Photo: SB-Medien
You guys have seen the Kia Niro before, but this time around, the little crossover with Prius-fighting ambitions has dropped some of its camouflage. Not only that, but it has managed to find a German adversary in the form of the Volkswagen Golf GTE.
Kia has already built a couple of pure electric vehicles in the form of the Soul EV and that kei car that's only sold in Korea. Together with brand partner Hyundai, it also made hybrid mid-sized sedans. But now both companies want a piece of the Toyota Prius market and will go after it in a roundabout way.
Kia talked to several Prius owners, and they said they wanted the fuel-saving powertrain in a funkier body. So they are going to get a crossover, and not just any crossover, but one styled to be as flamboyant as the Gangnam Style horse dance.
Even through the camouflage, we can clearly see that the headlights are awkwardly perched on top of the front end. There is also a pair of gigantic vertical blades on the bumper, right next to the wheels. Around the back, we can see the taillights for the first time. These appear to be made up of three large C-shaped curves each, reminding us of the much bigger Sorento SUV.
For this session of tests, the Niro has found itself a little playmate, namely the Volkswagen Golf GTE. It's a very expensive plug-in hybrid hatchback that has an ambivalent nature. Since the German car packs over 200 horsepower and the Niro only relies on a 1.6-liter naturally aspirated engine, we don't think they were being compared regarding performance, but rather fuel economy.
Unlike the Golf GTE, the Kia Niro won't have the ability to recharge itself at launch. However, after a year, the socket will be added… somewhere on the car.
As you may have noticed from the photo showing it next to the Golf, the Kia Niro is relatively small. This prototype doesn't seem to have AWD or independent rear suspension. Its power will come from a 1.6-liter GDI producing 105 PS (77 kW) and 147 Nm (108 lb-ft).
Kia says it's not the same gasoline direct injection unit fitted to the cee'd hatch, as it's been tuned to achieve a thermal efficiency of 40%, which is on par with the all-new Prius. It will be mated to a six-speed dual clutch gearbox and a small 35 kW (47 hp) electric motor. The conventional hybrid will only have about 1.56 kWh battery pack, but the plug-in model might get the 9.8 kWh lithium polymer battery pack from the Sonata with about 50 km/31 miles of range.
Kia talked to several Prius owners, and they said they wanted the fuel-saving powertrain in a funkier body. So they are going to get a crossover, and not just any crossover, but one styled to be as flamboyant as the Gangnam Style horse dance.
Even through the camouflage, we can clearly see that the headlights are awkwardly perched on top of the front end. There is also a pair of gigantic vertical blades on the bumper, right next to the wheels. Around the back, we can see the taillights for the first time. These appear to be made up of three large C-shaped curves each, reminding us of the much bigger Sorento SUV.
For this session of tests, the Niro has found itself a little playmate, namely the Volkswagen Golf GTE. It's a very expensive plug-in hybrid hatchback that has an ambivalent nature. Since the German car packs over 200 horsepower and the Niro only relies on a 1.6-liter naturally aspirated engine, we don't think they were being compared regarding performance, but rather fuel economy.
Unlike the Golf GTE, the Kia Niro won't have the ability to recharge itself at launch. However, after a year, the socket will be added… somewhere on the car.
As you may have noticed from the photo showing it next to the Golf, the Kia Niro is relatively small. This prototype doesn't seem to have AWD or independent rear suspension. Its power will come from a 1.6-liter GDI producing 105 PS (77 kW) and 147 Nm (108 lb-ft).
Kia says it's not the same gasoline direct injection unit fitted to the cee'd hatch, as it's been tuned to achieve a thermal efficiency of 40%, which is on par with the all-new Prius. It will be mated to a six-speed dual clutch gearbox and a small 35 kW (47 hp) electric motor. The conventional hybrid will only have about 1.56 kWh battery pack, but the plug-in model might get the 9.8 kWh lithium polymer battery pack from the Sonata with about 50 km/31 miles of range.
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