitude.
Umina Beach (Central Coast) to Newcastle CBD – 109.6km trip including climbing up to and down from 200m altitude.
Umina Beach (Central Coast) to Lewisham (Sydney) – 93.7km trip includingclimbing up to and down from 200m altitude.
In a world of many similar looking electric SUV’s, the Kia EV6 Hatchback/SUV crossover design stands out, especially so when it’s the Runway Red version I had on loan for a week and a half.
As proof that it’s quite different from other EV’s, no one can agree what kind of car it is. I’m calling it a Hatchback/SUV crossover but other reviewers call it all kinds of combinations of Fast back, sedan, SUV, wagon and hatchback.
You can read my rest of my first impression of the Kia EV6 on techAU.
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