The 3 Best Things About the Kia EV3

It is designed to be budget conscious. It’s the brand’s entry level electric offering and as life gets more expensive and incentives are intermittent at best, the Kia EV3 is an attractive and critically important product for the Korean automaker to grab EV buyers.

As one Kia rep commented during the press launch for the car, there can be restrictions to buying an EV (from range anxiety to charging time) but if you can’t afford it, none of that matters.

Kia has managed to take some of its modern strong suits like features/tech and combine them into a practical and affordable package. "A bit of a copy-paste from other Kia EVs," said Colum Wood in his recent test drive of the car, the new EV3 is the brand’s most affordable electric car and offers "great functionality and features, a pleasant drive and lots of range in a package you can actually afford."

Here are the 3 best things about the new Kia EV3:

1. Practicality and Clever Cargo Space

One of the distinct advantages to the EV3’s boxy design is its functionality. It should surprise no one to learn that "boxes are rather practical for carrying things in."

On the style front, "it’s kind of a box." In some ways it’s an "electric resurrection of the much loved Kia Soul," featuring funky rim designs and hidden rear door handles. But where that shape really pays off is inside.

Cargo room is rated at 21.5 cu-ft or 26.1 cu-ft (740 liters) behind the rear seats, depending on if you raise or lower the drop-floor of the cargo area – "a nice little feature." It’s quite a solid amount of space for a smaller vehicle. Drop the rear seats and those numbers expand to 51.9 or 56.5 cu-ft. Plus, rear seat space is actually quite good, where "two real-sized adults will fit no problem."

2. A High-Tech, Feature-Packed Cabin

Screens always seem high-tech and therefore expensive, but they mustn’t cost as much as you'd think because Kia has dual 12.3-inch displays plus a 5-inch climate display. In total, that’s roughly 30-inches of screen. And it helps make the cabin look plenty premium and high-tech.

Dual-zone climate control is standard as are driver seat pre-sets, while options include things like heated and ventilated front seats, multicolor ambient mood lighting, a 360° Surround-View Monitor and a heads-up display.

The interior ambiance balances high-tech features with welcoming materials. "The denim-y gray material on the dash is a great aesthetic addition that adds just enough warming texture to the tech-forward cabin to make it feel welcoming."

"One gotta-love-it feature is the standard Digital Key to open doors and start the vehicle with your phone. You can even text your 'key' to people." Furthermore, the EV3 offers Vehicle to Load (V2L) capability where it can power laptops or charge e-bikes, as well as Vehicle to Home capability to send power from the car to your home in case of an emergency.

3. Impressive Range and Everyday Driving Comfort

Behind the wheel, your number one concern probably isn't steering feel or road noise—it's range. And the EV3 delivers in spades:

• Base battery (58.3 kWh): 221 miles (356 km).
• Long Range FWD (81.4 kWh): 321 miles (517 km).
• Dual-Motor AWD (81.4 kWh): 280 miles (451 km).

To emphasize how much range this is, a drive route from Campbell River on the Northern part of Vancouver Island to Victoria in the South left "loads of range left when we dropped it off at the end of the day."

As for driving impressions, "driving the EV3 is perfectly pleasant. It’s quiet and comfortable." Almost all trim levels come with foam-insulated tires to help dampen road noise. It soaks up bumps without issue, and everyone will enjoy the electric torque. The slowest models will hit 60 mph in 7.0–7.5 seconds while the dual-motor versions hustle to the mark in 6.3 seconds—which "always feels peppy." Plus, "one unique trick to the EV3’s drive is one pedal operation where you just lift off the throttle and the regenerative brakes slow the car completely to a stop."

The Verdict

To get into an EV3 you’ll need to shell out just $29,890 (+ $1,495 destination) in the US, or $36,995 plus delivery in Canada.

A recent JD Power APEAL study showed that the gap for consumer sentiment between luxury brands and mainstream brands is narrowing, with Kia scoring ahead of some traditional luxury marques. "And with products like the EV3 its not surprising to see why." While it is no luxury car, Kia has brought "the best parts of Kia to a new era of automotive buyers."