First Kia EV on new E-GMP platform expected in September
Kia Europe COO talks electrification plans
When Kia brings its first new EV based on the new Hyundai Group modular electric platform, it’s likely to quickly become the brand’s best-selling electric in Europe. That’s what a company exec is saying ahead of the reveal and launch of the new model.
It’s going to be a crossover, to the surprise of approximately zero people, designed with cues from the Imagine concept that Kia showed off at the Geneva show back in 2019. Kia Europe COO Emilio Herrera told Automotive News Europe that the automaker expects to sell 10,000 to 15,000 of the model in Europe this year. And while that’s not a figure that would put it atop the sales charts, remember that it’s not expected to go on sale until September.
The new model will compete with the likes of the Volkswagen ID 3 and BMW i3 hatchbacks, but with an SUV body style that is growing in popularity. Herrera didn’t give 2022 expected sales forecasts, but it could outsell Kia’s two existing EVs in Europe, the Soul and Niro. The Kia Soul EV, the report says, sold 8,021 units in Europe last year, while the e-Niro accounted for 31,000.
On the new E-GMP platform, Hyundai has said that 500 km ranges and quicker acceleration are to be expected, and while it’s able to accommodate up to a seven-seat crossover, it can still handle a compact and even a performance car.
Kia is planning seven vehicles on the platform globally by 2027 as part of its most recent business strategy and expects to have 11 full EVs by 2025 including some of those new models as well as electric versions of existing models like the Soul EV. Herrera said that Kia hopes 30 pecent of Euro sales will be EVs by 2025, and that “In case the EV market really takes off and we have to produce even more EVs, we need to be sure that almost every model has not only been electrified, but also has an electric version.”
