Kia EV3 review

Our opinion on the Kia EV3

Kia’s purpose-built electric cars are named in multiples of threes, but it doesn’t mean that the Kia EV3 is one-third the car of the flagship Kia EV9. While it doesn’t get the 800-volt architecture of the seven-seat SUV (or the Kia EV6 that sits between them), it doesn’t skimp on battery capacity or in-car tech. 

In terms of price and size, the EV3 looks similar to Kia’s existing entry-level electric car, the Niro EV. The Niro will continue in all three of its powertrain forms (hybrid, plug-in hybrid, and fully electric), but in the case of the latter, most buyers will find the EV3 the more attractive option in most areas, except for cabin space, where it falls short of the Niro EV. 

About the Kia EV3

Prices for the Kia EV3 start from around £33,000 for a model in Air trim and with a 58.3kWh battery that’s good for a range of 270 miles, according to the official figures. It’s an extra £3,000 to upgrade to the 81.4kWh battery and the longest range of any EV3, at 375 miles for an Air trim with 17-inch alloy wheels.

For around £3,500 extra, the EV3 GT Line ramps up the kit count, and another £3,500 on top of that gets you behind the wheel of the GT Line S, which is currently the top-of-the-range model. The GT-Line trim has an official range of 367 miles, while the GT-Line S, with more equipment, reduces this slightly to 362 miles. Both of which are still among the best of any EV currently on sale in the UK.

Standard equipment is generous even for the entry-level model, with LED lights all round, auto lights and wipers, heated door mirrors, keyless entry, heated seats, climate control, twin 12.3-inch digital displays, multiple USB-C ports, adaptive cruise control and 17-inch alloy wheels.

Moving up to GT-Line adds gloss black exterior details for the bumpers and wheelarches, wireless smartphone charging, sliding centre console storage, an electrically adjustable driver’s seat and a digital key, so you can use your phone to unlock the car.

The top-spec GT-Line S loads up the extras, with a sunroof, ventilated front seats and heated rear seats, a powered tailgate, a head-up display, Harman Kardon sound system, 360-degree cameras and remote parking.

At a later date, Kia will introduce the EV3 GT, a high-performance variant that is likely to have a twin-motor set-up for four-wheel drive, and will most probably have a shorter range than the launch models. At the moment, the current line-up is all front-wheel drive.

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Kia has kept things fairly simple with the EV3’s powertrain, with a choice of two battery capacities, both paired with the same motor. The range starts with a 58.3kWh model that offers a WLTP range of 270 miles, which will be enough for many buyers. Those who need to travel farther can opt for the 81.4kWh battery, which ups the range to as much as 375 miles – or 362 miles for the GT-Line S model – which makes it among the very best ranges in the class, officially at least. 

It’s not particularly fun to drive, but that doesn’t really matter for a car such as this. Kia has instead focused on comfort for the EV3, and it’s done a solid job of delivering on its aims.

As with most new cars, the EV3 has a range of drive modes. The throttle response offers a choice of three settings and the steering comes with two, but we struggled to find a reason to use them. 

While Sport mode makes the throttle feel sharper and more responsive, it doesn’t make the car any faster. The difference between Comfort and Eco, meanwhile, is almost impossible to feel. Likewise, the Sport steering setting adds a little weight, but the difference is so small that it hardly feels worth the effort. 

Performance, 0-60mph acceleration and top speed

The sole electric motor option currently available in the EV3 makes 201bhp and 283Nm of torque – not class-leading figures but more than good enough for a fairly compact family car. The entry-level model’s smaller, lighter battery pack means it’s actually the quicker car, albeit only just; it covers the 0-62mph benchmark in 7.5 seconds compared with the long-range model’s 7.7 seconds (or 7.9 seconds when fitted with 19-inch wheels). Even driving the pair back to back, that difference in performance is negligible.

Throttle response is well judged, making the EV3 feel lively without being too jumpy or hyperactive. A nice, linear shove gets Kia’s newcomer up to the national speed limit with ease, but we’d appreciate a little more urgency when attempting overtakes. 

