Kia EV5 Air 2024 Review

The 2024 Kia EV5 is available in three models: Air, Earth and GT-Line.

The EV5 Air is priced from $56,770 drive-away for the Standard Range model and $61,170 plus on-road costs ($63,990 drive-away) for the Long Range. Kia is throwing in on-road costs as a sweetener for the entry-level model. That works out to be a sizeable $7220 hike for the bigger battery model we’re focussing on here – or almost $47 per additional kilometre of range.

The EV5 Earth is available only with the larger battery and two motors and costs $64,770 plus ORCs or $68,990 drive-away. The EV5 GT-Line is priced at $71,770 plus ORCs or $75,990 drive-away.

There is one catch for those who live in the west, with Kia passing on the higher transport costs. In Western Australia EV5 Air and Earth models cost another $1000 and the GT-Line another $2000.

All 2024 Kia EV5s come with a respectable level of equipment, but don’t get too excited, especially with the EV5 in Air guise. The only difference between the Standard Range and Long Range variants is the size of the battery.

Standard kit includes seat trim that is a mix of cloth and faux leather. There are also 18-inch wheels, heated front seats and a massage function for the driver.

Kia Connect allows monitoring and control of basic features (including door locks) via a smartphone app, and there are dual 12.3-inch screens interspersed by a five-inch display for the ventilation system.

A glance at the equipment of other models shows what the Air misses out on. Step up to the EV5 Earth and you get 19-inch alloys, more synthetic leather and a powered tailgate.

The EV5 GT-Line moves up to 20-inch wheels, fingerprint recognition for selecting driver profiles, a 360-degree camera, panoramic sunroof, heated and cooled rear storage box, augmented reality head-up display, remote park assist and an eight-speaker Harman Kardon sound system. There are also black design highlights and unique bumpers. There’s no spare wheel, just a repair kit in its place.

The EV5 is covered by a seven-year, unlimited kilometre warranty, although the high voltage battery pack is only covered for 150,000km.

Servicing is required every 12 months or 15,000km and Kia offers pre-paid service packs covering three years/45,000km, five years/75,000km and seven-years/105,000km. They’re priced at $980, $1535 and $2431 respectively.

The 2024 Kia EV5 Air gets seven airbags; dual front, front side and side curtain. It also gets a centre airbag between the front occupants.

There’s a healthy list of driver assist systems, including autonomous emergency braking with vulnerable road user detection and the ability to recognise cars wandering into its path. Additionally, the EV5 Air features blind spot warning, rear cross traffic alert and rear auto braking.

Safe exit warning can alert of other cars approaching from behind while speed sign recognition keeps an eye on the prevailing limit.

The EV5 also alerts the driver if the car in front drives away, and it monitors the driver for fatigue. At this level of trim, however, there is no surround-view camera facility, something that’s only fitted to the GT-Line.

The EV5 hasn’t been ANCAP tested but Kia says it is targeting a five-star result.

The 2024 Kia EV5 gets Kia Connect, which allows it to be monitored via a smartphone app. Owners can also lock and unlock the doors and activate the ventilation.

The same dual 12.3-inch displays now making their way across new generation Kias are a highlight of the EV5. In between is a five-inch screen dedicated to ventilation functions. The trio is also presented as one single mass of pixels to give the cockpit a high-tech appearance.

The central infotainment screen is easy to navigate, although it occasionally takes a second or so to react to inputs. There are clear menus and large virtual buttons that make it easy to select things on the run. However, the touch pads nicely integrated into the dash below the screen do react if you lean your palm on them while making selections on the screen; it’s something to look out for to save it making a selection you may not be expecting.

Two USB-C ports reside up front and there are two more in the back; the rear ports are integrated into the seat back, for easy access.

Plus the EV5 Air gets a vehicle-to-load (V2L) powerpoint in the boot, allowing household AC appliances to be powered by the car. While the GT-Line gets wireless phone charging the Air does without.

The 2024 Kia EV5 rides on its own dedicated electrical architecture, but rather than the 800V system that underpins the EV6 and EV9 it’s a more common 400V set-up.

The front-wheel drive Air gets a 160kW/310Nm motor. In the Standard Range variant it’s claimed to hit 100km/h in 8.5 second. The extra 145kg of the larger battery in the Long Range stretches that 0-100km/h time to 8.9 seconds.

The 2024 Kia EV5 Air Standard Range gets a 64.2kWh battery claimed to take it 400km on a charge, according to the WLTP test cycle. Step up to the Long Range with an 88.1kWh battery and that range extends to a claimed 555km. That’s the longest range of any EV5 model.

Whereas the Standard Range EV5 Air DC fast charges at up to 102kW, the Long Range steps that maximum charge rate up to 140kW. Even so, a 10-80 per cent charge is claimed to take 38 minutes, which is two minutes longer than the Standard Range due to the larger capacity.

Still, assuming the 555km of range – which is more like 500km in the real world – that’s 388km of claimed range, or 350km of real range in 38 minutes. That’s not particularly fast by modern EV standards though.

