What's the difference?
Kia admits that, even a handful of years ago, a car like the EV4 likely wouldn't exist in Australia. With a forecast of 70 sales a month, or 840 a year, it won't come close to the brand's biggest all-electric sellers, and senior executives and product planners alike would have been wondering if it was worth the effort.
But times have changed, and so have regulations, and Kia is happy to roll the dice on as many EVs as it can get its hands on to lower its fleet emissions in the wake of the New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES).
If you'll forgive the long and rambling intro, I'll now get to the point. Long live the NVES, because the EV4 is a good (if a little bizarre-looking) thing. It's quite lovely to drive, will cross vast distances in its long-range guise, and will undoubtedly make our roads a more visually interesting place.
But would you have one over the Tesla Model 3 or BYD Seal? Read on.
The Chery has most definitely popped and the Australian launch of new brand, Lepas, is only the start of what’s to come in 2027.
The Lepas L6 EV is the brand’s first entrant locally and it’s an electric mid-size SUV rival to the likes of the BYD Atto 3 Evo, Geely EX5, Hyundai Elexio, Kia EV5 and Leapmotor C10. The list goes on…
Lepas is doing everything it can to stand out on its own from the namesake Chery, as well as the Omoda Jaecoo brands in Australia. It’s also set to have its own dealer network.
Is the L6 EV a worthy addition to the Chery Group stable? Read on to find out.
An electric sedan is really shrinking the buyer pool, which is why Kia has such gentle expectations for the EV4 in Australia. But it's a lovely driving EV with plenty of perks, and the design alone will brighten up Australia's roadways. For my money, I'd either be going for the cheapest one that's sharp value with plenty of kit, or the flagship GT-Line that gets the big battery and the works in terms of equipment. The Earth for me sits in no-man's land.
Note: CarsGuide attended this event as a guest of the manufacturer, with travel, accommodation and meals provided.
Note: The author, Andrew Chesterton, is a co-owner of Smart As Media, a content agency and media distribution service with a number of automotive brands among its clients. When producing content for CarsGuide, he does so in accordance with the CarsGuide Editorial Guidelines and Code of Ethics, and the views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author.
Chery really doesn’t need any more brands in Australia, but here is Lepas, anyway.
While the L6 EV is rather characterless, it’s arguably the best Chery Group vehicle I’ve experienced to date. You can tell a lot of work has been put into localising it and as an electric mid-size SUV, it’s a pragmatic choice.