The production version of Kia’s large electric SUV is almost here.
Kia first revealed the concept version of its big and boxy EV at the 2021 LA Auto Show. Now, though, we’re close to actually seeing the production version. Beyond today’s silhouette teaser, the full design reveal is coming on March 15, with the technical specs to follow a few weeks later.
Even from the little bit we can see, it appears Kia stayed largely true to the concept design, at least in key areas. The EV9 sports an interestingly illuminated front grille, as well as vertical LED headlights adjacent to long daytime running lights that surround the headlights and cut into the front bumper.
In profile, the production 2024 Kia EV9 has a few more flowing lines than all the altogether more angular concept. Below the almost arrow straight beltline (minus the upward kink along the rear window), you can still see some distinctive shoulder lines to give the EV9 some presence. The silhouette doesn’t reveal much of the lower portion of the EV9’s design, so it’s not immediately clear whether Kia ditched the concept’s wheel arch flares. The prototype did have them, though, so that’s another design cue that will likely carry through to the production model.
Thursday’s teaser is also the first time we can get some idea of what the back of the Kia EV9 will look like.
Much like its front, the EV9 has some distinctive lighting at the rear. The taillights move halfway up the rear window and also cut into the tailgate from each side. That said, there’s no light bar or trim piece connecting each side, as the automaker did with the K5 sedan and the EV6, for example.
What we obviously don’t know about the 2024 Kia EV9 yet is how its actual practicality will complement the design. We don’t know physical measurements just yet, nor do we know its battery capacity or actual driving range.
Odds are, we’ll see a couple different drive configurations (again, like the EV6) and possibly some different range specs. Really, the EV9 needs to at least have some option that lands somewhere in around 300 miles. Pricing is also a mystery at this point, though rumors suggest it could start in the mid-to-upper-$50,000 range and top out north of $70,000. That makes some sense given the EV6’s $50,000-ish pricing point, but we’ll have to wait and see.
Fortunately, we just have to wait a few more weeks to fill in most of the blanks.
