Kia EV6 electric car officially launched in South Korea

South Korean automaker Kia Motor is launching its EV6 sedan electric vehicle in the domestic market, ahead of its overseas launch later this year.

Quoted by Yonhap, Tuesday, August 3, 2021, EV6 is Kia's first model embedded with a global-electric modular platform (E-GMP) only electric vehicles owned by Hyundai Motor Group.

Kia EV6 electric car

Kia has received more than 30,000 bookings for the EV6 in the domestic market, and a combined 8,800 bookings in Europe and the United States, the company said.

The maker of the K5 sedan and Sorento SUV aims to sell 13,000 units of zero-emission models in their home regions and 17,000 units in overseas markets this year.

Kia EV6 is priced at 47 million won-57 million won (Rp585 million-Rp710 million) in Korea. With government subsidies, the car can be purchased for under 40 million won ($20 million).

This model is available in two types of battery packs, namely the standard 58 kilowatt hour (kWh) battery pack and the 77.4 kWh long-range battery. The 58 kWh and 77.4 kWh models can travel up to 370 kilometers and 475 km, respectively, on a single charge.

Kia also plans to introduce sedans, SUVs and multipurpose vehicles based on a new electric vehicle platform over the next seven years.

They plan to add to the lineup of electric vehicles with 11 models, including seven based on the E-GMP, by 2025.

With a strengthened lineup of electric vehicles, Kia aims to reach a 6.6 percent market share of global battery-powered electric vehicles by 2025 and global annual sales of 500,000 units by 2026.

Kia's electric vehicle market share is currently unavailable as their electric vehicle sales accounted for only 1 percent of overall sales in 2019.

In April, Kia's larger affiliate Hyundai Motor Co. unveiled an all-electric Ioniq 5 model equipped with the E-GMP platform.

Hyundai plans to introduce the Ioniq 6 next year and the ioniq 7 large SUV in 2024. Hyundai will begin using alphanumeric names like its larger rivals, such as BMW, whose model was named the No. 1-8 Series.