Kia EV6 Opinions or Alternatives

[thisnameistaken]

After dipping my toe in the water with a MK2 40kwh Leaf I'm now committed to EV and I'm looking for my next car. I've got the shortlist down to the Kia EV6, Hyndai Ioniq5 and a speculative view at the Skoda garage last night at a wildcard has brought the Enyaq into the mix too.

Any owners or opinions on those choices? The budget was around £20k but I'm seeing better examples at dealerships starting around £25k so may need to raise it. Priorities are comfort, big enough boot for a dog crate (border terrier) bit of a prick if you're interested), Ability to carry bikes (inside is often preferred due to the type of bikes). I have a Westfield and a camper for fun times so how it drives is of little consequence as long as it's comfortable. Maybe daft but I'd like the charge port to be on the rear for charging purposes but not a deal breaker. Manufacturer warranty is also something we're keen on.

I'm not sure about range. The leaf is about as limited an EV as you can get, range is at best 120 miles this time of year, it uses the betamax equivalent of charging ports and only charges at 45kw. But it's OK for 99% of our use. Because of that I'm minded to prioritise charging speed over actual battery capacity but any dealer I've spoken to tells me I'm mad for doing that. The largest regular journey we do is about 170 miles.

The way I see it currently;

Kia EV6
Quirky looking. Fantastic charging speeds of 225kw. Range of about 250 miles real world? A big plus is the enormous warranty on these. £25-27k would get a manufacturer approved one with 4 years warranty left.

Hyundai Ioniq5
Much prefer the retro looks. Built on the same architecture as the EV6 with the insane charging speeds. Some have smaller battery so cheaper. Would it be enough for the 170ish miles? Only came with a 5 year warranty so probably only have a year or two at best.

Skoda Enyaq
Bit of a wild card but on viewing it we really like them, both coupe and estate. Huge practicality in the estate for my bikes. Interior is really nice, much nicer than I expected. Come in a variety of batteries, not sure about the range? One thing of concern is some appear to be 50kw charging. Is this right? That seems insanely slow. Appear to have an offer of 2 years warranty for used. 1 year at worst.

Any opinions on the above? Any help appreciated.

[Danm1les]

Have you looked in the boot of an EV6? Its quite an awkward shape, like most 4x4 size yet coupe EV's. Ionic5 is probably more of a traditional hatch?

Kia Niro worth a look?

[Skodillac]

Yes, prioritise charging speed over battery size/outright range, so long as you're over 250 miles range in pretty much all conditions, you're golden (given your stated use case, those who will try to argue that they need 500 miles because they're towing a caravan from Plymouth to Aberdeen every day without needing to urinate need not comment). Whichever dealers it is you've been speaking to need to give themselves a smack in the face.

[anonymous-user]

Hi
I have an Enyaq 80 (Jan 24 car) which as under £30k from a main dealer in Sep 24.
Incl warranty/2 free services. That was by signing up to their finance, withdraw from it after a few days. Retain the perks. 30 days to pay up by other means.
Useful extras to me, sunroof/extra sound insulation/acoustic glass/full leather interior etc etc
The charging speed is :-
Up to 135kW DC battery charging capacity
I’ve only used public chargers a handful of times though, used the Tesla ones, quick enough.
I believe the Enyaq 60 charging is slower.
I was seeing 300 mile range in Sept, around 250 miles now, that’s with aircon / heated seats / heated steering wheel all on.
Great car, spacious, very quiet on the open road. Fast enough for me.
No regrets.

Edited by anonymous-user on Wednesday 15th January 15:45

[thisnameistaken]

Danm1les said:

Have you looked in the boot of an EV6? Its quite an awkward shape, like most 4x4 size yet coupe EV's. Ionic5 is probably more of a traditional hatch?

Kia Niro worth a look?

Yeah we noticed that when we poked around. I think it'd be OK, at the very worst, perhaps a smaller dog crate but I think it's still usable. We did look at the Niro and wasn't taken with it. Nice enough but feels last generation compared to the stuff I've listed. Saying that, I'd happily have one, it'd need to be much cheaper though.

