But the Kia EV9 is also an mpv, I’m cool

The car manufacturer responds to legitimate demands from the market. People want coolness, he comes with an air conditioner. Demanding safety, he invents the airbag. He sees families buying cabinets at IKEA: eureka, station wagon. With that mental view of the flow of supply and demand, you ask the question of every test drive: why are you there?

Often the only possible answer is to compete with the competition. There is a BMW SUV because there is a Mercedes one, a Ford Focus because there is a Golf. In the capitalist marketplace, almost all dogs are fighting over the same bone, hunting for a marketable balance between more and more intangible attributes such as price, quality, image, space and design. In addition, idiosyncrasy involves commercial risk and efficiency in all fields is very expensive, unless the target is willing to pay the price. As a result, the average value of cars has become closer to each other, so that it matters less and less what you buy, in part due to the platform strategy of multi-brand groups. Market forces turned not to encourage ideas but to follow suit. Discrimination became a business hazard. The good and last Toyota Prius was a flop because its unusual, fuel-efficient shape was not well received. The new Prius is less economical and streamlined, but the beauty again meets mid-range standards. Anything that is too close to that golden mean for the common man is out of the running. The exception is Tesla, who changed the world with his unique method of demonstration. Early adopters they liked to let that selfishness shine on them, the tax breaks attracted them and how the cars could go.

Zoom in for all the Kia EV9 detailsClick on the points for detailed informationPhoto by Merlijn Doomernik

But now Kia is getting back to work with the EV9. For whom? A big family, says the manufacturer. Normally! They used to make boring station wagons and tall, bus-like vehicles for that matter, multi-purpose vehicles or MPVs. They died when fashion changed content and work became more important than reproduction. A big family was not cool and such a bus was boring.

The EV is an MPV and it’s a good one, although Kia calls it an SUV because that label is more marketable. It is available as a seven-seater or six-seater with two separate chairs instead of a three-seater sofa. It is very large, but with its skeletal resemblance it is more funny than sad. The highlight of its style is the rounded corner in the straight lines curved around the wheel arches. This friction is reflected in the design of the wheel, where the decorative elements between the spokes hit the rim of the wheel outside and are the same inside. In this way, Kia created a flexible Lego aesthetic by imitating trompe l’oeil. The informal zigzags and branches on the light boxes give it an informal Keith Haring like vibe.

Zessitter

The utility value did not suffer from the form. The charging cable can be stowed in a storage bin under the front hatch so it doesn’t get in the way of the cargo behind. The charging port can also be used as a socket. In my six-seater, the seats in the second row rotate, which is useful for people with disabilities and frequent encounters with people. When folded down, the EV9 offers 2,300 liters of cargo space, more than any other station.

As it should be these days, it’s a disgusting luxury. Everything has plenty of lighting, can be cooled and heated, electrically adjusted and ready for massage. The right front seat can be adjusted electrically from the back seat, so you no longer have to ask the front passenger to adjust. In sports mode you feel the cheeks of the backrest closing your back electrically. You can wait for the Kia badge highlighted on the steering wheel. A decade? Consider America, traditionally the market for these types of full-size carriers. For us this is Versailles, for soccer moms Usually.

Photo: Merlijn Doomernik

The car drives like a king and it certainly does with 180 hp less than the base version, although the safety assistance acrobatics continue to disturb the peace with an uncontrollable howling endurance.

One big objection: the top model of more than five meters in height weighs 2,600 kg. Unfortunately, large plug-in vehicles require very large batteries which make them heavier. This has a battery pack that weighs 566 kg and has a net 99.8 kWh under the floor. It’s a little surprising how it still averages 24.5 kWh per 100 km in sub-zero temperatures. So you can always reach 400 km with EV9 and then charge faster with 800 volt technology than all European plug-in SUVs. Bible belt, reach! It costs a little, but Providence pays well for the investment.

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