From drab to desirable: Kia's electric car revolution has helped change the way Australians look at the Korean brand

Kia has just launched its most expensive model yet, the EV6 GT, with a starting price of $99,590 plus on-road costs. The very idea of a $100k Kia would have been laughable, bordering on corporate negligence only a few years ago.

But the brand has evolved so much in recent years that the arrival of the EV6 GT and its new benchmark pricing for the brand isn't laughable, it's downright tempting. And it's no accident, Kia Australia has engaged in a carefully orchestrated campaign to refresh its image at precisely the right time to capitalise on both its history of offering value, but also the electric tide sweeping through the car industry.

Not that it was plain-sailing, with several false starts to get its first electric model, the e-Niro, here. Kia Australia was hamstrung by international demand being much higher than Australia, where a lack of incentives and model choice meant EVs were only a minor segment of the market.

However, once the e-Niro arrived in mid-2021, it laid the foundation for what was to come. The new, more advanced and stylish Niro arrived in 2022 alongside the EV6 - the first Kia based on the Hyundai-Kia Group's e-GMP electric vehicle platform.

While neither model has become a big seller, the EV6 (and Niro to a lesser degree) have helped make Kia a more desirable brand. After years of steady growth, the brand has made a big leap forward since its electric options arrived and looks set to finish 2022 third on the sales charts.

That leap-frogs it ahead of 'big brother' Hyundai, jumping from fifth place at the end of 2021. Sales are up more than 15 per cent this year (to the end of November), with the new-look Niro in particular much more popular. Sales of the entire Niro range - which includes electric and hybrid - are up 118 per cent year-to-date.

The arrival of the new Niro and EV6 coincides with a deliberate shift for the brand, too, with a focus on quality over price. Gone are the days of Kia pushing itself as a budget brand that lured customers with low prices.

Instead, the company is targeting customers with its performance, style and value. Even the EV6 GT, with its $100k asking price, is positioned as a value proposition, offering the kind of performance and capability that would otherwise cost significantly more.

As Kia Australia's marketing chief, Dean Norbiato, explained to CarsGuide.com, the EV6 GT - alongside the other EV6 models - brings lures buyers to its showrooms for reasons beyond looking for a bargain.

"What that does is two things," Norbiato said. "It brings people into the brand and it cross-sells products, people who see this will then go into dealerships, because you can buy it in a dealership, and they'll see a Cerato GT, they'll see a Picanto. We prefer to keep the spotlight on the Kia brand.

"Secondly, you can't underestimate the pride of purchase it gives other Kia owners. To know that it also wears the same badge as my Sportage, as my Carnival SLi, it gives them pride of purchase to keep shopping within the range. And maybe one day they'll buy the GT when it suits their circumstances."

And this is only the beginning for Kia and EVs, with the next model already locked in. The all-new EV9 is the brand's upcoming large SUV, based on the same e-GMP platform but much larger than the EV6. This will be similar in size to a Toyota LandCruiser and Nissan Patrol, giving Kia something that neither Tesla (with the Model X still unavailable locally) nor Hyundai (which is introducing the Ioniq 6 sedan in '23) offer to local customers.

Beyond that there will be more too, with Kia Australia saying it "has its hand up" for all models that will spin off the e-GMP architecture. This is expected to include more SUVs and potentially a smaller, more affordable model in the coming years.

Which should help cement Kia's place in the sales charts and its position as a maker of desirable electric cars.