This is the second generation of the Kia Niro, a car that’s nowhere near as revolutionary as the Kia EV6 but arguably more important for the brand, being its second-best seller after the Kia Sportage.
With the first-generation Niro, Kia beat most of its rivals to the wildly popular segment of compact crossovers; and did so with reasonably priced hybrid options and an EV with a long range.
And that highlights something quite unusual about the Niro: it’s available both as a hybrid, a plug-in hybrid and an EV. Accommodating both combustion engines and big battery packs on the same platform can lead to an unhappy compromise, but the original Niro managed to be both a convincing hybrid and an impressive EV when it came out.
Today, though, Kia has more competition to worried about. The Toyota C-HR, Honda HR-V and Renault Arkana all want a slice of the hybrid crossover pie. The electric Niro can sleep slightly easier for the time being, but there are hordes of new rivals on the horizon.
What's new?
The new Niro aims to build on the current one’s success. It sits on an all-new platform – the second-generation K3 platform also found beneath the Hyundai i30 – but follows much the same recipe as before.
The hybrids get a mildly tweaked 1.6-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine and a six-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox.