Kia has released a teaser image of its upcoming EV9 concept to preview a production model that will likely be unveiled in 2023.
The teaser image released on Twitter shows an outline of the SUV that appears to be slightly larger than a Sorento and could even be as large as the eight-seat Telluride sold in the US.
The teaser image appears to show off an SUV around the same size as the Telluride sold in the US
Set to be unveiled at the LA Motor Show on Thursday, November 11, the EV9 is expected to seat at least seven people and sit above the EV6 midsize SUV in the range.
The once non-existent EV large SUV segment is now populated by enticing options such as the Rivian R1S and Tesla Model X – and Kia won’t be caught lagging behind.
Kia announced in December 2020 that it would launch seven new electric vehicles before 2027, with all sitting on the dedicated EV platform known internally as E-GMP.
The EV9 will likely feature a similar specification to the Ioniq 7 from its sister brand Hyundai but that model is also yet to be unveiled in production form.
The EV9 large SUV will almost certainly sit on the e-GMP platform that provides up to 510km of range in other models
Despite the added difficulties of engineering a large SUV, Kia has plenty of hardware at its disposal that will not only help the EV9 move quickly but also go the distance.
This has been seen in the EV6 which can travel up to 510km (WLTP) on a single charge when fitted with a single rear motor and the larger 72.6kWh lithium-ion battery pack.
The ballistic dual-motor setup of the EV6 helps it slingshot from 0-100km/h in 3.5 seconds
Kia also offers the EV6 GT as a performance option that uses two motors that produce 430kW of power and 740Nm of torque to accelerate from 0-100km/h in 3.5 seconds.
The e-GMP platform is also capable of 350kW charging, providing the ability to charge the battery from 10-80 per cent in 18 minutes.
Official details will have to wait until the EV9’s full reveal but it’s safe to say the end product isn’t likely to be boring.