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Following the simultaneous announcements made by Hyundai and Genesis to launch a combined 17 EVs by 2030, Kia is also doubling down on its EV efforts. Some will be surprised to hear that the expanded zero-emissions portfolio will include not one, but two pickups. One is a “dedicated” model, meaning it will ride a bespoke electric platform. The other is a “strategic” truck designed for emerging markets, so it will most likely use an ICE-based architecture.
Kia intends to start production of bespoke power tools in the United States from 2024 when the midsize SUV will also hit the local assembly line. A year later, small and midsize EVs will be produced in Europe along with entry and midsize models in India. These new additions will all follow midsize EVs that are programmed to enter production in China starting in 2023.
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The EV9 concept unveiled in mid-November 2021 at the Los Angeles Auto Show will transform into its namesake production model next year. Kia says the large road-going SUV will stretch for about five meters (197 inches) and will reach 62 mph (100 km/h) from rest in just five seconds.
With the battery fully charged, the EV9 will have a maximum driving range of around 540 km (336 miles), although Kia doesn’t mention the test cycle on which the figure is based. When the concept was unveiled a few months ago, the company said its battery had enough power for 483 km (300 miles). It will also use the E-GMP platform and will cover a distance of 62 miles (100 km) after charging the battery in just six minutes.
The EV9 is important for another reason as it will usher in support for OTA and FoD updates. The latter is an acronym for Feature on Demand, which allows customers to unlock post-purchase functionality. It’s not clear how that will happen, but there are two plausible scenarios – either by paying a one-time fee to gain permanent access to the desired features or through a subscription plan. After all, logic tells us those items will be bundled with the car from the start but they will sit behind a paywall.
Additionally, the Kia EV9 will be the brand’s first production model to adopt AutoMode, which is the marketing language for its suite of advanced driver assistance systems.
By strengthening its EV offering, the South Korean marque aims to achieve annual electric car sales of 1.2 million by 2030. This is an increase of 36 percent compared to the previous commitments made by the company. Most of these sales, about 80 percent, will come from North America, Europe, South Korea and China. In the region, the company projects that 45 percent of the vehicles it will sell by the end of this decade will not have combustion engines.
Launching more EVs requires increasing battery supply and Kia expects demand to jump from 13 GWh to 119 GWh by 2030. As a result, the company is strengthening battery supply while working to reduce battery manufacturing costs by 40 percent over the next eight years. In the same interval, another goal is to increase battery density by 50 percent.
By 2030, Kia believes it will be able to sell a total of four million cars (ICE + EV) per year, with more than half of them going to be electrified to some extent.
Note: The 2009 Kia Soul’ster concept is pictured.
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