It seems Kia is on an EV-mission, with the current EV range of the EV9, EV6, and EV5. Next cab off the rank is the EV3, another SUV that’s smaller than the EV5. We headed to Auckland to hear about the new model and to have a brief drive, and also to hear about the upcoming EV4 – and see the only one in the country.
Kia New Zealand – state of the nation
According to Kia New Zealand, they have established themselves as the number 1 EV brand in New Zealand. With a current count of dealerships nationwide at 23 in the North Island, and 8 in the South Island, that might be helping.
They also want to be first in the EV van segment, with the PV5 and PV7 coming later this year/next year.
The company currently has 7 EVs for sale here, also with the launch of the EV3 today, the Niro EV is being dropped from the range.
Kia might have seven EVs for sale here, but they “don’t see an end to ICE (internal combustion engine) in the future”, so development will continue for the Stonic, Seltos, Sportage, and other Kia ICE models.
The EV4 was launched globally a few weeks ago, and there is one on display here at the EV3 launch. Their large SUV, the EV9, won 9 global awards in 2024, including World Car Of The Year, and EV World Car Of The Year. The EV3 has already been nominated for the 2025 World Car Of The Year award.
2025 Kia EV3: Design and Packaging
Kia New Zealand says the EV3 is their “baby EV9” that they are using to target a wider audience. While the EV9 is well over $100K, the EV3 starts at almost half of that cost.
New Zealand will see three options of EV3; Light, Earth, and GT Line.
While the GT Line has things like exclusive black wheels, a 24.6” panoramic display is standard, while both Earth and GT Line models are fitted with a heads-up display.
In a first for Kia, a Vehicle-To-Load (V2L) adaptor is standard, although the EV3 does have the same internal 230-volt power point, as fitted to the EV5 and EV9.
2025 Kia EV3: Performance
Standard Range models include a 58kWh EV battery, that will take a maximum charge of 100kW. Long Range models have an 81kWh battery that accepts 128kW of maximum charge rate. According to Kia, that Long Range battery is the biggest in its class.
Ratings for maximum driving distance are up to 436km for the Standard Range models, and up to 605km for the Long Range. Energy economy is listed as between 14.9 and 16.2kWh/100km, which is an excellent figure if it’s achievable.
Acceleration to 100km/h takes between 7.5 and 7.9 seconds, depending on the model.
2025 Kia EV3: Aerodynamics
While it may look so similar to the EV5 and EV9, a huge amount of work has gone into the aerodynamic performance of the EV3, “all for the sake of range” says Kia. This includes an underbody cover that goes over 79.1% of the underneath of the car, “the largest in the market”, claims the company.
Other features include an optimised roof spoiler. All this has led to a drag coefficient of 0.263 for the EV3.
The new EV4 sedan, with its sleek fastback shape, achieves a rating of 0.23. This has led to an estimated range of up to 630km for the new EV4, coming later in the year.
2025 Kia EV3: Ride & Handling
There’s been a large amount of input from Australian engineers for this model, with changes to the chassis and steering to make the car more suitable to local markets. The EV3 has “Smart Frequency Dampers”, similar to the system used in the EV9, and it is claimed that this has led to a car with both excellent ride and handling. We’ll see how this claim stacks up in our drive, later on. Suspension is fairly standard MacPherson Strut at the front, while the rear has a Multi 4-link suspension setup.
2025 Kia EV3: Kia Connect
This application was launched with the EV5 last year, and flows down to the EV3. Owners will get free use of Kia Connect for 5 years. This includes over-the-air updates that cover vehicle components, infotainment changes, and security updates.
The Kia Connect app will allow you to set Valet Parking Mode, make an SOS call, control the car’s AC system remotely, check for the charging status of the car, remote lock it, check the vehicle’s health status, and do real-time vehicle tracking, for those nights when your teenager has taken the EV3 out on the town.
2025 Kia EV3: Safety
While the EV3 has not been ANCAP rated yet, Kia New Zealand is confident it will receive a 5-star rating, as the car carries many safety features from the EV9.
2025 Kia EV3: Pricing
- EV3 Light Standard Range: $55,520
- EV3 Light Long Range: $62,220
- EV3 Earth $69,220
- EV3 GT Line: $75,220
The EV3 is the first car in the Kia range to get a 7-year, bumper-to-bumper warranty (up to 150,000km). The EV battery warranty is 8 years (up to 160,000km) and there is also 5 years of Roadside Assistance as standard.
The all-new Kia EV3 is arriving for customers in April.
2025 Kia EV3: Drive/First Impressions
All EV3s lined up today are base models with the bigger battery, so EV3 Light Long Range. There were a lot of fleet managers at the launch today, and this is the target model for those buyers.
It’s so obvious that this is almost a clone of the EV5 and EV9, but it looks even better than both of those models. The proportions are just right and the EV3 looks superb, even in the muted colour range that’s available. It’s easy to tell an EV3 side-on; the rear door handles are integrated into the door frame, rather than on the door itself, as they are on the EV5 and EV9.
Getting inside, the interior is so very similar to the EV5, but there’s no “bench seat”. Instead – and thankfully – there’s just a normal centre console. I love the idea of the different seat design on the EV5, but it’s not that practical.
Even though it’s a size smaller than the EV5, the new model is still pretty spacious, and has that same welcome and light feeling to it. The cloth seats (made using sustainable materials) look great and really suit the interior design.
Driving the car, the ride with its Smart Frequency Dampers is even better than the EV5, and yet that car handles very well. Even speed bumps are almost ignored; this car’s ride is at the top of its class.
It’s great to see the same brake regeneration settings as the other Kia EV models, so I chose the Auto setting with the paddles and left it at this. It’s the ideal regen setting to use for everyday driving.
On a stop to take some photos, I notice the loading height in the boot is pretty high, but there’s a good amount of space in there, and it includes some underfloor storage.
Being the base model, there’s no electric tailgate, no electric seats, and no Qi wireless phone charging, you’d need to move up to the Earth or GT Line models to get these features.
Headroom in the rear seats is good. Not as good as the huge amount in the EV5, but more than acceptable for this size of car. There’s a USB-C port in the back of each front seat, and two air vents for rear-seat passengers. The rear doors open nice and wide, too, so it’s an easy car to enter/exit.
My drive today was pretty short, but after Kia’s claim about the handling, the car certainly feels quite composed on the bends. Quite possibly, the Mazda CX-5 at last has a competitor that rides well and handles well, but we’ll reserve judgement until we’ve spent a week with one.
My takeaway from spending a week in the EV5 was its sheer refinement and feeling of serenity in the cabin. Again, it was only a short drive today, but I got the same feeling from the EV3; it’s smooth, silent and refined.
That led me to ask, why buy an EV5 when, at first glance, the EV3 seems so good? This car could end up being the EV5’s natural competitor. If you don’t really need the extra space of the EV5, the EV3 seems to be a great, small SUV.
We’re waiting to review the new Kia EV3 to see if it’s as good to live with as it seems on first impressions.
For more information on the 2025 Kia EV3, go to www.kia.co.nz.