[thisnameistaken]

James6112 said:

Hi
I have an Enyaq 80 (Jan 24 car) which as under £30k from a main dealer in Sep 24.
Incl warranty/2 free services. That was by signing up to their finance, withdraw from it after a few days. Retain the perks. 30 days to pay up by other means.
Useful extras to me, sunroof/extra sound insulation/acoustic glass/full leather interior etc etc
The charging speed is :-
Up to 135kW DC battery charging capacity
I’ve only used public chargers a handful of times though, used the Tesla ones, quick enough.
I believe the Enyaq 60 charging is slower.
I was seeing 300 mile range in Sept, around 250 miles now, that’s with aircon / heated seats / heated steering wheel all on.
Great car, spacious, very quiet on the open road. Fast enough for me.
No regrets.

Edited by James6112 on Wednesday 15th January 15:45

Thanks, I thought it may be the case that the best deals will need me to go with the finance. Good to know re the 30 days to pay.

[anonymous-user]

thisnameistaken said:

Thanks, I thought it may be the case that the best deals will need me to go with the finance. Good to know re the 30 days to pay.

Was easy enough then. Paid something like £7 a day ‘interest’ between me picking up the car & withdrawing from the finance, only a few days. Nothing else. Unless things have changed now!

[Scabutz]

I've got an EV6. Had it about 8 months.

Boot you will struggle with bikes. It's big, but not cavernous. Dog crate should be ok.

It's comfortable and fun to drive. The rapid charging is great. I did a long trip recently. Plugged it in to a ultra fast charger, pop to the toilet, get a coffee and it's done. 250 range is pushing it.

Worth getting one with a heat pump if range is important. This recent cold weather has killed range.

Let me know if you want any pics/measurements ot want to know anything else.

[PetrolHeadInRecovery]

thisnameistaken said:

Kia EV6
Quirky looking. Fantastic charging speeds of 225kw. Range of about 250 miles real world? A big plus is the enormous warranty on these. £25-27k would get a manufacturer approved one with 4 years warranty left.

Hyundai Ioniq5
Much prefer the retro looks. Built on the same architecture as the EV6 with the insane charging speeds. Some have smaller battery so cheaper. Would it be enough for the 170ish miles? Only came with a 5 year warranty so probably only have a year or two at best.

Any opinions on the above? Any help appreciated.

Considered EV6, availability, price at the time, perceived lack of space and poor visibility around A-pillar dropped it out of consideration. The first two reasons removed, could be a strong candidate (together with Ioniq. 6) if I were looking. A single coolant type instead of a separate low conductivity coolant for the battery in the pre-2025 Ioniq 5s is a plus, as is the slightly better efficiency/range (at least on paper).

We ended up with the Ioniq 5, which overall has been a very positive experience (2 years, closing on 40k miles, mostly long road trips around Europe). The charging speed and flat charging curve are nice - not so much for saving time (you need to walk the dog, etc anyway), but more for reduced need to plan. There are recent threads on "Readers' cars", and on this forum ("Long distance Europe trips") where I went to excruciating details.

The range is sensitive to the average speed (drag coefficient is not the smallest); the bigger battery version should do the 170ish mile year round, but the small battery one might struggle even in the summer.

[PetrolHeadInRecovery]

PetrolHeadInRecovery said:

thisnameistaken said:

Kia EV6
Quirky looking. Fantastic charging speeds of 225kw. Range of about 250 miles real world? A big plus is the enormous warranty on these. £25-27k would get a manufacturer approved one with 4 years warranty left.

Hyundai Ioniq5
Much prefer the retro looks. Built on the same architecture as the EV6 with the insane charging speeds. Some have smaller battery so cheaper. Would it be enough for the 170ish miles? Only came with a 5 year warranty so probably only have a year or two at best.

Any opinions on the above? Any help appreciated.

Considered EV6, availability, price at the time, perceived lack of space and poor visibility around A-pillar dropped it out of consideration. The first two reasons removed, could be a strong candidate (together with Ioniq. 6) if I were looking. A single coolant type instead of a separate low conductivity coolant for the battery in the pre-2025 Ioniq 5s is a plus, as is the slightly better efficiency/range (at least on paper).

We ended up with the Ioniq 5, which overall has been a very positive experience (2 years, closing on 40k miles, mostly long road trips around Europe). The charging speed and flat charging curve are nice - not so much for saving time (you need to walk the dog, etc anyway), but more for reduced need to plan. There are recent threads on "Readers' cars", and on this forum ("Long distance Europe trips") where I went to excruciating details.

The range is sensitive to the average speed (drag coefficient is not the smallest); the bigger battery version should do the 170ish mile year round, but the small battery one might struggle even in the summer.

