Kia Niro EV Malaysia: Kia’s compact electric SUV is launching this week

[ UPDATE 05/07/2023 15:00 ] Kia Niro EV officially launched in Malaysia, priced at RM256,668.

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Kia Malaysia is expected to officially launch the Kia Niro EV later this week. This is based on the event listing that we spotted on the official website of Bermaz Auto Berhad which is the parent company of Kia’s distributor in Malaysia, Dinamikjaya Motors.

According to the website, Bermaz Auto will be showcasing vehicles from all three brands under its wings at Pavilion Bukit Jalil starting this coming Thursday, 6 July until Sunday, 9 July. As you can see from the image below, one of the vehicles that is being featured in the promotional image is the Kia Niro EV.

Kia’s intention to launch Niro EV in our market has been known for quite some time as Dinamikjaya confirmed this to the media back in late 2021. However, the company didn’t officially release any other update since then.

In fact, there is not even a tiny hint of the Niro EV’s imminent arrival on Kia Malaysia’s website, Facebook, and Instagram until today. It is rather baffling given that the EV is about to make its first-ever public debut in Malaysia which is supposed to be a rather huge deal.

Niro EV performance, battery, charging time, range

The Niro EV that will be released in Malaysia is the second-generation model that was first revealed to the world early last year. While the exact trim that will be made available in Malaysia is not yet known at this time, we do know that Kia uses the same electric motor and battery configuration throughout the world.

Featuring a front-wheel setup, the electric motor in the Niro EV can deliver 150kW (204hp) of output alongside 255Nm of torque. Together with the ability to go from 0 to 100km/h in 7.8 seconds, this model has a top speed of 167km/h.

When it comes to battery, the Niro EV comes standard with a 64.8kWh battery pack that helps to deliver 460km of range according to WLTP standards. It takes almost 7 hours to fully charged the car through the onboard 11kW AC charger but you can significantly reduce the charging time to 45 minutes by using an 85kW DC fast charger.

At a glance, you may think the Niro EV seemed to be the same size as the existing Hyundai Kona Electric. However, the new model’s overall length is much longer at 4,420mm when compared to Kona which was listed at 4,205mm.

At 2,720mm, the wheelbase of the Niro EV is also slightly longer than the Kona (2,600mm). It is also slightly wider at 1,825mm (Kona: 1,800mm) but loses out to Kona in terms of height since the Hyundai’s has an overall height of 1,570mm as compared to the Niro EV’s height of 1,545mm.

Niro EV price in Malaysia

Given its size and performance, the Niro EV’s position in Kia Malaysia’s hierarchy is much lower than the EV6 GT-Line. So, this means that the Niro EV will definitely be priced at under RM300,000 here in Malaysia.

That being said, don’t expect the price to be wallet-friendly either as we have been hearing whispers on the air that the new model may cost somewhere between RM240,000 to RM260,000. So, stay tuned for more information as we wait for the official unveiling of the Kia Niro EV in Malaysia later this week.

Related reading

• Kia Niro EV Malaysia: Here are the full specs and features
• Kia EV6 GT-Line Malaysia Review: Forget the rest, get this EV instead
• Hyundai Kona Electric 2023: More space, upgraded 215hp motor and up to 490km of driving range
• Anthony Loke explains why EVs in Malaysia require special number plates