Sourcing EV5 from new plant conceivably means faster delivery, less cost.

THAT Kia’s next electric will land in mid-2024 and become the first Korean car sold here to source from China is anticipated.

The EV5 is a sports utility with similar proportions to the Sportage, styled to look like a smaller version of the blocky EV9 seven-seater that has just reached point of full sale, having been hindered for a short time by a compliance issue.

Like that car, and the EV6, it also built in South Korea.

However the alternate plant in China is expected to bring a cost advantage and also bring the car to market up to a year sooner than the parent can manage from its home factory.

NZ’s sourcing strategy is said to have been outlined to dealers. Intention to take the car from China has already been signalled by Australia. Our neighbour’s product choices and suspension tunings are often taken up by Kia NZ, for convenience.

Conceivably, Kia NZ will hope the new car might compete at more even-pegging against the BYD, Great Wall and MG product that has found favouritism here through perception of them holding price advantage.

EV5 in China market form has it introducing for less than half as much as the best-selling Tesla Model Y, which starts at $67,500 here.

Presently the cheapest electric from a Chinese domestic brand is the GWM Ora, at $42,990 in standard range and $47,990 in long range, before Clean Car rebate of $7015 is considered. Those tags also preclude on-road costs.

At the moment the cheapest Kia electric sold in NZ is the Niro Plus, at $64,990. The least expensive car on the E-GMP platform EV5 builds on is the EV6, at $76,990. The considerably more expensive new EV9 is also an E-GMP car.

With EV-5, though, it’s a different technology mix. Whereas those larger models are available in rear-wheel-drive or rear-biased all-wheel-drive, EV5 is only built as a front- or front-biased all-wheel-drive model.

More tellingly, it based on 400-volt electric architecture rather than the 800-volt platform in the EV6 and EV9, meaning its charging speeds will be slower but still capable of accepting up to 120kW (compared to 250kW in the more expensive vehicles).

When revealing EV5 at an event in Seoul two months ago, Kia also made clear that all China-built versions are powered by a lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery developed by electric-vehicle specialist BYD. South Korea-built cars use nickel manganese cobalt (NMC) batteries.

There are differences in range and performance, with the China cars showing advantage.

There it offers in standard, long-range and an all-wheel drive long-range variant.

The entry car has a 64kWh battery pack which sends energy to a 160kW electric motor and is expected to reach up to 530km on a single charge. The ‘long-range’ has the same electric motor, but married to a 88kWh battery. Up to 720km per charge is claimed.

The long-range all-wheel drive has the big battery, feeding a 160kW motor up front and a additional 70kW motor at the rear; for combined output of 230kW. Range reduces to 650km.

All can fast charging from 30 to 80 percent in just under half an hour.

The Korean market has a standard variant with a 58kWh battery and a long-range with an 81kWh unit.

A top-of-the-range GT is also promised, but has yet to be seen.

Kia and Hyundai’s next step of electric ambition is also in the news, with the sister makes showing off a Universal Wheel Drive System - called ‘Uni Wheel’ - that presents as an integrated wheel drive system, with main drive system components moved to within a wheel hub.