PS. Re. bikes - large bikes you'd need to fold at least part of the rear seat. If a trailer hook carrier is an option, it seems to have minimal impact on the range (Thule Velocompact tucks the bikes in quite close to the car's rear, which is quite wide and upright).

[Trikster]

Is an iPace an even wilder card - given the chronic depreciation a 2-3 year old one seems to fall into your mitts - though not as long warranty wise. Have one on a SS scheme and head and shoulders above the others in quality imho. Getting 200 miles plus in all weathers and whilst the headline charging rate is slower than others it seems to maintain it better so the odd time we’ve had to charge it in the wild in doubt it was more than 5-10mins difference to charge from empty (not that you’d ever let it get that low)

Oh and 2 largish dogs are more than comfortable in the boot..

[thisnameistaken]

Scabutz said:

I've got an EV6. Had it about 8 months.

Boot you will struggle with bikes. It's big, but not cavernous. Dog crate should be ok.

It's comfortable and fun to drive. The rapid charging is great. I did a long trip recently. Plugged it in to a ultra fast charger, pop to the toilet, get a coffee and it's done. 250 range is pushing it.

Worth getting one with a heat pump if range is important. This recent cold weather has killed range.

Let me know if you want any pics/measurements ot want to know anything else.

Thankyou. What sort of range is realistic? I thought they all had heat pumps tbh! Was it an option or on a specific trim?

PetrolHeadInRecovery said:

PetrolHeadInRecovery said:

thisnameistaken said:

Kia EV6
Quirky looking. Fantastic charging speeds of 225kw. Range of about 250 miles real world? A big plus is the enormous warranty on these. £25-27k would get a manufacturer approved one with 4 years warranty left.

Hyundai Ioniq5
Much prefer the retro looks. Built on the same architecture as the EV6 with the insane charging speeds. Some have smaller battery so cheaper. Would it be enough for the 170ish miles? Only came with a 5 year warranty so probably only have a year or two at best.

Any opinions on the above? Any help appreciated.

Considered EV6, availability, price at the time, perceived lack of space and poor visibility around A-pillar dropped it out of consideration. The first two reasons removed, could be a strong candidate (together with Ioniq. 6) if I were looking. A single coolant type instead of a separate low conductivity coolant for the battery in the pre-2025 Ioniq 5s is a plus, as is the slightly better efficiency/range (at least on paper).

We ended up with the Ioniq 5, which overall has been a very positive experience (2 years, closing on 40k miles, mostly long road trips around Europe). The charging speed and flat charging curve are nice - not so much for saving time (you need to walk the dog, etc anyway), but more for reduced need to plan. There are recent threads on "Readers' cars", and on this forum ("Long distance Europe trips") where I went to excruciating details.

The range is sensitive to the average speed (drag coefficient is not the smallest); the bigger battery version should do the 170ish mile year round, but the small battery one might struggle even in the summer.

PS. Re. bikes - large bikes you'd need to fold at least part of the rear seat. If a trailer hook carrier is an option, it seems to have minimal impact on the range (Thule Velocompact tucks the bikes in quite close to the car's rear, which is quite wide and upright).

Thanks! I’ll look up your post on the other thread. Perhaps the larger batter would be better for us then. Why is the coolant being of one type important?

I tend to have one bike when I use the car to carry my bikes. I feel more comfortable having them in the car with me and just put the seats down so as long as I can do that I’m ok. but if I can get a tow mounted carrier then all the better and gives me more options.

[thisnameistaken]

Trikster said:

Is an iPace an even wilder card - given the chronic depreciation a 2-3 year old one seems to fall into your mitts - though not as long warranty wise. Have one on a SS scheme and head and shoulders above the others in quality imho. Getting 200 miles plus in all weathers and whilst the headline charging rate is slower than others it seems to maintain it better so the odd time we’ve had to charge it in the wild in doubt it was more than 5-10mins difference to charge from empty (not that you’d ever let it get that low)

Oh and 2 largish dogs are more than comfortable in the boot..

IPace would be perfect. My brother had one when he worked for JLR and I loved it. I’ve never had a jag so I’d love to fix that. Unfortunately a long warranty is important for us and jag only offer a year.

[Scabutz]

thisnameistaken said:

Thankyou. What sort of range is realistic? I thought they all had heat pumps tbh! Was it an option or on a specific trim?

Ive got the single engine lower power version. 220-230 range wise I reckon. I dont pay a lot of attention to it as I generally only do short trips and just plug it in at home when it gets down to about 40%.