Town driving, visibility and parking

EV makers have come up with many ways to let drivers adjust the rate of regenerative braking, and Kia’s iPedal set-up is one of the best. The EV3 has paddles on the steering wheel that can be adjusted on the fly to deliver just the right amount of deceleration. 

The options range from full coasting to one-pedal driving, with an adaptive mode that decides how much regen is needed based on road and traffic conditions. This, combined with well-weighted and accurate steering, makes the EV3 a very easy car to drive at low speeds, while the soft suspension does a decent job of soaking up most bumps.

B-road driving and handling

That cushioned suspension works well at higher speeds, too, where the EV3 still provides a fairly relaxed environment for occupants. The flip side is that the Kia isn’t particularly fun to drive; it’s not as lifeless as a Hyundai Kona, but the Renault Megane E-Tech and Cupra Born offer much more sharpness without too much compromise in comfort.

The softer set-up also means that any big compressions make the hefty kerbweight all too apparent, because the springs and dampers struggle to contain the forces they’re having to deal with. It’s a car that is geared towards driving at a more relaxed pace.

Motorway driving and long-distance comfort

The fairly soft set-up creates a relaxing motorway mile-muncher. While the performance tails off somewhat over 60mph, there’s still enough torque in the motor to make the EV3 feel completely at home at motorway speeds. Road noise becomes a little audible the faster you go, but it remains slightly more hushed than a Cupra Born, for example.

We’ll reserve our full judgement on the Kia EV3’s efficiency until we drive it in warmer weather on UK roads, but early impressions suggest that it will offer competitive running costs compared with its closest rivals.

Electric range, battery life and charge time

We’ve driven the EV3 in very different climates: once over the course of a chilly week during the UK winter, and another, much warmer encounter in South Korea. These drives highlighted just how much of an effect temperature has on the car’s range; we achieved 3.3 miles/kWh during a British cold snap, which translates into a 270-mile real-world range for the long-range model. That includes the power draw from the generous heating we used, and the lack of an efficient heat pump in all but the top-spec model no doubt had an adverse effect. If you want to mitigate the effects of the cabin heater, a heat pump is offered, but only as an option on the top-spec GT-Line S model. It adds around £1,000 to the car’s price.

But in the mid-20s temperatures in South Korea, we registered 4.6mi/kWh, increasing the range by more than 100 miles. Regardless of the weather, this Kia’s range is among the best for a car of this size and price. 

Officially, the longer range EV3 charges at 127.5kW, which is about average for this class. Due to that fairly chunky 81.4kWh battery, it means that a 10 to 80 per cent top-up takes around half an hour. The standard range 58.3kWh version has a lower peak charging speed, so despite having a smaller battery capacity, it’ll still take around 30 minutes to top up from 10 to 80 per cent state of charge.

If you have the luxury of being able to charge up at home using a typical 7.4kWh wallbox charger, it’ll take just under nine hours to fully recharge the 58.3kWh model, and around 12.5 hours to do the same with the 81.4kWh version.

Insurance groups

Insurance groups for the EV3 start in group 34 for the base Air model with the Standard Range battery, while Long Range cars sit in groups 36 to 38, depending on trim.

That’s a little high compared with the competition, with the Cupra Born and VW ID.3 both starting in group 24, while Kia’s own Niro EV starts in group 28.

Tax

The electric powertrain is sure to make the EV3 an appealing choice for company-car drivers, and slips into the three per cent Benefit-in-Kind (BiK) tax band.

EVs no longer enjoy free vehicle excise duty (VED) road tax, but at least a decent proportion of the EV3 range drops below the £40,000 threshold and avoids the luxury car tax surcharge. Our preferred GT-Line with the larger battery size trim can be ordered with the £625 metallic paint option because when you look at the P11D price (the price before the first year registration fee of £10 and the £55 registration fee), it just slips under this threshold. However, the top-of-the-range GT-Line S is above this limit, so you’ll have to pay an additional surcharge annually above the standard rate of VED from the second time the vehicle is taxed until it is six years old.

