ROOM FOR 5?(some text hidden)

By Jonathan Crouch

Ten Second Review word count: 38

Kia gets more serious about the mid-sized part of the electric SUV market with this car, the EV5. This five-seat EV model is visually striking, practically configured and ready to impress you with some clever interior design touches.

Background word count: 135

It's about time that Kia brought us a conventionally-shaped electric mid-sized family SUV. The Korean brand's had a car in this segment since 2022, the EV6, but it's a bit of a stretch to classify that as an 'SUV' and it's clearly not a car for the kind of adventurous lifestyle a 'Sport Utility Vehicle' is supposed to epitomise. Which is where this car, the EV5, comes in. Visually, it's clearly related to Kia's largest electric vehicle, the EV9, but unlike that car and the EV6, it uses a less sophisticated 400V architecture. Globally, Kia produces two kinds of EV5, a Chinese model and a slightly differently-engineered Korean design - which is the one Europe gets. The brand reckons this car will 'redefine its genre' with some clever design touches. Let's take a closer look.