Kia e-Niro 2019 long-term review

Why we’re running it: To find out if the e-Niro truly is an electric car you can own without having to make any compromises

Month 1 – Specs

Historiography. An unlikely word to start an introduction to the Kia e-Niro with, perhaps, but one that I suspect is relevant. It concerns the study of how history is written, and how time can change how events are perceived. Imagine what we might now be presented with had Germany won the Second World War, for instance, or the multiple variations of the truth that will be presented 10 years hence when (or if) Brexit has played out.

Today, we know that the e-Niro is a good car; class-leading in many estimations, in fact, to the point that it won the prestigious What Car? Car of the Year Award back in January, becoming the first non-European built car to scoop the award and making Kia the first Korean brand to hold the accolade. In its final assessment, What Car? said the e-Niro – and most specifically its independently verified 253-mile range – “make it the first electric car you can own without having to make any compromises”.

It’s worth acknowledging now that Kia owes much to parent company Hyundai and the Kona Electric, on which it is based. The Kona Electric is slightly smaller (making its near-equal range perhaps more impressive, given that space for batteries is reduced) but (oddly, given that both are lavished with similar amounts of standard equipment in launch forms) marginally more expensive. Both are seriously impressive cars.

Both, too, are sold out for the foreseeable future, which is a fly in the ointment that is worth pausing on. Unless there is a surprise shipment freed up for the UK, you’ll likely now have to wait 12 months to get either car new, a legacy of the demand prompted by the breakthrough technology, the cars’ affordability relative to the opposition and a worldwide battery shortage. You might also add in the UK government’s decision to cut the electric car grant last year as a reason, which reduced the already paper-thin (or perhaps non-existent) profit margins on the cars, and the swing in the value of the pound in recent years, which made the UK a less profitable place to sell cars than elsewhere.

But what if you were quick enough to order a car, are sharp enough to pick up one of the few hitting the classifieds (and while demand is high, the residuals are astonishing) or are surveying the electric car scene, wondering where the best place to spend your money will be in the next 12 months? Well, that’s what we’re here to find out, of course, and so far the signs are terrifically encouraging.

While there is a truth to the throwaway summary that Kia’s greatest success with the e-Niro is fitting such a long-range battery in such a well-priced car, it should neither be allowed to overshadow the fact that it is also a very good car in other ways or that it seems to extract more range from its capacity than many rivals. I’ve done 220-mile journeys and five-mile journeys time and again, and never has the number of miles I’ve covered been less than the indicated amount of range I’ve used. In other words, unless you drive like you’ve got an elephant’s right foot, the mileage claim is not only real, but can be eclipsed.

And how many times in your life have you driven 253 miles without stopping? From London pretty much everything to the east, west and south is within reach. Heading north, all I’d need is a stop to charge to get beyond Hartlepool. If I planned a fast charge en route, Edinburgh would be possible with only a brief stop. This is not a car that demands many compromises – something that will be important to remember as the months go on, as we ponder if this isn’t just a great electric car but a great car, full stop.

Suitably meted out, progress is smooth and near-silent, only tyre and wind noise intruding. Yes, you can stamp on the accelerator and spin up the wheels, but you quickly learn it’s pretty wasteful to do so, and that the car isn’t really engineered to live with Dukes of Hazzard getaways. That said, the instant torque of the electric motors is a boon in town, helping you pop out of side roads and onto roundabouts with ease. Making good progress on the motorway is no trouble, although anything over 70mph does eat away at range. The ride and handling are safe and unexciting, dominated by the battery weight and steering that is short on any feel, but if those are matters of great concern, you might wonder why you’re buying an electric SUV in the first place.

It’s well appointed (all launch edition cars get leather, heated seats, heated steering wheel and more toys than you can imagine as standard) and spacious. Certainly it stands the test of a family of four heading off on a long weekend away without issues, just as any mid-size SUV should be expected to. There are some neat touches that add to its family appeal too. Chief among the discoveries so far is the inclusion of three USBs as standard. Trite, you might think, but kids love to pass long trips on devices, and other car makers think nothing of charging hundreds of pounds for anything more than one socket.

So who’d have thought it? Kia, just a decade ago little more than an upstart brand with big ambitions and a low reputation, has now built a car good enough to be declared the very best put on sale in the previous 12 months. To go back to historiography, briefly, and without wishing to get too highbrow about it all, I’m beginning to wonder if the e-Niro won’t just be viewed with the benefit of hindsight as a breakthrough vehicle, but also the car that crystallised the Kia brand’s emergence as a 21st-century car maker of choice.

Second Opinion

The e-Niro reminds me how far electric motoring has come. It’s comfortable, practical and likeable, and perfect for my short urban commute. For me, as for many living with on-street parking, the problem comes with charging. If I didn’t have a charging point at work, it wouldn’t be viable. That’s not the e-Niro’s fault, though, and Kia should be applauded for such a well-rounded car.

Rachel Burgess

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