Electric cars can still drive into the London Congestion Charge for free, but only until 24 December 2025.

Depreciation

After three years or 36,000 miles, data sourced from CDL VIS predicts that the EV3 will retain between 45 to 50 per cent of its original price. That’s on par with the Volkswagen ID.3 and Cupra Born, and only a few percentage points behind more premium alternatives such as the Elettrica version of the Alfa Romeo Junior. 

For reference, one of the heaviest depreciators in the segment, the Vauxhall Mokka Electric, holds on to between 33 to 35 per cent of its original cost over the same period.

To get an accurate valuation for a specific model, check out our free car valuation tool... 

Colours are an entirely subjective thing, but it’s a bit of a shame that Kia has been so conservative with the EV3’s exterior palette when it’s such an interesting car to look at. While there is a green, a blue and a red, they’re a bit flat and dreary, and even then, most are limited to a specific trim level. Beside those options, it’s monochrome all the way. 

It’s a symptom of a wider problem that buyers are understandably reluctant to choose a colour with any personality in case it harms resale values. But we think the EV3’s edgy lines would really suit a more lively paint finish. 

The cabin is modern, well built and largely sound ergonomically, but it’s not an interior that will leave jaws on the floor in terms of design. There’s very little to find fault with, though.

Interior and dashboard design

The EV3 takes plenty of design inspiration from its bigger EV range mates, with the fundamental dashboard layout and a variety of details that will look familiar to anyone with experience of the Kia EV6 or Kia EV9. 

The largely uncluttered layout strikes a decent balance between physical controls and touchscreen interfaces. You might be hunting for the starter button at first, but it’s located on the column-mounted gear selector, which seems perfectly logical once you’re used to it. 

Higher-spec models get a sliding mini-table between the front seats, which pops out from under the armrest. Yet it feels too small to be particularly useful, and we’d prefer to have the extra storage space that Air trim has instead.

Materials and build quality

The cabin feels solidly put together, although some rivals feel just a little posher inside, because there are a few too many hard, scratchy plastics falling close to hand. 

Infotainment, sat-nav and stereo

When it comes to standard-fit tech, it’s hard to look beyond the entry-level Air trim. Among its standard features are 17-inch alloy wheels, front and rear parking sensors, a reversing camera, twin 12.3-inch displays, heated front seats and a heated steering wheel, sat-nav, plus Kia’s self-steering Highway Driving Assist 2.0 system.

If you want bigger 19-inch wheels and wireless smartphone charging, then the GT-Line is the model to have, while the GT-Line S adds more luxurious features such as front-seat cooling, rear-seat heating, a 360-degree parking camera, a head-up display and a beefier sound system from Harman Kardon. 

All models get a small 5.3-inch touch panel for the climate controls, located between the main digital displays. It’s a bit irritating to use, not least because the panel is largely obstructed by the steering wheel from the driver’s seat. Fortunately, the EV3 reserves a few key physical buttons for temperature and fan speed on the dashboard, so we ended up using those instead.

While the EV3’s infotainment system isn’t as bold or as colourful as the systems found in some rivals, for the most part the layout is logical and easy to work out. The one exception to this rule is the driver-assistance menu, where the sub-menus are scattered around the image of a car, when a simple list would be much easier to figure out. 

Loading times are reasonable, if not class leading, but for the most part, Kia has taken a sensible approach with the infotainment that shouldn’t irritate too many users.

The interior space of the Kia EV3 isn’t the best in the segment, but the shortfall in rear passenger space has been put towards the boot, which is generous for a car of the EV3’s size.

Dimensions and size

The Kia EV3 is shorter than the firm’s Niro, but it’s wider and taller, and the use of a dedicated EV platform means that the EV3 offers more elbow room than that car. The EV3 is also slightly shorter than a Cupra Born, but is wider to help with passenger space.

