Kia e-Niro

The Kia e-Niro is an award-winning, spacious EV, providing remarkable range for its price

Kia e-Niro Review

The Kia E-Niro – along with the Hyundai Kona Electric – is a game-changer in the UK EV market.

The e-Niro is a fully-electric (BEV), spacious SUV offering fantastic value for money. You no longer have to pay £60,000+ to get 250 miles of range on a single charge.

In January 2019, What Car? magazine voted the e-Niro “Car Of The Year 2019”. Think about that. It didn’t just win “Electric Car of the Year”, but also “Car of the Year”. It beat all types of car – including traditional petrol / diesel cars – to the top spot.

We predict the Kia e-Niro will sell like hot cakes – assuming Kia can build enough of them to meet demand.

Fortunately the long lead-in time of a staggering 18 months in 2019 is now down to 6-9 months for the 2020 model known as the e-Niro ‘4’.

Scroll down to read our written review and watch full video analyses from well-known reviewers.

Range

The Kia e-Niro can cover roughly 254 miles before it needs recharging.

If you are worried about buying an EV due to range anxiety, you need worry no more. The e-Niro’s 64 kWh battery is big and allows you to drive a considerable distance in one go.

Apart from the more expensive Teslas and the Jaguar I-Pace, the e-Niro – together with the Hyundai Kona – are comfortably ahead of the competition in terms of range.

It’s worth pausing for one moment to think about the range. 254 miles. That’s one heck of a long way. With careful driving, it will go even further.

Specifications

The new 2020 version of the e-Niro – otherwise known as e-Niro 4 – comes in one, high spec trim level only.

Basically, Kia has tweaked the already very successful launch model e-Niro from last year. The headline improvements are:

• A larger, more capable, central touchscreen
• LED headlights
• Cleverer battery management systems

Exterior Colour

The standard colour is Silky Silver.

If you pay £585 more, you can have any of the following colours: Graphite, Midnight Black, White Pearl, or Gravity Blue.

Exterior colour is the only option for the e-Niro you can select. All the other features below come as standard.

Exterior Characteristics

• 17-inch alloy wheels
• Roof rails
• Rear spoiler
• Privacy glass
• LED headlights
• Auto windscreen wipers
• Heated, electric wing mirrors
• Solar glass

Interior

• A combination of black and faux leather upholstery
• Fully adjustable, powered driver’s seat with lumbar support
• Heated front seats
• Full adjustable, heated, leather steering wheel
• Paddle shifters to control regenerative braking
• Ambient lights
• Air-conditioning (single zone)

Storage & Convenience

• Folding second row seats (60-40 split)
• Pockets for magazines / tablets in seat backs
• Rear arm rest cupholders
• Storage for bottles, etc., in all doors
• Storage compartment in centre console
• Boot size is 451 litres
• With the back seats down, luggage capacity increases to 1,405 litres

Infotainment & Communications

The e-Niro 4 has a really nice, large, central screen which is both your satellite navigation system and generally a place to make adjustments to the car.

• 10.25 inch touchscreen
• Integrated TomTom Sat Nav (European maps)
• UVO Connect – basically a smart info system that works with your phone to bring you all sorts of live data like weather forecasts, parking availability, diagnostics about the car, and so on
• 7 inch, TFT driver cluster
• 8 speaker sound system made by JBL
• Digital radio (DAB)
• USB ports
• Apple CarPlay and Android Auto
• Wireless charging for compatible mobile phones

Safety

There are a ton of automatic safety and driving features, such as:

• Adaptive cruise control
• Anti brake-locking system (ABS)
• Electronic stability control
• Lane keep and follow assist
• Forward collision avoidance
• Emergency stop
• Tyre pressure monitoring
• Reversing camera
• Parking sensors, front and back
• Airbags: front, front side, driver knees, curtain
• ISOFIX

Performance, Dimensions & Weight

Like most EVs, driving performance in the Kia e-Niro is excellent. Key data are as follows:

• 0-60 mph in 7.5 seconds
• Maximum speed of 104 mph
• Maximum power: 150 kW or 201 bhp
• Instant, high torque (395 nm) – you get an immediate reaction when you press the accelerator pedal – great for over-taking and pulling onto a motorway
• The car weighs 1.812 tons
• It’s 4.375m long
• The width is 1.805m
• Height is 1.57m, including the roof rails

Who is the Kia e-Niro for?

This front wheel drive Kia electric SUV is a well-proportioned, 5-seat, electric vehicle.

The e-Niro is a perfect family car. Why? It fits 5 adults, has plenty of space in the rear seats, and has a relatively big boot. The interior cabin size really is very generous. You can have long-legged adults in the front two seats, and still tons of legroom in the back. There is also no feeling of claustrophobia in the rear seats – it’s light and airy.

Its 254 mile range means you can go on weekend trips wherever you want, without worrying about running out of charge. If your trip is more than 250 miles in a day, simply stop for lunch, recharge, and off you go again.

The e-Niro has an 80 kW rapid charging DC socket, using the CCS connector type. Although most public charging points are only 50 kW at the moment, the e-Niro is ready for the faster 100-150 kW charging stations already being installed.

The Hyundai Kona Electric is a very similar car, but the e-Niro is more spacious in the middle row, has a bigger boot, and is better suited for families, especially with older, larger children.

Could the e-Niro be your next company car? Yes, of course. It looks smart, is tax efficient being an EV, and its impressive range won’t restrict your business activities.

There really is very little to criticise about the Kia e-Niro 4. It’s an award-winning, EV all-rounder.

• If you would like more information about EVs in general, please see our main Electric Cars page.

• For specific details about the e-Niro itself, see the main Kia UK e-Niro website.

• Otherwise, please scroll down to the Reviews section below for independent analyses.