Kia reveals teaser of first dedicated EV model, EV6

Kia Corp. on Mar. 9 showcased teaser images and video clips of EV6 – its first dedicated electric vehicle (EV) built on Hyundai Motor Group’s Electric-Global Modular Platform (E-GMP).

The EV6 is the first of seven all-electric vehicles the company plans to launch by 2026, according to its EV roadmap announced in February at the annual Kia CEO Investor Day.

EV6 will make its world premiere online at the end of March, then revealing full details of the vehicle design and specifications.

Kia added that its future EV models will adopt the same naming scheme; they will all have the prefix EV to highlight the fully electric nature of the vehicle, followed by a number corresponding to each model’s position in the lineup.  

“EV6 is the embodiment of our brand purpose, ‘Movement that inspires’ and our new design philosophy. We will continue to provide bold, original and inventive mobility experiences to our drivers.” said Karim Habib, senior vice president and head of Kia Global Design Center.

VEHICLE DESIGN

According to Kia, the exterior of the EV6 adopts SUV design with a coupe-like roofline giving its a sleek look, while its sides from the front to the rear emphasize a sense of agility. 

The windshield glass at the front of the vehicle is moderately tilted back to convey the forward-looking character of the EV. 

The front part of the vehicle features slim LED headlights that adopt Kia’s “moving light pattern” inspired by digital pixels, while the rear LED cluster exemplifies the futuristic vision of the EV6.

The teaser image also revealed that Kia’s new symmetrical logo unveiled in January will be on the EV6.

E-GMP MOVING FORWARD 

The EV6 is the second vehicle within the Hyundai Motor Group to be built on its proprietary E-GMP, following IONIQ 5's recent debut. E-GMP is an all-new integrated platform unveiled last December that has been designed exclusively for electric cars.

E-GMP epitomizes the South Korean auto conglomerate’s rapid shift towards future mobility, as it has already been used for the IONIQ 5 ahead of Kia’s EV6.

According to Hyundai Motor Group, E-GMP architecture can be adapted to create a wide range of vehicles, from sedans to SUVs.

Hyundai Motor Group announced last December its long-term plan to introduce 23 fully electric models and sell 1 million units a year globally by 2025, a figure that is likely to depend on the performance of the E-GMP.

Write to Sun A Lee at suna@hankyung.com
Daniel Cho edited this article.