Driving position, seats & space in the front

A fairly high driving position combined with a low, flat dashboard means that forward visibility is better than in some of the Kia’s competitors. While there’s a wide range of adjustment for the seats and the steering wheel, it’s not quite as much as you would get from the Volkswagen Group stablemates, the Cupra Born and Volkswagen ID.3. 

Big door mirrors make all-around visibility strong, too, while pop-out cup-holders, a large smartphone charging tray and a roomy glovebox also make the EV3 impressive when it comes to storage in the cabin.

Seats & space in the back

Against the tape measure, the EV3 is reasonably spacious, with headroom in particular scoring well. However, while the floor is flat, it’s quite high relative to the seat base, which means that taller people will find the rear bench a little short on under-thigh support. The back doors also open wide, so it’s easy to wiggle even the bulkiest of child seats into the ISOFIX points.

Boot space

A 460-litre boot capacity is impressive for a car in this class, and when the boot floor is raised to its higher position, it creates a level area from the opening right through to the rear seat backs when they’re folded flat. With them down, the overall volume climbs to 1,250 litres.

Thanks to an additional 25 litres of storage space under the bonnet, it’s also possible to store the Kia’s charging cables separately from the rest of your luggage.

Kia finished third overall in our 2024 Driver Power customer satisfaction survey. Owners loved their cars’ infotainment tech, value for money, running costs and practicality, which are all characteristics that the EV3 should be able to deliver on.

The EV3 has received two ratings from Euro NCAP based on whether the car comes with or without the Safety Pack, which includes a more advanced emergency braking system that better recognises if you’re likely to cross into the path of an oncoming vehicle. For cars without, the EV3 is a four-star car, while those with get the maximum five-star rating. Even with a five-star rating, the Volvo EX30 did better in all areas, while the Ford Explorer did better in the adult occupant, child occupant, and vulnerable road user categories. 

All UK EV3s come very well equipped with safety assistance technology, including blindspot assistance, adaptive cruise control, lane keep assistance with lane centring technology, rear cross traffic alert, and a safe exit system that works with blindspot monitoring to help prevent you from opening your door into the path of oncoming vehicles such as cyclists.

At the top of the range, the GT-Line S model adds some innovative tech, such as remote parking, where you can get out of the car and guide it into or out of a parking space while standing next to the car. This model is also the only version to get a 360-degree camera system and parking collision avoidance.

• Best buy: Kia EV3 81.4kWh GT-Line

While the entry-level Air trim provides all the basics you’d need and might be worthwhile if you plan on only doing short urban commuting, we’d recommend the mid-range GT-Line trim. It features a slightly more comfortable driver’s seat with electric adjustment and lumbar support, as well as a handy wireless phone charging pad. This trim level also has better residual values than the entry-level Air. We’d also say that the larger capacity 81.4kWh battery might be a more desirable option come resale time because it has a bit more range for those looking to drive long distances every so often.

All Kias come with a seven-year warranty, which is among the longest available from any brand in the UK without any servicing requirements necessary. It’s also transferable to subsequent owners if the first sells the car on or trades it in at the end of a finance package. In addition to this, the EV3’s battery is covered by an eight-year/100,000-mile warranty, which guarantees the pack will be capable of maintaining at least 70 per cent of its original capacity once it reaches that time or distance.

The EV3 is available with a three-year/ 30,000-mile service plan, which costs around £420 at the time of writing. This sum can either be paid in full up front, or interest-free over the course of 10 months.

Alternatives

The size of the Kia EV3 means it’s difficult to pigeonhole it against rivals. There aren’t many compact electric SUVs at this price point, with most alternatives being smaller and with a shorter range. Cars that match its configuration include the Volkswagen ID.3, Cupra Born and Skoda Elroq – all of which use the same running gear – and the Volvo EX30. More premium options include the Jeep Avenger and Alfa Romeo Junior, while the Renault Megane E-Tech is also worth looking at. The EV3’s price point means it covers the Ford Puma Gen-E and entry-level versions of the Ford Explorer, too.

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Kia EV3 pictures

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