Kia EV9 2023 Review – International

Pricing for the 2023 Kia EV9 hasn’t been announced yet but the company has said it will not slide in under the luxury car tax limit, which for the 2023/24 financial year is $89,332 before registration and stamp duty.

So don’t expect to be paying any less than $100,000 for a Kia EV9 once you get it on the road.

That circa-$100,000 ask will be for the entry-level Kia EV9 Air, which will get a single 160kW/350Nm electric motor driving the rear wheels and a 76.1kWh battery pack for 418km of range (WLTP).

While a six-seat configuration is available overseas, Australia will exclusively take the seven-seat layout.

The mid-grade EV9 Earth looks set to get a dual-motor/all-wheel drive system and larger 99.8kWh battery pack that will increase the driving range to about 470km.

Sitting at the top of the Kia EV9 range – at least until the circa-2025 arrival of a high-performance GT model – is the GT-Line, which looks set to close around $130,000 plus ORCs.

Equipment levels haven’t been confirmed yet but expect the 2023 Kia EV9 Air to run on 19-inch alloy wheels and get cloth trim on the seats as well as an unbranded eight-speaker sound system.

Stepping up to the mid-grade EV9 Earth is likely to mean a step up to 20-inch wheels as well as more equipment, although exactly what that feature set will look like is yet to be confirmed.

The EV9 GT-Line will get 21-inch wheels, dual sunroofs, electrically adjusted front seats and a 14-speaker Meridian sound system.

It will also get a digital key, which allows you to use your phone as a key and send an encrypted key to friends’ phones; that digital key feature could also be available on other EV9 variants.

The EV9 will be covered by Kia’s seven-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty, which also covers the high-voltage battery pack up to 150,000km.

Service intervals and pricing is yet to be announced, but Kia says they will be similar to the one-year/15,000km intervals for the Kia EV6.

The 2023 Kia EV9 comes loaded with safety tech, starting with nine airbags – dual front airbags, side airbags to cover each door, a centre front airbag and side curtains covering all three rows.

Australia will, however, miss out on the driver’s knee airbag offered overseas.

There are seatbelt reminders for all seven seats as well as the availability of a 360-degree camera and a driver monitor to detect drowsiness.

There’s also speed sign recognition, lane keep assist with self-steering, blind spot warning and rear cross traffic alert.

Autonomous emergency braking (AEB), rear occupant detection and a safe exit assist system completes the solid safety package.

The Kia EV9 hasn’t been NCAP tested yet, but the company says it is targeting the maximum five stars.

The 2023 Kia EV9 gets a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster and a 12.3-inch central touch-screen. In between them is a 5.0-inch digital touch-screen to control the ventilation system.

The tech in the EV9 has over-the-air (OTA) software functionality, which the company says is predominantly about keeping the software fresh and being able to address issues remotely.

It also allows access to the Kia Connect Store, where there will be a handful of upgrades and subscriptions available, although exactly which ones are relevant to Australia is yet to be confirmed.

Options include a Boost feature for AWD models, taking the peak torque from 600Nm to 700Nm. Overseas markets will also get different patterns for the “digital tiger face” lighting in the grille (something that won’t initially be offered in Australia).

Fingerprint recognition will also be available for configuring driver settings and starting the vehicle, although Australians won’t get access to the in-car payment system linked to that identification method.

Around the cabin are various USB-C ports. One of the ports up front allows you to switch between data and power or power only. There are also USB-C power outlets in the sides of the front seats (for access for those in the middle row) and alongside each of the third-row seats.

The EV9 is the first Kia with a digital key that uses the mobile phone network to allow you to configure your phone as the vehicle key. The company says that when you are out of range it will use either near-field communication (NFC) or Bluetooth to communicate with the car.

The EV9 also has a vehicle-to-load (V2L) function that can power regular AC devices such as laptops and camp gear or lights. It could also be used to charge another EV, providing up to 3.68kW of power.

There’s also vehicle-to-grid (V2G) capability, which allows the car to feed excess electricity back to the national grid. However, V2G won’t originally be offered in Australia, instead arriving later as part of an OTA software update.

The 2023 Kia EV9 is available with a single-motor/rear-wheel drive or dual-motor/all-wheel drive layout.

The RWD is available with a 76.1kWh battery pack or a 99.8kWh Long Range configuration. That larger battery is all that’s available with the AWD models.

The EV9 RWD Standard Range makes 160kW and 350Nm for a 0-100km/h time of 8.2 seconds.

Oddly, the Long Range makes slightly less power, at 150kW, while maintaining the same 350Nm peak. Kia says it’s because the bigger battery runs at a lower voltage (552V versus the 632V). So the EV9 RWD Long Range makes 150kW/350Nm, enough to complete the benchmark 0-100km/h in 9.4 seconds. While having 10kW less partially affects the acceleration, it’s the additional couple of hundred kilograms of battery pack that has the bigger impact.

