Kia EV4 GT-Line 2026 review

The recent fifth addition to Kia Australia’s local EV-branded electric line-up, the EV4, is arguably the boldest spin on the marque’s electro-futurist design language yet.

And on evidence around the Chasing Cars traps, its styling is perhaps the most polarising talking point.

Pure allure or a barrier to entry? That depends on the eye of the beholder.

But it arrived in local showrooms in January in, one opines, its more confronting ‘long-tail’ sedan form, that slightly less-jarring hatchback option unconfirmed for Aussie release if one up for consideration.

It’s Korean built like its excellent, pricier, 800-volt, big brother EV6 crossover, if built of a 400-volt version of the E-GMP architecture like the dumpy midsize Chinese-sourced EV5 SUV ostensibly sat between the two, the EV4 kicking off from $49,990 list.

Our test subject here, though, is the ultimate, big-battery guise, the flagship GT-Line, asking from $64,690 list. Our Snow White Pearl (adds $600) example clocks in at around $70,500 driveaway in NSW.  

Beneath the chiselled nose and sucked-lozenge rump, though, are fairly conventional, 400-volt, front-driven electric underpinnings and credentials fit enough on paper to scrap closely enough with popular medium electric sedan mainstays such as Tesla Model 3 and BYD Seal.  

Its ‘long-range’ NCM battery is 81.4kWh (up from the base Air’s 58.3kWh unit), promising 612km of driving range (up from Air’s 456km claim). All three variants – including the middling Earth ($59,190) – are dragged around by the front axle via a 150kW and 283Nm single electric motor.

At 7.8 seconds 0-100km/h claimed, the GT-Line is no rocketship – perhaps embarrassingly, the vastly cheaper base Air is four-tenths quicker according to the form guide. The Air is also two minutes quicker to ‘fast charge’ 10-80 percent the the big battery versions, or 29 minutes plays a reasonably slovenly 31min.

So what fundamentally separates the three grades are features and niceties.

All versions fit LED exterior lighting, dual 12.3-inch driver/media displays, dual-zone climate, proprietary sat-nav and large swag of electronic driver convenience and safety assists.

The Earth steps up to 19-inch wheels (from 17s), heated faux leather/cloth seats, and niceties such as an electrochromatic mirror and V2L internal and external device power. 

Our GT-Line piles on the goodies, including premium projector LED headlights, full faux leather seating, eight-way power for both front buckets, power flush door handles, a specific three-spoke wheel, an HUD, wireless phone charging, a sunroof, eight-speaker Harman/Kardon audio and Blind Spot View Monitoring.

The EV4 is covered by Kia Australia’s seven-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty, with eights and 150,000km on the battery.

Servicing is $1308 for a prepaid five-year/75,000km bundle, over $1000 cheaper than an EV5 GT-Line ($2389), with 12-month/15,000km intervals between visits!  

How does the GT-Line drive?

Having come to the EV4 GT-Line experience directly from a week in the rather excellent EV6 GT-Line, comparisons are unavoidable. 

The nutshell observation? There’s a real shared kinship in character, though our front-drive subject feels less wieldy, more softly set, less engaging and a little more blunted, albeit all of it in shades rather than strides. 

In GT-Line spec, an EV4 doesn’t quite have the crisp leanness of an EV6, but it’s vastly more together and well sorted – especially for Aussie urban driving – than the lumbering, underbaked EV5 SUV.  

The EV4 feels solid and sorted on the move, with a surprising amount of weight to the steering. It’s settled and quiet, too, with a suppleness to the suspension that makes it feel soft without being flaccid. 

Bury the right foot and the EV4’s narrow 215mm Goodyear front tyres will scrabble for traction, especially exiting front side streets in a hurry. Acceleration feels somewhat stymied by the sedan’s 1912kg kerb weight, its 150kW and 283Nm effective yet by far from thrill inducing.

Its lengthy 2810mm wheelbase makes for a planted and stable character, but the nature of the front drive format makes for a less engaging corner carver than its EV6 sibling. There’s some purpose and impressive competency in the handling, it’s just not a lot of fun or all that engaging. 

But it is demonstrably efficient. Consumption is advertised as 14.9kWh/100km but from a full charge and even with a generous stint of 90km/h motorway usage, the on-board computer showed figures that dipped into the 12s.

