Kia blames Toyota for its lack of hybrids

Kia has outlined plans to launch at least three electric vehicles in Australia in the coming years, and revealed the reason why it hasn’t already ventured down the green path.

Speaking with Australian journalists on a conference call this week, Kia Australia chief operating officer Damien Meredith said he had plans to offer the upcoming e-Niro SUV in Australia, along with a smaller electric car and a larger electric SUV.

Meredith’s plans coincide with Kia’s promise to launch 16 electrified vehicles globally by 2025.

“I don’t know what’s in the stable at this point in time but we’d be looking at e-Niro, a smaller passenger car and we’d be looking at a bigger SUV. That’s our thinking; whether they come to fruition or not, we’ll have to wait and see,” Meredith said.

Like many manufacturers, Kia is about to pull the trigger on electric vehicles in Australia. But the Korean car-maker has avoided importing interim low-emissions vehicle technology -- namely hybrids -- until this point.

The reason, according to Meredith, is quite simple: Toyota holds a mortgage on the market in Australia.

“The hybrid situation in Australia is dominated by Toyota. You’ve got to look at where you can get a strong foundation in anything in our business, or in all businesses.

“We decided that we would wait until we’ve got a solid stable of EVs behind us to start that process. That’s the reason behind it,” a forthright Meredith said.

“We didn’t see any advantage of Kia going the hybrid trail with Toyota being in such a dominant position with hybrids. We want to wait for a stable of EVs and attack the market that way.”

Along with growing market relevance, Meredith cited incoming tougher CO2 legislation as another motivating factor for green technology. In Australia, 2024 looms as the next major emissions deadline, but the game is moving much faster elsewhere.

Kia Australia has chosen not to import a number of hybrid and electric models produced by the Korean car-maker, including hybrid and plug-in hybrid versions of the Niro and Optima, and the Soul EV.

But it says the e-Niro — a battery-powered compact SUV with a claimed range of up to 485km — will be an EV game-changer in Australia if it can land it here for under $50,000.

“All automotive organisations have to start the process with EVs,” Meredith said. “If we can get that car in at the price we want it at, everything will fall into place and that will be the start of the road for us with EVs. We’ve got to start.

“We’ve bypassed hybrids so if the e-Niro is available and if we take it, that will start the process regarding EVs.”