Kia EV6 GT updated with 641bhp Hyundai Ioniq 5 N powertrain

The hot Kia EV6 GT will be updated with the powertrain from the closely related Hyundai Ioniq 5 N, bringing a significant increase in power. 

The dual-motor, four-wheel drive set-up puts out 601bhp and 545lb ft of torque in normal operation, but this temporarily increases to 641bhp and 568lb ft when the car’s GT drive mode is selected.

This is up from the 576bhp and 545lb ft of the outgoing EV6 GT.

Kia has yet to clarify how this affects the car’s straight-line performance, but it will doubtless improve on the outgoing car’s 0-62mph sprint time of 3.5sec. For reference, Hyundai claims that the Ioniq 5 N takes 3.4sec.

The new EV6 GT also gets the simulated automatic gearbox used in the Ioniq 5 N and its bigger sibling, the Kia EV9 GT. This emulates the gearing and power delivery of a combustion-engined performance car, limiting torque and changing the sound played through the speakers according to the ‘engine’ revs and gear. It can be operated in a conventional automatic mode (and disabled entirely for a more typical electric driving experience), or it can be manually operated using paddles behind the steering wheel.

As well as extra power and tactility, the new EV6 GT gets a larger 84kWh battery pack, up from 77kWh in the outgoing model. That should improve its range slightly from the previous car’s official rating of 263 miles between charges.

Kia has yet to release pictures of the new EV6 GT, but it is expected to receive the same styling tweaks that the milder variants of the electric crossover got earlier this year. That means a revised look inspired by the EV3, EV5 and EV9, plus an updated interior with a new three-spoke steering wheel.

It’s expected to arrive in the UK early next year, with prices likely to represent a slight increase compared with the outgoing EV6. For reference, that car started at £62,675.