I’ve been waiting a little while to get into the 2024 Kia EV9. It’s an all-electric three-row SUV, and any three-row vehicle is right up my alley, since I’ve got three kids to help test out these vehicles’ true family-car capabilities. I really like Kia’s Telluride and Sorento, and had high hopes for this new three-row Kia, which slots sort of in between the other two, size-wise. However, adding fully electric power into the mix is something we haven’t done in a three-row — until now. How did it go without a Level 2 charger in our garage? We’ll get to that in a bit, but let me just say I think this might be the first time I can actually see myself owning a fully electric vehicle.
First things first: how do you turn it on? Hidden behind the steering wheel is a power button that is also attached to the mode selector, and which can easily be mistaken for the windshield-wiper stalk. After nearly a week of testing, it hasn’t gotten much easier for me. I still have to think before putting the car into Reverse. That said, in due time, I’m sure it’ll become second nature for owners, and on a brighter note, it frees up a lot of space elsewhere in the SUV.
The next thing I’ll complain about is the climate-control set-up. If I’m being honest, I’ve seen worse; this one actually isn’t horrible, because it’s actually pretty easy to understand, and there are even a couple buttons below the infotainment touchscreen for quick adjustments to the temperature and fan settings.
What I’m going to complain about is its location. Much like that power button, it’s a bit hidden behind the steering wheel, and isn’t easily accessible without your being distracted from the road for a couple seconds. Your height and the way the steering wheel is adjusted may help a bit in this case, but it’s still awkwardly placed, and I’d prefer it closer to the centre, or even just moved over a couple inches closer to this screen — though realistically, that would make it a part of the centre infotainment screen, and clearly, Kia was going for something different.
And speaking of the infotainment screen, it’s a little confusing at first glance, but considering you won’t need to play with it much, it’s not that bad. You can wirelessly connect to Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, which makes using the screen a whole lot easier, since it’ll easily connect you to Google Maps, Spotify, etc.
Note: if you’re like me and rest your hand down while pressing anything on the screen, then you’ll probably end up on a different screen, because these are haptic touch buttons right below it, and those buttons will take you directly to those submenus labelled there.
But enough complaining, right?
Charging the 2024 Kia EV9
We’re testing the six-seater Land trim, which starts at $64,995; when you add the GT-Line package featured here, it bumps the price another $14k, which is quite a bit of money for this family-hauler. The two motors in this all-wheel-drive Land trim make 379 hp and 516 lb-ft of torque.
While the regular Land trim has a driving range up to 451 km, GT-Line loses a bit, but Kia says it should still get up to 435 km of range. I can’t say exactly how many kilometres we travelled in mixed city and highway driving, but I definitely think we were averaging more than 435 km on a full charge. Connected to Android Auto and using a minimal amount of air conditioning, at 96% charged, the car was showing over 500 km of range — driven down to 16%, before finding a fast-ish-charger, the SUV was still showing over 80 km of range — give or take a couple of kms depending on the AC usage.
Note: I understand the majority of EV owners will likely have a Level 2 charger in their home, but if not, it would be extremely annoying to have to find a fast-charger. At least, it was for me in Guelph, Ontario. The few fast-chargers — not to be confused with “very fast” — we found were either already being used, or simply not in service.
When we finally did find a Flo charger that was working and not in use, we plugged in for an hour, which took us from 16% to 60%, at which point we got bored and went back home. This tested EV9 has a 99.8-kWh battery that Kia says can be charged from 10% to 80% in 24 minutes using a 350-kW DC fast-charger; or in just under nine hours with a Level 2 charger.
There’s a Petro-Canada in Milton that has two “very fast” chargers — as labelled by Google Maps — and before returning the car, I needed to get it back up to a decent charge. One charger was in use, the other was broken; luckily, the other person was just finishing, and I was free to plug in the EV9. In 50 minutes, the EV9 went from 42% to 96%; however, it only took just over 15 minutes to get it to 80%.
While EV infrastructure has been a common complaint among those unwilling to dive into EV territory — and a valid complaint, in my opinion — I think it’s becoming somewhat better. It’s just so important to understand that unless you’re travelling really long distances regularly, charging should not be a problem. We went almost a full week before needing to charge the Kia EV9, and even then, if it had been plugged into a home charger each night, we’d easily wake up with a full charge — even without a full night’s sleep. And in that case, you wouldn’t need to entertain your kid in a car for an hour, like I did.
How family-friendly is the Kia EV9?
The front seats are super-comfy and can be adjusted in numerous ways — there’s a sort of massage function for the driver, but Kia calls it “ergo-motion,” which I really like, because I find most “massage seats” in cars feel less like a massage and more like a gentle kick from the kid sitting behind the seat. The roof is like a weird plush material that you’d want from a cozy blanket, but in here, it’s whatever.
