Kia EV5 Earth 2025 Review

There are four models in the 2025 Kia EV5 range starting with the $64,700 plus on-road costs ($68,990 drive-away) Earth model-grade we're testing here. It is both the cheapest dual motor and second most expensive model in the line-up behind the $71,770 plus ORCs GT-Line ($75,990 drive-away).

The cheapest model in the Kia EV5 line-up is the entry-level EV5 Air Standard Range ($56,770 plus ORCs or drive-away) followed by the Air Long Range ($61,170 plus ORCs or $63,990 drive-away) and like the EV5 Earth these variants are available now.

The GT-Line won’t roll out till later in 2024.

The Kia EV5 pricing structure qualifies the EV5 for the fringe benefits tax or FBT exemption and is intentionally positioned to undercut Australia’s dominant electric SUV, the Tesla Model Y.

The specific opposition for the Earth is the Model Y Long Range All Wheel Drive that starts at $69,900 plus on-road costs. So the EV5 has the advantage there.

For the record, the cheapest Tesla Model Y costs $55,900 before on-road costs or around $61,000 drive-away, meaning the Kia offers sharper drive-away pricing.

But against orthodox family SUVs like the popular Toyota RAV4 Hybrid – or even Kia’s own excellent Kia Sportage – the EV5 is at a substantial price disadvantage.

It’s really the additional rear motor and pump-up in power and torque rather than heaps of extra equipment that distinguishes the Earth from the Air models.

The Earth’s combined output is 230kW/480Nm versus the Air’s 160kW/310Nm. That helps the 0-100km/h drop from 8.5 to 6.1 seconds, so performance is significantly better.

Equipment-wise the Earth replaces 18-inch alloys with 19s and adds privacy glass and a powered tailgate. Inside it drops cloth from its artificial leather seat trim.

Other stuff is shared: LED auto headlights, a four-way powered driver’s seat with massaging, a three-screen new generation infotainment display stitched together behind a single piece of glass, satellite-navigation, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto (wired and wireless) AM-FM and digital radio bands, six-speaker audio and dual-zone climate control.

All EV5s get four USB-Cs – two front and two rear – but only the GT-Line gets wireless phone charging.

Other GT-Line exclusives include 20-inch alloy wheels, a panoramic sunroof, heated and ventilated front seats, heated rear seats, an eight-speaker Harman/Kardon stereo, a head up display, remote smart parking and a blind spot view monitor that pops up in the digital driver's display when the indicators engage.

A cool EV5 techno feature is vehicle to load (V2L), which can power up tools, laptops, camping gear, appliances and the like via a three-pin plug in the boot or via an external adaptor.

The EV5 also comes with the Kia Connect smartphone app so you can monitor your car remotely. It’s capable of over the air updates as well.

There’s a comprehensive safety suite starting with autonomous emergency braking with pedestrian, cyclist, junction turning, crossing, direct and oncoming lane change detection.

To that you can add adaptive cruise control, lane keeping and following assistance, blind spot and rear cross traffic warning and avoidance and various forms of monitoring – traffic signs, overspeed and driver attention.

The EV5 Earth includes seven airbags, a reversing camera and front and rear parking sensors. Only the GT-Line gets a 360-degree surround-view overhead camera system.

No EV5 gets a spare tyre either (boo hiss!!!).

Metallic paint is a $520 option and two-tone paint is a $695 option for the GT-Line.

The EV5 range comes with the usual seven-year/unlimited kilometre Kia warranty, plus seven year/150,000km battery warranty. Service intervals are 12 months/15,000km and the capped price servicing currently (October 2024) rolls out at $980 for three years, $1535 for five years and $2431 for seven years.

The first thing to say is we didn’t have any steering or wheel balance issues with the Kia EV5 Earth. So the fixes seem to have worked.

It’s not the driving that’s makes the most profound first impression about the EV5 anyway – it’s the space utilisation.

It looks like a brick on wheels – or if you prefer a mini-me Kia EV9 - because it’s all about maximising room to sit passengers and store stuff inside.

That becomes very much apparent in the rear seat.

It’s generously open and airy back there for two tall passengers and three at a squeeze. It’s great how they get looked after with lots of places to stow stuff including a slide-out storage box hidden in the base of the centre console.

There are also air-con vents in the B-pillars, USB-C outlets in the middle of the front seatbacks and a recline function for the rear seatbacks.

Head to the boot and there’s a reasonably large 513 litres of space on offer before the seats are folded flat into the floor, then it expands to 1713 litres. The frunk adds a useable 25 litres – enough for a backpack or a couple of laptop bags.

Nice touches in the boot include storage nooks and crannies on the sides and under the floor, adjustable luggage hooks and movable floor boards that enable luggage to be more securely transported.

