CLINT SIMONE: We finally have the KIA EV9 on our home turf,
right here at the Edmunds test track.
And today, we're going to answer three very easy questions.
Is this a good EV?
Is it a good family SUV?
And is the price going to be a problem?
So the last time I was driving the KIA EV9
was just a few months ago when we had our first drive
opportunity in Korea.
By the way, if you wanted to check out that in-depth review
you can do so right here, or maybe it's right here.
I don't know.
They never tell me these things.
Today's agenda is a little different.
This is a US market spec car, which
is good because this is the one you all will actually be buying
and because we're here at the Edmunds test track,
we have the opportunity to put it
through our full EV range test in addition
to performance testing.
Now, to get back to our first question.
Is this a good EV?
Let's find out.
On our test track the EV9 GT line hits 60mph in 4.7 seconds.
The 60 to 0 breaking test happened
in 119ft and the big SUV pulled 0.89 G around our skidpad.
Now, when we tested a Telluride, it ran to 60 in 7.7 seconds
and did braking in 127ft with 0.81 G around the skid.
So the top trim EV9 blows the Telluride out of the water.
In fact, the EV9 ties the Ioniq 5
limited sprint to 60, which is equally impressive considering
its extra size, but more important
is the Edmunds EV range test.
The GT line is rated by the EPA at 270 miles
but our test team managed 306 showing the same trend we've
seen with other KIA EVs, they outperform their estimates.
All right, let me just prove a point real quick.
That is way quicker than it needs to be.
There's 60mph.
I mean, you just saw that 0 to 60 time.
That is exceptionally quick for a nearly 6,000 pounds,
three row family SUV.
I should say that there are different versions
of the EV9 that do not have this much power
and we'll talk about that in a little bit and the difference
you pay for it.
If you want to shell out the money
you get the quick version of this car,
379 horsepower, 516 pound feet of torque.
The last time I drove this was in Korea.
And a quick crash course in what that means, in Korea
there are speed bumps about every 5 feet and the speed
limit is really low so I did not get the chance at all
to put my right foot into it and what a joy this is.
The US spec car has firmer suspension
but that's a really good thing.
It feels planted.
It feels well controlled and even over speed bumps
it does a really nice job of sorting itself out.
When you really start to push it,
of course it falls apart a little bit around our handling
track but for an SUV this big and what you need it to do
it's very, very good.
Now, let's talk on the road driving here.
My favorite thing about it is just how smooth the EV9
is with all of its inputs.
If you're coming from a gas powered SUV
you're going to be really pleasantly surprised.
Everything is just smooth and delicate and just
kind of tranquil and nice.
The noise is fantastic.
It's just quiet in here, even all the way
up to highway speeds.
The brake regeneration is fantastic.
I love that they give you different levels.
You can turn it off if you don't like it
or you can use one pedal driving,
which means the car will come to a complete stop
without you having to put your foot on the brake at all.
It's nice that they give the driver that option.
Overall, the EV9 just nails the basics
and goes above and beyond to really feel,
dare I say, as expensive as it actually
is, which is a good thing because this car needed
to do things like that in order to justify
its not so small price tag.
So now, let's answer our second question.
Is this a good three row family SUV?
In order to prove whether or not that's true
I've arranged a little fire drill.
I also really enjoy annoying my coworkers.
I am now airport dad.
I got to load this thing full of people and things
and we are in a rush.
Let's see what happens.
By the way, when you don't need all three rows full of people,
there actually is a really decent amount of space
back here.
But one annoyance, this car is over $70,000,
no power folding third row.
You got to do it the old fashioned way with the straps.
First things first, the big one.
We got to go.
That is not going to fit.
Carry on size, that's good.
Here's the problem, these seats are too far back.
You cannot have your third row be comfortable because we got
time to make.
Now we're in a much better spot, that's going to fit.
We got room for one more carry on.
This last one ain't going to work.
OK, roll call.
Let's make it quick.
Third row, how are we doing?
SPEAKER 1: Doing good.
SPEAKER 2: I'm OK.