Heat Pump is an option extra, I have the GT Line S which is the top trim (other than the mad GT) and it doesnt have one. Its about £1.5k on top. Kinda takes the piss when my car cost £53k and doesnt come with one as standard. That is about the only bad thing I have to say about it.

Couple of other very minor gripes, as someone mentioned above the A pillars are massive and visibility is a bit crap. The rear seats recline but the mechanism is kinda flimsy and sometimes they rattle after someone has been sitting in them. I really am nit picking there, its a great car and I love it

[thisnameistaken]

Scabutz said:

Ive got the single engine lower power version. 220-230 range wise I reckon. I dont pay a lot of attention to it as I generally only do short trips and just plug it in at home when it gets down to about 40%.

Heat Pump is an option extra, I have the GT Line S which is the top trim (other than the mad GT) and it doesnt have one. Its about £1.5k on top. Kinda takes the piss when my car cost £53k and doesnt come with one as standard. That is about the only bad thing I have to say about it.

Couple of other very minor gripes, as someone mentioned above the A pillars are massive and visibility is a bit crap. The rear seats recline but the mechanism is kinda flimsy and sometimes they rattle after someone has been sitting in them. I really am nit picking there, its a great car and I love it

Thankyou. I think that's the spec I'd have; single motor about 225bhp? I'm not sure on Air or GT Line. As I understand it, the Air is the lower spec one but it has all the kit I'd really need. It's probably unlikely many folk specked a heat pump then if they were that much! 220 mile range is more than enough. I take it that's closer to 170 this time of year?

[TooLateForAName]

Some enyaqs are 50 charge speed, but its a software upgrade to get 120-145 (depends on the car) costs about £450

[Evanivitch]

Volvo XC40 is just over budget.

50kWh Berlingo can be had for the budget and addresses all the practical needs. Short range though.

ID4 can be had for the money, but I'd prefer an Enyaq.

eTron is a big car but not a great EV.

[Scabutz]

thisnameistaken said:

Thankyou. I think that's the spec I'd have; single motor about 225bhp? I'm not sure on Air or GT Line. As I understand it, the Air is the lower spec one but it has all the kit I'd really need. It's probably unlikely many folk specked a heat pump then if they were that much! 220 mile range is more than enough. I take it that's closer to 170 this time of year?

Yeah single motor, RWD. Feels faster than the published 0-60 figures.

Probably better than 170. There is an Eco climate control setting and also a driver only function which saves a bit of power but using the heating will spank the range.

Air is the entry level. I would personally go for a GT Line at least. Main reason being is the Air doesn't have the GT Line body kit which makes a massive difference to the look. The Air is pretty basic looking.

I went for the S because I wanted the premium sound system and sunroof. The sound system is a bit of a let down to be fair.

[thisnameistaken]

TooLateForAName said:

Some enyaqs are 50 charge speed, but its a software upgrade to get 120-145 (depends on the car) costs about £450

That seems an odd business move by Skoda.

Evanivitch said:

Volvo XC40 is just over budget.

50kWh Berlingo can be had for the budget and addresses all the practical needs. Short range though.

ID4 can be had for the money, but I'd prefer an Enyaq.

eTron is a big car but not a great EV.

Interesting choices, thankyou. I’d not considered the XC40 but will take a look. I’m a big fan of Volvo and not owned one so would be nice to fix that.

Scabutz said:

Yeah single motor, RWD. Feels faster than the published 0-60 figures.

Probably better than 170. There is an Eco climate control setting and also a driver only function which saves a bit of power but using the heating will spank the range.

Air is the entry level. I would personally go for a GT Line at least. Main reason being is the Air doesn't have the GT Line body kit which makes a massive difference to the look. The Air is pretty basic looking.

I went for the S because I wanted the premium sound system and sunroof. The sound system is a bit of a let down to be fair.

Thanks, I see what you mean in the images I’m looking at. The GT is sharper looking. I’ll make a note to get a better look in the flesh. In terms of kit, I’m not that bothered but the stereo needs to be good enough so I’ll check that too.

Thanks again all. Very helpful part of the forum. I really appreciate it.

[cliftonbridge]

Done 26,000 mile in a GT.

Zero reliability issues, average 2.8 m/kWh despite using the performance, and great in all types of driving.

One service after 2 years which was just brake fluid and a cabin air filter. 5 years warranty left.

Hardly ever public charge but when I do the 800v fast DC charging is very impressive.

Simply brilliant.

Edited by cliftonbridge on Thursday 16th January 03:18