Up-front there are more good ideas; a double-stacker tray between the seats provides plenty of room for phones, wallets etc. Meanwhile, an extension of the passenger-side cushion suggests the bench seat has made a return, but instead it houses a sleeve to securely stow phone and keys.

The family-orientation of the EV5 continues in the way it drives.

There is a real emphasis on comfort and quietness here. It rides well at any speed, which is a sound achievement considering the quoted 2198kg tare weight and low-ish profile (read: sporty) tyres.

As is normal for Kia models, the EV5 has its own localised suspension and steering tune and, based on our experience at the launch, the dual motor is a better balanced and more enjoyable drive than the single motor, which is prone to front-wheel drive steering wheel tug (torque steer) under acceleration and deflection over bumps (kick back).

The powertrain has smooth, strong acceleration from tip-in throttle to well beyond 100km/h. So it’s great around town and very good for overtaking.

It’s worth noting there’s more than enough grunt in the most energy-saving eco mode, but that runs the car almost exclusively in front-wheel drive.

Normal mode is punchy and Sport is a bit aggro and both are all-wheel drive. Which means the juice gets drained quicker.

Having said that, the 88.1kWh LFP (lithium iron phosphate) battery pack impresses in how quickly it claws back energy.

The EV5 Earth has driver-selectable regenerative braking that escalates all the way to a true one-pedal mode. But the set and forget 'auto' mode works very well.

So let’s keep talking about the 2025 Kia EV5 Earth’s battery pack, because the flipside of that regenerative ability is merely passable range and recharging speed.

A good long drive in the EV5 Earth and time on some ultra-fast DC chargers shows it lacks Tesla-like powertrain efficiency.

The consumption claim is 20.1kWh/100km (WLTP), which is okay.

But the reality is more like 23-25kWh/100km in the driving we conducted. The range claim is 500km but based on our experiences, 350-400km is about as far as you safely bet on without hypermiling.

Having said that, we haven’t driven the EV5 Earth in endless urban stop-start traffic, which should be where it’s at its most economic.

And recharging? The battery pack is rated at a maximum recharge rate of 140kW (and 11kW AC). We actually saw 150kW during one recharging session starting with a 15 per cent state of charge. But another time on another 350kW DC fast-charger starting with the same state of charge (SOC) it never climbed over 119kW.

Compare that with the 200kW-plus that many EVs including the dual motor Model Y offer and it's slightly behind the eight ball.

The EV5 is limited in part because it has a 400-volt electronic architecture which slows its charging rate. But LFP does charge faster than NMC (lithium-ion) and you can charge to 100 per cent without hurting battery life, unlike NMC. So it’s swings and roundabouts.

For all the space in the EV5 Earth and the clever storage ideas, the interior still comes across a bit low-rent for a $70,0000 car. There are lots of hard surfaces and that’s a reflection of how much of the budget the battery pack swallows.

The upside is many of the trims are environmentally friendly-ish.

Thankfully, there are controls that sit on those surfaces to help with basics like air-con and volume adjustment. But it doesn’t help that the primary climate control screen is hidden from the driver by steering wheel.

Also, haptic touch spots on the dashboard can be triggered accidentally as you reach across them to tap the screen.

That – tapping the screen – sadly happens often, because the EV5 still has the endlessly annoying overspeed and driver attention bing-bongs and audio alerts that have to be switched off each time the EV5 is started. This is an issue faced by many modern cars aiming for a five-star ANCAP rating.

The long press fix that is making its way through Hyundai-Kia’s phalanx of models should eventually reach the EV5.

The Kia EV5 Earth appears to have overcome its delayed to start to arrive in Australia as a pretty convincing electric family SUV.

It’s spacious, comfortable to ride in and well-appointed. The powertrain has its positives – acceleration strength, ease of use and quietness – while its range and efficiency are less impressive.

Against the Model Y the EV5 is price-competitive, so it seems the mighty Tesla has some serious competition.

But the chances of coaxing buyers out of orthodox SUVs would seem to be limited at this money. The Kia EV5 certainly is another step in the right direction for EVs, but maybe not the giant leap we hoped for.

2025 Kia EV5 Earth at a glance:
Price: $64,700 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Powertrain: Two permanent magnet synchronous motors
Output: 230kW/480Nm
Transmission: Single-speed reduction gear
Battery: 88.1kWh lithium iron phosphate (LFP)
Range: 500km (WLTP)
Energy consumption: 20.1kWh/100km (WLTP)
Safety rating: Not tested

For everything you auto know about EVs, listen to carsales' Watts Under the Bonnet: the electric car podcast

Join the conversation at our Facebook page
Or email us at editor@carsales.com.au