Kia EV6 Launch Story | I waited a year for it to be released, but the EV6 GT was released instead.
Kia's EV6, the electric vehicle I've been waiting for for over a year, was released yesterday. As you all know, based on Hyundai's dedicated electric vehicle platform, the E-GMP, the Ioniq 5 was released early last year. About six months later, in September 2021, the EV6 was released. The Ioniq 5 and EV6, with the same platform and powertrain, are completely different vehicles. I signed a contract for the EV6 as soon as it was released last year, but due to the long delay in delivery, I ended up buying a used Ioniq 5 around November 2021. There are various reasons, but I paid about 3 million won more for the used Ioniq 5 than I did when I bought it new. At the time, I felt a bit bitter and aggrieved. But now, in 2022, used car prices have gone up by 3-4 million won compared to when I bought it. It's happening.
Because the electric car shortage is so severe,
I see people talking about electric car tech.
But I bought it for actual use anyway, so I'm not really into that.
But I bought an Ioniq 5 around November of last year and after driving it around,
I liked electric cars better than I expected, so around February of this year,
I upgraded it from a standard model to a long-range model.
As a result, it took longer to arrive.
The EV6 I received was upgraded to a 2023 model.
I signed a contract for 2021, but I'm getting a 2023 model.
The most important thing is the price...
It feels like a significant increase to me.
But anyway, when I say "slight," it's a slight(?) increase of about 3-4 million won. With the same options,
and in Seongnam, where I live, the electric car subsidy has decreased by about 1 million won this year compared to last year.
So, from what I've noticed as the year progresses, the difference seems to be around 5 million won.
Are you feeling a little underwhelmed?
The EV6 I received is a Long Range Earth model,
with a sunroof option for 650,000 won and a high-tech option for AR navigation on the HUD for 850,000 won, totaling about 1.5 million won in additional options.
The final price is 64.71 million won for the 2023 model.
Of this, I've already discounted about 1.4 million won with Save Auto and Hyundai Card M-Points.
The electric vehicle subsidy is 11 million won, and
the tax exemption for the first electric vehicle release is about 3.9 million won.
The total purchase price is about 48.5 million won.
Well, it's already been a year since its release,
and the EV6 GT, which I'd only heard rumors about, was released this month.
So, the EV6 itself is well-known, right?
Rather than going into specifics, let's talk about what's changed since the 2023 model,
and how it differs from the Ioniq 5 I previously purchased. What's the difference? I think it's better to explain the degree of difference.
I test-drove and even photographed both vehicles as soon as they were released last year.
At the time, my impression was that the Ioniq 5 was soft, while the EV6 was firm.
Also, the Ioniq 5's interior feels like a futuristic car,
and has a slightly iconic feel,
while the EV6's interior feels more like a regular passenger car.
The center console is the biggest difference, isn't it?
First of all, both vehicles share the same powertrain: rear-wheel drive.
They both use a 168kW motor, producing around 229 horsepower.
The Ioniq 5 comes with the Vision Roof option in the Prestige trim,
and the HDA2 option.
The EV6 comes with the High-Tech Sunroof option in the Earth trim. Both vehicles are equipped with nearly full options, except for the digital side mirrors.
The biggest difference between the two vehicles is that the Ioniq 5 has 20-inch wheels and tires.
After driving the Ioniq 5 for a while, I noticed that while the 20-inch wheels are solid, the tires have a narrow aspect ratio, and this can cause back pain after long drives.
That's why I intentionally didn't include the 20-inch wheels and tires option for the EV6.
So, the EV6 has 235/55R 19-inch wheels, and the Ioniq 5 has 255/45R 20-inch wheels.
I chose the 19-inch wheels for the EV6.
It doesn't seem to lose much shape, though.
The wheelhouse is quite large, since there's no engine.
I test drove both last year while filming, and the EV6 felt much firmer. Ride quality? However, in the case of these two vehicles,
the only difference is the 20-inch and 19-inch wheels and tires,
but the EV6 is a bit softer and much smoother than the Ioniq 5, and I've heard a lot of people say it has a better ride.
I wasn't sure when I briefly test-drove it for filming last year,
but after purchasing it and driving it for a while, I noticed some of those issues.
It's not a serious issue, just not very comfortable.
And this model, the long-range 2-wheel 19-inch model that I received without a built-in cam,
has the longest range among the EV6s. According to the specifications, it's 528 km in the city and 475 km combined.
The EV6 has a 77kWh battery,
while the Ioniq 5, before the 77kWh battery was added after the model year, had a 72kWh battery.
When I charged it to 100%,
the...