The Kia EV2, a new electric hatchback earmarked for launch in 2026 priced at around £25,000, has been spotted testing on public roads for the first time.
A small, high-riding hatchback to rival the Renault 5, it will sit on the same E-GMP platform as Kia’s flagship electric cars, the EV3, EV6 and EV9.
This means it is technically possible for it to have single- and twin-motor powertrains, but given the packing challenges of a smaller car and the more urban focus of likely buyers, a twin-motor set-up is uncertain.
Although it is heavily camouflaged, the car clearly has a boxy silhouette similar to that of the existing Kia Soul, with column-like front lights echoing those of the larger EV9.
It will doubtless get a different version of Kia’s ‘Tiger grille’ digital face and a mix of sharp lines and smooth surfaces in keeping with the firm’s ‘Opposites united’ design strategy.
Kia has yet to give any further details of the model beyond its name, but has said it will be a compact car designed with a focus on the European market and manufactured at Kia’s plant in Slovakia.
Speaking to Autocar, Kia CEO Ho-Sung Song said producing affordable EVs is “very important” for the brand, “especially for the European market that is in need of smaller [electric] vehicles too”.
The firm is working to a target starting price of $30,000 (£25,000), which would put it up against the likes of the Renault 5, Vauxhall Corsa Electric and Mini Cooper Electric.
Song said the EV2 is a “very unique and important model for the European market” and “this is a smaller size of EV, a very European-style dedicated model.” He added that Kia has a “very concrete plan” for the model.
Notably, the EV2 will get a hot GT version: the firm has previously said it will offer a performance-led GT variant of every model in its EV line-up, and an official told Autocar that was still the intention, noting the popularity of performance cars with European buyers.
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Why is it "high-riding"? Why does a supermini need the additional ground clearance and higher ride height?
I'm assuming from the 2026 launch date that this EV2 isn't just a rebadged Hyundai Inster. And why are car magazines starting to call cars from the supermini class as cars from the class below (city cars)? Is it to prepare consumers for cost-cutting and tiny ranges only suitable for small distances despite having a big price tag?
Shame we have to wait so long to see it, especially when there's been other small EV disappointments lately. There's definitely not going to be a Tesla 2 now, the Nissan Micra seems to have been forgotten about and so many of these new "cheap" EVs have a tiny range in the headline-grabbing base model (modern small cars aren't terrible to drive long distances so shouldn't be exclusively confined to having short "only driven in the city" ranges).
I really wanted to like the Inster and consider it as my first EV, but those ridiculous "cutesy" looks completely rule it out for me; I don't usually care what people say about my cars, but I'd be giving myself a hard time driving one of those silly looking things. Love the interior though. So fingers crossed this Kia effort is a bit more "grown up" to justify paying what is still a hefty premium for electricity over ICE.
2026???
New cars are like public inquiries - longggggggg drawn out. By 2026, the Cupra Raval would have been around for a year, and so many others due in 2025. Kia, what are you thinking?