Kia Niro Electric – Auto Expo 2020 Live

Kia Motors India has showcased its global premium electric vehicle, the Kia e-Niro, at the 2020 Auto Expo. Designed in California, USA and Namyang, Korea, the Kia e-Niro is designed to prove a point – that electric vehicle buyers need not sacrifice an emotional design or the versatility of a crossover.

The Kia Niro electric gets the aerodynamic ‘tiger-nose’ grille with an integrated charging port. The air intakes and arrowhead-shaped LED daytime running lights with the blue trim set it apart from the conventional Niro variants. At the sides, the car comes with a slim character line, sleek profile and muscular wheel arches complete with 17-inch alloy wheels. A bold LED rear light design provides the Kia e-Niro a recognisable signature.

Indoors, the e-Niro combines a modern design with ample space and technologies to go with the zero emissions powertrain. The shift-by-wire rotator dial drive replaces the conventional transmission and the same panel also houses the electronic parking brake. The dash has eco-style blue trim and the car also comes with mood lighting and an optional wireless smartphone charger.

The talking point of the cabin is the 8.0-inch touchscreen and the 7.0-inch supervision cluster that offer a wide range of information including the lifetime CO2 reduction from operating the car.

Kia Niro Electric rear three quarters left at Auto Expo 2020

The front-wheel drive Niro has a 2,700 mm wheelbase, with a length of 4,375 mm, width of 1,805 mm wide and height of 1,560 mm and a cargo space of 451 litres that can be extended to 1,405 litres. In Europe the Niro is equipped with a high-capacity 64 kWh lithium-ion polymer battery pack which on the WLTP combined cycle, provides a driving range of more than 455 kilometres on a single charge. Using a 100 kW fast charger, it takes just 42 minutes to charge the e-Niro’s battery pack from 20% to 80%.

The 64 kWh battery pack variant is fitted with a 150 kW (204 PS) motor, producing 395 Nm torque, enabling the e-Niro to accelerate from 0-to-100 kmph in 7.8 seconds. The standard 39.2 kWh battery pack is wired to a 100 kW (136 PS) motor, also producing 395 Nm torque, and accelerating to 100 kmph from a standstill in 9.8 seconds.

Regenerative braking technology, predictive driving assistance technologies that use navigation information to alter the level of energy regeneration, paddle shifters behind the steering wheel that allow drivers to toggle between the energy regeneration levels, battery heating system (optional heat pump), Drive Mode Select system (to switch between Eco, Eco+, Normal and Sport modes), Kia Vehicle Stability Management (VSM) for adequate stability under braking and cornering, Smart Cruise Control with Stop & Go, Forward Collision Warning with Forward Collision-Avoidance Assist, Driver Attention Warning, High Beam Assist and Lane Following Assist are some of its features.