Kia will launch 14 new electric vehicles by 2027

KUALA LUMPUR: In the coming years, electric vehicles will definitely be the name of the game with big automakers rolling out their ambitious electric vehicle roadmaps. One of them is Kia, which recently announced its 2030 strategy to become one of the top players in the electric vehicle space, autonomous driving, and connected car tech.

Kia plans to introduce no less than 14 purely electric vehicles by 2027 with a target of selling 1.2 million EVs by the end of the decade.

Included in the 14 upcoming Kia EVs are all sorts of vehicles with different shapes and sizes, be it entry-level cars, pickup trucks, or even large luxury SUVs. It aims to roll out two EVs every year.

The first on Kia's cards is the EV9, a flagship luxury SUV that will hit the roads sometime in the next year. The SUV will have a driving range of around 540 km and it will sprint from zero to 100 kmph in almost five seconds. As for charging speed, it will take six minutes to deliver a range of 100 km. 

The EV9 will be loaded with hi-end technology features, including the brand’s advanced AutoMode autonomous driving tech with a Highway Driving Pilot offering Level 3 self-driving capabilities on highways. Kia will be updating this system over the coming years with the ultimate aim of offering a fully-autonomous driving functionality. 

The automaker confirms that the models to be launched in major markets from 2026 onwards will also get this technology. It is targeting an adoption rate of around 80% which makes us think that Malaysia could also be on the cards. 

In the future, Kia also aims to develop a customisable EV platform called the skateboard. It will allow the Korean automaker to modify things according to the needs of the customer. The first vehicle based on this architecture will come in 2025.

To achieve the set sales target, the brand plans to deliver 160,000 EVs this year, increasing up to 807,000 units annually in 2026, and ultimately reaching 1.2 million units by the end of 2030.

Also read: Kia EV6 is scheduled to arrive in Malaysia in the second half of 2022