2023 Kia EV6 GT: Australian specs revealed

Australian specifications have been formally revealed for the forthcoming 2023 Kia EV6 GT, the Korean brand’s new halo performance model.

Pricing won’t be announced until the high-output electric SUV’s official local release in late January, but Kia Australia has today lifted the lid on its standard specifications, just days after carsales revealed the GT’s $99,590 (plus on-road costs) starting price courtesy of industry data.

The high-performance 430kW/740Nm dual-motor EV will be fitted as standard with a drift mode function in Australia (a la the Genesis GV60), plus a swag of other equipment to differentiate it from the $12,000-cheaper GT-Line, which currently tops the local Kia EV6 range.

They include larger 21-inch alloy wheels shod with Michelin Pilot Sport 4S rubber, an adaptive front lighting system with LED daytime running lights, sequential indicators, adaptive hydraulic suspension and an electronically-controlled limited-slip rear differential.

Inside, the GT features sports front bucket seats, manually-adjustable artificial leather and suede trim with contrasting lime-green stitching dotted across the interior, and a GT mode button on the steering wheel finished in the same green hue.

Infotainment carries over from the existing GT-Line, comprising two 12.3-inch touch-screen displays, a 14-speaker stereo and head-up display.

Similarly, the safety story is a familiar one: autonomous emergency braking with vehicle, pedestrian, cyclist and junction detection, plus lane keep assist, active cruise control, parking collision avoidance, blind spot monitoring with display and rear cross traffic alert and intelligent speed assist.

Power comes from two electric motors – a 160kW unit on the front axle and a 270kW unit at the rear – to produce 80 per cent more power than the existing GT-Line.

The additional performance results in an official 0-100km/h acceleration time of just 3.5 seconds and a top speed of 260km/h.

The GT uses a familiar 77.4kWh battery pack that provides a theoretical claimed range of 410km. Its 800-volt charging architecture enables a 10-80 per cent charge time in as little as 18 minutes, plus vehicle-to-load (V2L) functionality to replenish small electric devices.

Chassis-wise, the GT is differentiated from its lesser siblings by a faster steering rack equating to just 2.3 turns lock-to-lock (down from 2.67 turns), adaptive suspension damping tuned on Australian roads (specifically around Canberra) and additional underbody bracing.

The brakes have also been upgraded to 380mm discs up front (clamped by four-piston calipers) and 360mm units at the rear.

Stay tuned for our first local drive of the EV6 GT next month.

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