What is it?

Kia has achieved great success with its first two bespoke electric vehicles (EVs), the EV6 launched in 2021 and the flagship EV9 which hit UK roads in 2023. But the third model in the line-up, the EV3, is expected to eclipse both and help accelerate the adoption of EVs across the UK automotive sector.

The EV3 is a compact crossover-style vehicle designed to meet the demand for electric vehicles that are smaller, more practical, with a long range and crucially more affordable. Kia expects it to be the brand’s best-selling EV at a rate of around 10,200 a year, and with 68% of those going to fleet users.

At prices starting from £32,995 the EV3 appears to tick the affordability box, significantly undercutting the cars that Kia is currently comparing it with, the Cupra Born, the Volvo EX30 and Volkswagen ID.3. The brand does, however, claim that the EV3 has no direct rivals, at least for now, its closest challenger expected to be the similarly priced Skoda Elroq that will arrive on UK roads in early 2025.

The Kia EV3 comes in four varieties – all have the same basic drivetrain, with a front-axle mounted motor of 204hp and a battery pack of varying size depending on model, mounted under the cabin floor. Each variant offers a 0-62mph time of between 7.5 and 7.9 seconds and a maximum speed of 105mph.

There are also plans to put an all-wheel-drive version on sale at a later date, and while Kia is yet to confirm that it will be sold in the UK, the smart money suggests that we will get it eventually.

Entry level is the EV3 Air, and that £32,995 price tag buys a car with a 58.3 kWh lithium-ion battery pack, which produces a WLTP combined range of up to 270 miles. It can be recharged on DC at up to 100.7 kW, which produces a 10-80% recharge in 29 minutes.

The Air is also available for an extra £3,000 with the long-range 81.4kWh battery used by all the other versions. This stretches the combined range to 375 miles and can be recharged at 127.5 kW, taking 31 minutes to go from 10 to 80%.

Mid-range is the GT-Line at £39,495, the only major difference being slightly less range of 367 miles due to its extra equipment. Similarly the top GT-Line S version, costing from £42,995, offers 362 miles, or 361 if you pay another £900 for a car with heat pump. And of course all cars get Kia’s sometimes forgotten but highly valuable seven-year/100,000-mile warranty.

The EV3 meets expectations on equipment too. Even entry-level cars get twin 12.3-inch driver and central infotainment displays with a separate one for the climate control (so no swiping through menus trying to turn the temperature down). Heated front seats and steering wheel are standard, as are parking sensors both ends and a rear-view camera, while the safety specification includes plenty of ADAS systems that should see the EV3 clock up a five-star rating when Euro-NCAP eventually subjects it to a crash test.

Kia expects the GT-Line to be chosen by over half of fleet buyers going for the EV3. Highlights among the extras include larger alloy wheels and bespoke styling, artificial leather seats, wireless phone charging and a digital key.

Go for the GT-Line S and the niceties will included heated seats front and rear (the fronts also ventilated), a 360-degree surround view monitor, smart powered tailgate, blind-spot view monitor, a tilting, sliding sunroof and a premium Harman Kardon audio system.

What do we think of it?

On first viewing the family resemblance between the EV3 and its big sister the EV9 is obvious, but this reviewer also saw just a hint of Kia’s EV pioneer the Soul, a quirky car that was much loved by many owners and which the EV3 effectively replaces.

No pulsating speaker surrounds or other Soul-like quirks in the EV3, however, which has a throughly practical interior that it is easy to get comfortable in. The resemblance to the insides of the EV9 is clear but the important aspect is that being a modern Kia, it is well designed and put together, with surfaces that look and feel of quality.

Space is adequate in front and back for what is a fairly compact vehicle, though headroom is a little cosy, and while initial opening of the boot reveals what looks like a rather paltry storage area, on lifting the floor one discovers a quite cavernous extra area able to accommodate a lot more than the charging leads placed within it. In all there’s 460 litres with the rear seats up, extending to 1250 litres with those seats folded – plus there’s a useful little 40-litre space up front under the bonnet.

Kia’s driving environments have long been known to be practical too and the EV3 follows the trend – the two 12.3-inch screens are mounted in one long panel with the little climate control screen between them and the infotainment one easily accessed by the driver.

It’s all very user-friendly and oft-used items such as the audio volume control are mounted on the steering wheel, with the regenerative braking paddles behind and the on switch and drive controls on a neat little stalk behind the wheel ‘at 4 o-clock’.

On the road the EV3 is a very compliant vehicle. Those fleet drivers clocking up many a mile and who need their car to be totally easy to live with will find a lot to like here, as the EV3 behaves impeccably, riding in comfort and going where you point it, when you want it to.

It’s not exactly an exciting car to drive, but of course it’s not really meant to be – this is the model intended to be that ultra-reliable companion. While a close to eight-second 0-62mph time is not that fast for an EV, it is perky enough to achieve those swift overtakes when wanted.

Add up all that, plus the long range, especially if one properly employs the so easy to use regenerative braking capability, and it is easy to see why Kia is so confident this car will find favour with many a fleet, and indeed retail, driver. The EV3 has been shortlisted for the 2025 European Car of the Year prize, and we would not be in the least surprised if it drives off with the much-coveted trophy.

Business Motoring First Drives are the initial test of a new vehicle, of usually between 50 and 100 miles. Business Motoring Full Reviews are usually conducted over a full week, completing several hundred miles.