Not that it’s relevant to the Australia market, because it appears we won’t be getting that single-motor/big-battery combination.

The EV9 AWD adds another identical electric motor to the front axle and pairs it with that larger 99.8kWh battery.

The combined outputs are 283kW and 600Nm, or 700Nm with the available Boost mode.

The 2023 Kia EV9 Air is claimed to travel 418km between charges, according to the WLTP standard.

That same rear-drive powertrain can get up to 541km of range using the larger 99.8kW battery, a combination that we likely won’t get here.

Then there’s the dual-motor system with the 99.8kWh battery, which Kia says has a WLTP range of 497km.

However, that is when running on 19-inch wheels. It’s likely the dual-motor vehicles in Australia will get 20- or 21-inch wheels, which Kia says drops the EV range to about 470km.

The 2023 Kia EV9 is a big car and feels it. The dual-motor/all-wheel drive model we drove at the international launch tips the scales at 2634kg, so more than a Toyota LandCruiser.

But 285mm-wide 21-inch Michelin tyres have ample grip, ensuring surefooted cornering. Nicely weighted steering adds to the confidence.

The ride is nicely supple over big bumps and there’s an elegance to the way it settles at speed.

Less impressive is the way those low-profile tyres deal with sharp imperfections. It means low speeds over patchy surfaces can get jiggly and, occasionally, harsh.

However, Kia Australia is currently developing its own suspension tune for the EV9, so the cars we’ll get will hopefully address some of that.

There’s no shortage of thrust from the electric drivetrain, either. Our cars had the optional Boost mode, which translates to 283kW and 700Nm.

While Eco mode feels cruisy and a tad dull, selecting Normal unleashes the full 700Nm. It’s the most balanced mode for everyday driving.

Sport sharpens the throttle response but is a tad too sensitive, darting forward on even minor brushes of the accelerator pedal. It also tightens the bolsters for the driver’s seat and lowers the central cushion to position the driver lower.

There’s a trio of selectable regenerative modes accessed via steering wheel paddles. They range from a coast mode to moderate regen. Or you can select Auto, which provides more aggressive regen when a vehicle in front slows; the challenge is moderating what the car is doing autonomously with what you think you should be doing with your right foot.

The 2023 Kia EV9 is not designed as an off-roader. But within its drive mode menus are programs to tailor the traction control to Snow, Mud and Sand.

We very briefly drove the EV9 on sand and it trudged around effortlessly. But we wouldn’t recommend venturing far beyond light dirt tracks, the occasional loose surface and snow.

The 2023 Kia EV9 is officially an upper-large SUV. It’s 5010mm long, 1980mm wide and 1755mm high. That places it between a Nissan Patrol and Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series in overall dimensions, although the wheelbase of 3100mm outstretches them both.

Against the tape measure it also compares favourably with the upcoming Mercedes-Benz EQS SUV and Polestar 3.

So, it’s a big car and it feels it in the cabin. There’s ample space between those up front and fitting three adults alongside each other is easily achievable in the middle row.

Large adults can even slot into the third row and won’t have an issue with the generous headroom. However, they’ll be trading off knee-space with those in the middle row (the middle bench slides).

The illuminated Kia badge on the steering wheel tells you a bit about the effort put into the EV9 with attention to detail. Ambient lighting behind the semi-floating dash panel and modern materials – including mesh front head restraints – make for a classy combination.

The touchpad buttons integrated into the strip across the dash (it’s available in various finishes, including a wood-look) work well for quickly selecting main menus on the touch-screen.

With all seven seats in use, Kia claims 571 litres of luggage space, although it doesn’t look as generous as that. Some of that storage is in the ‘frunk’ under the bonnet.

The volume expands to 2320 litres if you fold the middle and back rows, turning the EV9 into a two-seater.

The 2023 Kia EV9 delivers on substance and space but it comes at a price tag not typically associated with mainstream brands.

The promise of lower running costs will partially offset that, as will the impressive driving credentials and long list of useful tech.

For those prepared to look beyond the badge they will be rewarded with an engaging and functional family SUV that also delivers on big performance.

2023 Kia EV9 GT-Line AWD at a glance:
Price: $130,000 estimated (plus on-road costs)
Available: Fourth quarter 2023
Powertrain: Two permanent magnet synchronous motors
Output: 283kW/600Nm (700Nm with Boost mode)
Transmission: Single-speed reduction gear
Battery: 99.8kWh NMC lithium-ion
Range: 470km approx (WLTP)
Energy consumption: 25kWh/100km approx (WLTP)
Safety rating: Not tested