New Kia EV6: updated battery specs, UK pricing and prototype drive

• New 84kWh battery
• Fresh styling with ‘Star Map’ headlights
• Costs from £45,575

Three years on from its launch, the Kia EV6 has received a mid-life facelift to keep it fighting fit for 2024 and beyond. The large electric hatchback was the first dedicated EV from the South Korean brand, preceding the Kia EV9 SUV and the new EV3. This new facelift, complete with a bigger battery, revised styling and some cabin updates, should bring the EV6 up to date with those models and keep it competitive in an ever-growing market of electric family cars.

UK customers can place an order now for the new Kia EV6, with prices kicking off from £45,575 for the entry-level model, rising to nearly £54,000 for the EV6 GT-Line S. The first examples will reach UK dealerships later this year, while the performance-focused EV6 GT is scheduled to receive the same updates in 2025. We’ve had a chance to drive a pre-production model of the updated EV6, and it looks to improve upon an already excellent electric car package. 

What’s new for the updated Kia EV6?

At first glance, the new front-end styling appears to be the biggest change for the 2024 Kia EV6. Gone are the wide headlights of the outgoing car, replaced by a pair of pencil-thin daytime-running lights surrounding the main units. It’s a design that Kia has dubbed ‘Star Map Signature Lighting’, visually linking the EV6 to the EV9 and the facelifted Sorento.

The light bar across the rear has been tweaked, too, now with a slightly different pattern to the LED arrangement. Both the front and rear bumpers have been redesigned with a ‘wing-shaped’ appearance, while new alloy wheel designs up to 20 inches complete the refreshed styling.

The changes are fairly minor inside, starting with the new curved displays on the dashboard. There’s a 12.3-inch screen for infotainment alongside one for the driver as before, although they’re now contained within a new housing and run Kia’s latest software. Unlike the Kia EV9, the EV6 doesn’t get the small 5.3-inch touchscreen for climate controls between the two main displays, but Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are now wireless.

Tech-aficionados will be most intrigued by the new fingerprint scanner fitted to the EV6’s centre console. Much like a smartphone, the scanner reads your fingerprint and can apply your individual driver settings for you automatically.

Under the skin, the EV6 gets a new 86kWh battery, up from 77.4kWh of the outgoing model. It’s the same unit found in the newly-facelifted Hyundai Ioniq 5 – the Kia EV6’s sister car. As a result, range has increased across the lineup; rear-wheel drive EV6 Air and GT-Line models can travel up to 361 miles on a charge, while the rear-wheel drive GT-Line S manages 347 miles.

The dual-motor, four-wheel drive EV6 puts out more power than the rear-wheel drive car – 320bhp versus 225bhp – but range suffers marginally. GT-Line and GT-Line S models achieve 339 and 324 miles on a charge, respectively. Only GT-Line S models are available with an efficiency-boosting heat pump, but it’ll cost you £950. Importantly, charging times have improved for all models, with a 10 to 80% top up taking as little as 18 minutes if you can find a suitable rapid charger.

How much does the updated Kia EV6 cost and when can I buy one?

Prices for the entry-level Kia EV6 Air start from £45,575, rising to £48,575 for GT-Line trim. The latter brings adaptive LED headlights, front ‘relaxation’ seats, faux-leather upholstery, a wireless phone charger and tweaked exterior styling, on top of the standard car’s generous kit list. EV6s in GT-Line trim can be ordered with the dual-motor setup, bumping its starting price up to £52,075.

The EV6 GT-Line S sits at the top of the regular EV6 range – the pricier EV6 GT stands separately as its own performance-focused model. It costs from £53,675 – £57,175 for the four-wheel drive model – and packs every available option, including a 360-degree parking camera, a sunroof, heated outer rear seats, a head-up display, the fingerprint scanner and more.

UK customers can place an order now, with the first deliveries scheduled for the coming weeks.

Updated Kia EV6 prototype drive – Steve Sutcliffe

Before the new Kia EV6 hits showrooms, we were given a chance to drive a pre-production model in GT-Line S trim. As the changes for this mid-life update are largely cosmetic, the driving experience is much the same as before – but that’s no bad thing.

Approaching the new EV6, its size remains just as apparent. It’s a big car, and it’s a shame that size doesn’t translate to a particularly roomy interior – it’s not as spacious as the Hyundai Ioniq 5 or Tesla Model Y. That said, there’s still a lot to like in the refreshed cabin, particularly the new infotainment operating system which is much faster than before. The new ‘sound enhancer’ system that pumps fake noise through the car’s speakers works well, but it can be switched off entirely if that’s not your thing.

Once you set off, the Kia EV6 feels sportier than the Hyundai Ioniq 5 despite their shared underpinnings, thanks to some chassis tweaking by the engineers in South Korea. Body movements are well controlled and the steering is responsive, but the way the EV6 behaves can change entirely based on the selected driving mode. Eco mode felt very docile, while the accelerator in Sport mode felt a bit too sensitive. Normal mode is a happy middle ground and the throttle response feels well judged for the 320bhp on tap.

Where the EV6 stumbles is ride quality, a sacrifice made to achieve the taught body control. It’s perhaps exacerbated by the large 20-inch wheels fitted to the GT-Line S model, which don’t do anything to help overall refinement. We suspect the smaller wheels fitted to lesser trim levels will improve things somewhat, but the EV6 isn’t as comfort-focused as the Ioniq 5.

The tweaks for this mid-life facelift haven’t reinvented the EV6, but they’ve added some neat improvements in a few areas that many buyers will appreciate. The longer range is very welcome, and should go some way to keep the EV6 right at the forefront of the family EV market.

Read more about our favourite electric cars by reading our top 10 list of the best EVs