CLINT SIMONE: Place to charge your phone?
SPEAKER 1: Yeah.
SPEAKER 2: Yep.
CLINT SIMONE: Air conditioning?
SPEAKER 1: Yes.
SPEAKER 2: Yep.
CLINT SIMONE: Legroom?
SPEAKER 1: Plenty.
SPEAKER 2: Yeah, it's fine.
CLINT SIMONE: OK, cool.
Second row, how are we doing?
SPEAKER 3: Good.
SPEAKER 4: Great.
CLINT SIMONE: Place to charge your phone?
SPEAKER 3: Yes, sides of the seats here.
CLINT SIMONE: Air conditioning?
SPEAKER 3: Yes.
CLINT SIMONE: Leg room?
SPEAKER 3: Yes.
CLINT SIMONE: Brian?
SPEAKER 5: Yes?
CLINT SIMONE: How are we doing?
SPEAKER 5: Check.
CLINT SIMONE: So, here's the thing.
Let's call this a mad dash to the airport
full of my weirdly oversized children.
You might be asking the question,
is it possible that a 6,000 pounds EV actually
feels slower when you load it up with people?
The answer is, yes.
You feel it quite a bit and you have
to get on the brakes a lot sooner.
But the more important question is, does this work for people?
Do you want to be in this car for a long period of time?
Anybody have answers to that question?
SPEAKER 2: Not if you're driving like that.
CLINT SIMONE: Did I mention, I put my least favorite kids
in the third row?
SPEAKER 3: The second row is really nice.
I'm 6' 3" and I have a ton of room in here.
SPEAKER 5: You know, this interior and the Telluride sort
of sets the standard for that class
and this thing feels even a step above that.
It's just really fantastic.
I'd have no problem spending a few hours here
on a long road trip, at all.
CLINT SIMONE: It's really good.
I'm trying to find things that aren't good about it.
But like I said earlier, it kind of feels expensive
and that's a good thing because it is expensive.
So there's plenty of room, the seats are comfortable,
and if you watched our first drive you
know that it has all the features and tech
that you would expect for this price.
Is this a good family SUV?
I say, yes.
If anybody says no, now's your time.
There you have it.
Is it a good EV?
Check.
Is it a good family SUV?
Also, check.
But now, we got to talk about money
and there's this big elephant that's still in the room
and its name is Telluride.
And just about every way we can measure
the EV9 is better than the Telluride
but this car is about $20,000 more expensive
than a fully loaded one of those.
Yikes.
Now, KIA is selling cheaper versions of this car
but, as always, there's a catch.
Hey, here's that catch.
The entry level EV9 will cost about the same
as a fully loaded Telluride.
So, you'll be able to get an EV9 for about $56 grand.
Range in the base model is rated at 230 miles.
That's not extraordinary but that's not the real problem.
The problem is that it comes with 215 horsepower,
less than pretty much anything else at that price point.
And considering how much we could feel the extra weight
with six passengers in our test car that had 379 horsepower,
we have some real questions about how the entry level
model will handle a full load of people.
If you want the extra power, you need to step up
to an all wheel drive model.
The cheapest all wheel drive EV9 bumps the price up $9 grand
from the entry level model to about $65,000.
That's a big jump.
And that's just kind of where we're at now.
If you take price out of the equation
we love almost everything about this SUV.
If this was the same price as a fully loaded Telluride
I would be standing in front of a KIA dealership
saying buy this now.
Today.
Do it right now.
But it's not.
EVs are expensive and because of that a lot of them
are starting to sell much slower than they did before.
So the question is, are people willing to pay
a premium for a family SUV that also is electric?
Only time will tell.
Are you one of the people who ordered one of these things?
We would love to hear from you.
Let us know in the comments.
And as always, thanks for watching.
Why are you so calm?
SPEAKER 5: I'm always calm.
CLINT SIMONE: What's the best part about being a passenger
right now?
SPEAKER 5: Riding with Clint.
CLINT SIMONE: Other than that?
SPEAKER 5: Nothing's better than that.
CLINT SIMONE: That's what I thought.