I love simple additions to cars that make it a little more family-friendly. For example, the cupholders can be turned into just a little storage space if needed. And my kids, and myself, were truly pleasantly surprised to find the centre console can be accessed from the second-row seats, and can be pulled out to be used as a sort of tray back there. Note that while it does have a rubber bottom, things will likely fall off said tray while driving.
And on that note, since we’re back here, let’s talk about the space. Here in this fully loaded Land trim with the GT-Line package, the second row gets heated and ventilated captain’s chairs. It’s pointless for a seat covered with a car seat, but the kids will grow out of those eventually, and then they can take advantage of that.
I’ve driven the Kia Telluride a few times and it feels much larger, not just in its drive feel, but in its whole stance. In reality, the Telluride is a bit taller than the EV9; and the EV9 is actually longer, which you’d think would translate into more legroom or cargo space, or both. Unfortunately, third-row legroom is extremely limited, at 760 mm, though there’s far more legroom back here than in the Kia Sorento.
Cargo space, on the other hand, with the third row’s seats up, is actually a pretty usable 573 litres; it can open up to 1,233L when the third row is folded, and to 2,314L with the second-row seats down, too. If you really need a bit of extra cargo space, and I do mean a bit, there’s a small frunk under the hood.
How does the Kia EV9 drive?
There’s a self-driving feature — not completely autonomous. You don’t even need to keep your hands on the steering wheel, but you do need to completely pay attention, because every once in a while, the green steering wheel icon goes off and you need to take over. For example, if there’s a large intersection or if you’re taking a curve or twisty road a little too quickly for it to track, then you’ll need to take over for the self-driving feature.I think it’s a great feature. It’s nice on a long stretch of road, and just makes life a tiny bit easier.
While I wouldn’t say the EV9 drives as big as it is, it does feel a bit wobbly. I think it’s because the steering is a bit loose, as opposed to being as stiff as some other vehicles, which makes them feel somewhat more planted when making turns.
It’s so quiet. One day I hopped out of the car and left the SUV running for almost a half-hour before looking at my phone and realizing it was still connected and playing music through Android Auto. Fortunately, not a whole lot of battery was lost from my mistake, which I obviously learned quickly from, since it didn’t happen again.
If it had been winter though, the heat would’ve likely been blasting in there, and that uses quite a bit of energy, as does air conditioning. If you go into the infotainment screen, you can see how much energy is being used, and by what; clicking off the A/C adds quite a few kilometres back to the estimated range.
Final thoughts
Aside from the awesome shade of Ocean Blue that my kids loved, my eight-year-old asked me if this was the best car of the year. I was a little taken aback by the question, because while this is a really special car that was not just voted World Car of the Year, but also the Women’s Worldwide Car of the Year, I wasn’t quite sure what stood out to him specifically.
Apparently, he, much like myself, really liked that storage space that opened up into the second row — though I do wish it was also accessible from the front. (He also said he’d like it more if there was rear-seat entertainment — I’ll have to agree to disagree on that one.) He was also pretty excited about the ventilated seats in the second row, but he’s not the one paying the bills. And losing those things, as well as a few other minor creature comforts, means saving nearly $15,000, and I like a starting price of $65k much more than $80k.
I don’t test many EVs because without a home charger, and no fast-charging stations within a few kilometres of my house, it makes it difficult, especially when you’ve got range anxiety. This is the first time I actually feel like I might be able to own a completely electric vehicle. This one has so much electric mileage on it at full charge, and there is rarely a reason to use over 400 km in a day, unless for some reason you’re doing a tonne of long-distance travelling or frequent road trips. We don’t, because my 10-year-old gets car-sick really quickly. Range anxiety — unlike other anxieties — is a world away.
What I like most about the 2024 Kia EV9 is that aside from being an all-electric three-row SUV, it’s a really great all-around vehicle overall. Being electric isn’t its identity, despite its being literally called “EV9.” It gets great electric mileage, it’s super-smooth and easy to maneuver, and it’s spacious and gets the job done — the job being hauling families. For families looking for a bigger EV, this is a great place to start, mostly because, currently, it’s pretty much the only place to start, unless you want to spend a lot more.
And can you believe I’ve gotten through a whole review without mentioning or comparing the tested vehicle to a minivan!? Well, until now. Check out the images below to see a side-by-side comparison of how similarly shaped the Kia Carnival and Kia EV9 are — I recently compared the Toyota Sienna to the all-new Toyota Grand Highlander, and I think this might make another good matchup, despite their having entirely different powertrains.
Check out the latest Kia EV9 model. Click here for more Millennial Mom’s Reviews.
Pros
✔ Decent electric range for a big three-row SUV
✔ Adequate cargo space with the third row up
✔ Family-friendly
Cons
✘Expensive with GT-Line package
✘Limited third-row legroom
✘Weird placement of climate controls hidden behind steering wheel
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