Whereas home AC charging in the Standard Range is limited to 6.6kW, the Long Range can accept up to 11kW of AC charge for a full top-up in about 8.5 hours. The Long Range can also accept three-phase power, whereas the Standard Range is limited to a single phase; that only makes a difference on three-phase chargers (all 11kW and 22kW chargers) but means you can take the maximum the car will accept, whereas the Standard Range will only take one-third of what’s on offer if it’s plugged into a three-phase outlet.

Charging the EV5 Air Long Range from a home powerpoint would take about 44 hours for Long Range variants. It’s worth noting the EV5 uses lithium-ferrous phosphate (LFP) batteries that are expected to have a longer lifespan than the nickel-manganese cobalt (NMC) batteries favoured by many car makers.

And whereas NMC batteries prefer to be topped up to 80 or 90 per cent for everyday driving - reserving full charges for road trips – LFP batteries can be charged to 100 per cent more regularly for reduced degradation.

It’s a twist of the drive selector mounted on the steering column to choose Drive or Reverse in the 2024 Kia EV5 Air Long Range.

While this variant is the slowest of all the EV5s, it’s far from sluggish. We drove it back-to-back with a Standard Range model and there was very little difference.

Sure, it may take a fraction longer to head towards triple figures when you keep your right foot planted, but it’s still thoroughly acceptable.

It’s helped by the easy access to torque, or pulling power. Press the throttle and something happens almost immediately. And without gear shifts to worry about it shuffles all 2054kg of SUV along nicely.

Paddles allow adjustment of the regenerative braking from coasting to a setting that means you won’t have to touch the brake pedal that often travelling downhill. There’s also a smart regen mode that keeps an eye on other traffic and hills, and adjusts accordingly.

But channelling all the drive through the front wheels keeps the 18-inch Nexen tyres busy. If you’re too eager out of an intersection or on a slippery surface it can trigger the traction control.

There’s also some torque steer, where the steering wheel fights against your hands in an effort to return to the central position. It’s not bad, but it niggles away and can occasionally be disconcerting. It’s one sign the EV5 is happier loping around the suburbs rather than attacking a scything mountain pass.

Sure, it’s competent, but the steering borders on lifeless and the harder you push the more aware you are the front tyres are working hard. Local suspension tuning has endowed it with respectable manners though.

The EV5 shuns big bumps nicely and looks after occupants well. It’s also quiet and refined, adding to decent comfort levels.

The 2024 Kia EV5 Air isn’t designed to go off-road. While Earth and GT-Line models get all-wheel drive, they’re light-duty explorers at best. And the Air is very much about on-road driving.

The 2024 Kia EV5 Air Long Range has a quasi industrial look to its cabin. While the layout works at its core, some of the materials could be improved.

The plethora of recycled plastics tick the environmental boxes but don’t offer the upmarket flavour of some other recent Kia cabins. Some silver and copper highlights do liven up the cabin, but there’s still a sense it’s been built to a price.

The mass of screens across the dash at least helps break up the grey. The Air comes exclusively with that grey finish rather than lighter hues available on other variants.

There’s no shortage of space, although the door pockets are small. Thankfully the centre console makes up for it with a couple of cupholders and a huge floor-mounted receptacle.

There’s an interesting set-up between the driver and front seat passenger. Instead of a traditional centre console there’s an extension of the padded seat with a pouch built in; it works nicely for a phone or set of keys. The arm rest above it is just that and does without additional storage.

Poke around the cabin, and there are some thoughtful additions, starting with a shopping hook that flips out of the dash. The backs of the front headrests also look after jackets, as do the hooks on the central B-pillars.

In the back there’s no shortage of headroom and leg space is also generous. Throw in good under-seat foot room and it makes for an adult-friendly environment. Again, door pockets are fairly small, but there’s a large drawer that slides out from the lower part of the centre console, adding to the hidey holes.

Air vents in the side pillars provide fresh air to those in the back, too, and there’s a folding centre arm rest with two cupholders.

The 513-litre boot has a flat floor with two segmented covers that open up to handy underfloor storage pods. Combined with two small binnacles in each corner and separate cubbyholes deeper in each side, it makes for a practical load area.

There’s also a 60/40 split-folding back seat to accommodate larger items. But the EV5 comes without a luggage cover, although adjustable bag hooks on either side reinforce that thoughtful design elsewhere in the cabin. Plus there’s a 67-litre frunk that to accommodate the charging cables and the tyre mobility kit.

The Kia EV5 Air Standard Range is the one that captures the headlines for its Tesla-beating price. It’s arguably the most serious contender yet to the top-selling Tesla Model Y.

The EV5 Air Long Range is a hefty $7220 leap over that price leader, and that dilutes some of the value, especially once you consider the skinny list of standard equipment.

But it does have an impressively long 555km of range, which is well ahead of key SUV rivals. And the EV5 Air is wrapped in a spacious body and features some useful extras in the cabin.

It’s also a comfortable and composed cruiser that pampers occupants more than the driver. But to get the value from the step up to the Long Range model you’d want to be taking it on road trips.

2024 Kia EV5 Air Long Range at a glance:
Price: $61,170 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Powertrain: Single permanent magnet synchronous motor
Output: 160kW/310Nm
Transmission: Single-speed reduction gear
Battery: 88.1kWh lithium-ferrous phosphate (LFP) lithium-ion
Range: 555km (WLTP)
Energy consumption: 18.0kWh/100km (WLTP)Safety rating: Not tested

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