From the 78kWh usable long-range battery the claim of 612kms – the lengthiest in Kia’s electric lineup – seems feasible, if you’re brave enough to run the NMC to its theoretical ‘empty’… 

Ever-brilliant is the paddleshift-adjustable brake regeneration, from assertive one-pedal deceleration to next-to-no motor braking in its leanest setting: all tunable to the driver’s mood and the prevailing flow of traffic.  

On braking, it’s worth noting that the heavier long-range battery EV4 variants fit larger so-called “17-inch” brakes, compared to the 16in front discs on the lighter Air.

Not so brilliant is the pedal array, or more specifically how countersunk the left foot ‘dead pedal’ brace is located, which can leave your right leg slightly cocked. Also less than ideal is the letterbox-style rearward view through the slim rear glass screen.

Other gripes? Typical of most, though not all, HMC (Hyundai Motor Company) models, chronic ADAS system annoyances need to be switched off after every restart.

Kia (and Hyundai) have introduced shortcuts thanks to negative user feedback, but the lag in system start-ups means it takes a dozen seconds or so to access the related menus. Irritating.

Further, the EV4 features the driver monitor system that’s quite conservatively calibrated, while the audible speed warning system is – as ever – unnecessarily lengthy. At least you can permanently defeat the latter.

How is the GT-Line’s interior?

Given that much of the GT-Line’s $15K upcharge over the base Air is invested in added interior goodies, it’s unsurprising that the flagship presents a generous level of fanfare in the details, even if most of the core features are common across the range.

Case in point are the seats. The front buckets are supremely comfy – much more naturally shapely than the pricier EV6 GT-Line’s – and are trimmed in a perforated faux leather that’s impressively supple. 

The tri-spoke wheel, too, is much nicer and classier than the chubby dual-spoke unit fitted in the Air and Earth, flattened a touch top and bottom without being too oddball in shape. And the standard-fit black and white colour scheme – black and grey for Air, black and light grey for Earth – is striking and adds a real sense of occasion.   

The dual 12.3-inch digital window dressing will be familiar to owners of newer Korean motoring: clear, colourful and reasonably intuitive to use if, as mentioned above, painfully slow to get the show on the road at restarts. 

The blind-spot view monitor – tech of debatable real-world usefulness – works as expected, while the head-up display is reasonably colourful and not too overwrought to unnecessary information detail. 

The EV4 adopts the newer drive select ‘twist’ stalk with inbuilt start button, leaving the centre console and its various storage cubbies clean and simple, though the base of most surfaces are hard plastic, leaving your oddment to fling about noisily on the move.  

One downmark is that the HVAC controls are located in a small 5.0-inch touchscreen between the driver and media displays, rather than in its own easier-to-use central control panel. This makes adjusting the system more finicky than it needs to be. 

Row two is…interesting. The cabin feels wonderfully lengthy though the sensation is exacerbated by the low roofline that – for you reviewer’s 175cm height – brushes the top of the occupant’s head. 

Adding to the sense of slim cabin height is the high set floor (to allow for the underfloor battery). In fact, the seat base is extremely angled upwards to balance a low hop point with a modicum of underthigh support. 

Fit and finish from the first row migrates seamlessly to the second row, and features include rear air vent (with no third row controls), USB-C outlets in the front seat sides and cupholders in the folddown armrest. 

As a proper four-door (rather than liftback fiver) the boot aperture is tiny, opening to reveal a boot space that is, at 490 litres, all length and width and not much height. Those after a more practical load space, and load-through flexibility, will really need to go for the EV5 SUV instead.

Typical of most electrics, there’s no space wheel, but there is ample space in an underfloor cubby for both the inflator kit and for charging cables. 

The honest verdict

The EV5 slots neatly into what is becoming – with the May arrival of the PV5 Cargo van – one of the most comprehensive electric lineups from a single brand in Australia.

While the EV4 looks to be price ‘right’ against arch nemesis Tesla Model 3, the high-spec GT-Line appears a bit of a hard sell as a mid-ish-sized sedan breaching $70K on road. 

The vastly more affordable (and quicker) Air version makes a more compelling case, even without the 600km-plus range. The superior EV6 isn’t a huge step up on outlay. 

And the relative success of the EV5 SUV has proven, in its 12 months of release, the Aussies are drawn to metal for your money over depth, nuance and overall execution.

None of this detracts from what is, generally, an impressive and quality Korean-made EV drive that’s a cut above many Chinese-branded newcomers, even if its somewhat challenging design might steer some buyers towards its competition.