The Kia Niro EV has landed: Here’s how it weighs up against its rivals

The all-electric and refreshed Kia Niro EV will go on sale this week in Australia, joining a gradually growing range of EVs on the local auto market.

Seeing as it costs $62,450 (before n-roads) predecessor the Kia e-Niro out the door, it is priced from $65,300 before on-roads.

Kia says this is largely because of rising costs but there are also some special additions such as the introduction of vehicle-to-load capabilities as well as Kia Connect, which adds a range of connectivity and telematics features – a first for any Kia vehicle in Australia.

And perhaps importantly, with the price of the Kia EV6 now raised by $4,600, the Niro EV presents a more affordable electric option from the South Korean automaker.

The Niro EV also still falls within most state EV rebate thresholds (NSW, South Australia, Victoria but not Queensland).

With Kia dealers taking orders imminently for the Niro EV, no doubt there are plenty of drivers out there wondering: how does it stack up against competitors?

Looking at EVs now available between $60,000 and $70,000, there are currently just three other players available. With the EV6 and Model Y both tipping over the $70,000 with recent price increases, we will compare the Hyundai Kona Electric Extended Range, the Nissan Leaf e+ and the Polestar 2 to the Kia Niro EV.

Both the Kona EV and Nissan Leaf are also available in shorter range variants, while two single motor Polestar 2 variants fall within this price range before on-road costs.

Power, range and acceleration

The Niro EV sits in the middle to bottom range in terms of power, range and acceleration.

The Polestar 2 sits just above all contenders in terms of power, with 165kW. The Leaf e+ offers a little less at 160kW while the Niro EV and Kona Electric offer 150kW power output. All are front-wheel drive vehicles, and offer between seven- and eight-second acceleration from 0-100km/hr.

Polestar 2 Standard Range

The Nissan Leaf has slightly higher torque (340Nm), than the Polestar 2 (330Nm) and therefore has slightly faster acceleration (7.3 seconds compared to 7.4 seconds). The Niro EV and Kona Electric are half a second slower (7.8 seconds and 7.9 seconds respectively).

While the long-range Polestar 2 obviously has superior driving range thanks to its 78kWh battery (515 WLTP), the Kona EV is a standout with 484 WLTP range from its 64kWh battery (about 432km in real-world terms although we hear a lot that Kona EV owners do indeed get 480km often).

The Niro EV beats the other contenders with its 460km WLTP range. This equates to around 410km real-world range.

The standard-range Polestar has the next furthest range, being rated for 445km WLTP, whereas the Nissan Leaf e+ has the least range with 385km WLTP (about 344km in real-world conditions).

Charging at home and on the road

On a public DC fast charger, the Niro EV sits at the slower end in terms of charging, with a top rate of 100kW in line with the Leaf e+. The Kona Electric and Polestar 2, by contrast, charge at a top rate of 150kW.

However, Kia says the Niro EV can charge from 10-80% on a 100kW charger in 45 minutes, which is actually a little faster than the Hyundai Kona Electric which does so in 47 minutes, and the Polestar 2’s 46 or so minutes. Whether this bears out in charge tests is yet to be seen.

(And yes, the Leaf e+ is the slowest charger from 0-80%, in around one hour.)

At home or on an AC charger, the Niro EV can charge at a top rate of 11kW, taking 6 hours and 20 minutes on an AC wall charger.If you’re just plugging in at home on a 240-volt outlet, it will take 27 hours and 30 minutes from 10-100%.

This charge rate is in line with all its rivals with the exception of the Leaf e+, which can only charge at a top rate of 6.6kW.

Cargo and frunk space

The Niro EV – which has larger dimensions than its predecessor – has the largest cargo capacity compared to its rivals. It has 475 litres with the back seats up.

This is slightly more than the Polestar 2 (472 litres with the seats up) and a good portion more than the Leaf e+’s 405 litres. The Kona Electric loses out with just 332 litres with the seats up.

With the back seats down, the Niro EV has almost 300 more litres to spare for cargo than the next rival, the Nissan Leaf e+ (which offers 1,176 litres).

While the Kona Electric comes in just after this with 1,114 litres of space with the seats down, the Polestar 2 offers the least total cargo space (1,095 litres).

But, it does have the largest “frunk” (the storage space under the bonnet) at 35 litres. The Niro EV is the only other model with frunk space, but it is a very modest 20 litres.

Ground clearance and towing

The Niro EV has the least ground clearance – just 150mm. It’s not far off the Polestar 2 though, which offers just 1 millimetre more, or the Nissan Leaf e+ which has 155mm ground clearance. It is a full 10mm lower though, than the Kona EV.

In terms of towing, the Niro EV falls well behind the Polestar 2 which is rated for 1,500kg towing braked, and 750kg. But it at least is rated in some capacity with a 750kg braked and 300kg unbraked rating compared to the Leaf e+ and Kona Electric which have no official rating.

Bang for buck (cost per kilometre range)

Last but not least, in terms of cost per kilometre of WLTP range, the Niro EV sits – you guessed it – bang in the middle.

By dividing price before on-road costs with WLTP range, it costs $144 per kilometre. This is compared to $125 for the Kona Electric which is the cheapest and therefore the best bang for buck in the price range.

By comparison, the Leaf e+ is the highest cost ($157 per kilometre), while the Polestar 2 is also quite good value for money in its single-motor long-range format ($133).