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Kia’s EV6, launched in 2021, was an early signal from Kia that its talk of rearranging car-buyers’ perceptions was more than an idle boast.
Sure, the South Korean brand had gone from budget also-ran a couple of decades ago to a brand that represents reliability and quality in a very short space of time.
But a brand that was technically innovative and EV-savvy? Or capable of family cars with supercar performance? Let’s wait and see, we all said.
And now the latest member of the all-electric EV6 family has arrived, and with it Kia’s big chance to prove its point, as well as convince us that its flagship products are worthy of a six-figure price-tag.
With shattering straight-line performance and all the hallmarks of a thoroughly modern take on the electric vehicle concept (including all-wheel-drive and electronic control of everything from the suspension to the rear differential) the EV6 GT makes the technical statement it needs to.
But does it have the quality, the specification and the overall appeal to justify a price-tag that was unimaginable in a South Korean car until very, very recently?
The fact is that technical merit is not enough – never has been – when it comes to making a macro price-point shift in the minds of consumers.
Any model seeking to reset the value proposition of an entire brand needs to be more than the sum of its parts. But does the EV6 GT achieve that rare distinction? That’s what we’re here to find out.
Meet the new Cupra Ateca. Actually, scratch that. Meet the new Cupra, the VW Group's Spanish performance brand that will be launching in Australia around the middle of this year.
Picture a pyramid, and then put VW at the top of it. Bottom left you've got Skoda, a brand that prides itself on practicality and clever features. Bottom right you've got Cupra, which promises to be the fun, sporty and energetic cousin, and to focus on performance, electrified or otherwise. But both are fed from Volkswagen.
Make sense?
The Ateca, then, is a nearly Tiguan-sized SUV that will launch in one hi-po trim level, and a significantly lower starting price than its better-known, R-badged relative.
It also promises to marry family duties with a fun-to-drive attitude. So how does it measure up?
A hundred thousand dollars used to be big money. And for a family SUV, it still is. But don’t make the mistake of confusing the Kia badge with pedestrian motoring. The EV6 GT is proof that Kia can make high performance cars that work, and make the most of modern EV tech in the process.
We’re a bit disappointed in the real-world range of the car, and there’s no doubt the vast majority of drivers neither need nor want a car as focussed as this one. But as an example of how a modern, digital electric car can feel more like an old-school analogue performance car, the GT is Exhibit A. And for those of us for whom it’s about the journey, not the destination, this is indeed good news as EVs continue to take over the world.
Note: CarsGuide attended this event as a guest of the manufacturer, with meals provided.
It's a racetrack taste test rather than a comprehensive road drive, but there's plenty to like about the Cupra Ateca, which fulfils its brief of injecting a little driving fun into the SUV space. The only question is whether its sportiness will be too sporty for your day-to-day, but for that, you'll have to wait and see.
CarsGuide attended this event as a guest of the manufacturer, with travel, accommodation and meals provided.
Perhaps the most poignant element of the GT’s design is that Kia has lavished lots of Australian input into the final product.
Like Kias before it, the EV6 GT benefits from plenty of Nth-degree local suspension tuning which, given the way some imports buck and crash on Aussie roads, is commendable and clever.
It’s also interesting that Kia has remained committed to this approach, especially since the new GT features the brand’s 'Electronically Controlled Suspension' (ECS) the first for an all-electric Kia.
By looking at real-time road speed, cornering forces, braking and acceleration forces and the actual road surface, the ECS can tailor the dampers’ behaviour to maximise dynamics, grip and ride quality. For some carmakers that would be enough, so full marks to Kia for taking the next step with local calibration input.
Perhaps the other design element of note is the fact that Kia sees the GT as not just a high performance family car, but also a vehicle that it is happy to describe as 'track worthy'.
And even with the straight-line speed involved, that’s a big statement for any car weighing north of 2.1 tonnes. Testing at the infamous Nurburgring in German underlines Kia’s determination to give the GT the smarts to handle a track day.
The use of high-performance Michelin tyres backs this up when a conventional EV tyre would improve range but at the expense of grip in corners.
To further underline how serious Kia is about that claim, the GT features a completely different steering set-up to lesser EV6 models.
The GT gets a variable ratio steering rack with a faster ratio than the other EV6s and variable levels of power assistance to improve feel. There’s even additional bracing on the GT to stiffen the body and make full use of that sportiness.
Another big part of any track-day car revolves around the braking system, and to that end Kia has fitted the GT with huge brakes.
The knock-on effect, of course, has been the requirement to fit 21-inch wheels for rotor clearance as well as a new front suspension system that features a double ball-joint design to complete the clearance for the 380mm front discs. Four-piston front calipers are also part of the GT braking package, identifiable by the bright green hardware.
In specific detail terms, other design standouts include the sequential LED indicators, flush-folding door handles, solar glass, intelligent headlight system and 64-colour ambient interior lighting.
If there’s a design disappointment it’s that the GT looks pretty much like any other EV6.
Yes, the 21-inch wheels and tyres are pretty easy to spot, but from the front, only a slightly different grille, lower bumper and matrix headlights give the game away.
That doesn’t make it an unattractive car (by any means) but it doesn’t automatically mean onlookers will know you’ve spent the extra gold for the extra performance.
And over in the Swing-and-a-Miss column is the synthetic soundtrack Kia has chosen for the GT. There are three different, selectable background noises linked to motor speed, but, to us, they simply sound like three different stages of wheel-bearing failure.
Cupra talks about its born-in-Barcelona design inspiration, but you can still see plenty of VW in the Ateca's side profile. But that's no bad thing, with the Cupra managing to look both polished and performance focused, but without looking like it's trying too hard.
The big change is in the front-end treatment, with a smaller centre grille that houses the Cupra badge (which looks a bit like a fox, and a bit like the Decepticon badge from Transformers, but which was actually "modelled on the attitude of tribal civilisations.")
The cool DRL designs, the two-tonne bronzed alloys and the quad exhaust tips all point a pretty strong picture of performance here, and for mine, the Ateca cuts a handsome figure.
Inside, though, it definitely feels a little less premium than modern VW products, with a greater use of hard plastics, and last-gen air-con and media controls, which – if you've driven the new Golf, for example – feel a little old-school by comparison.
Perhaps the biggest practicality hurdle is the car’s range. At an optimum 424km, it’s okay but not stellar. And if those kilometres are highway ones, you can forget about 424km; it’ll be a fair bit less than that.
Meantime, the long wheelbase of the basic EV6 platform means there’s lots of legroom in the rear, making the car a comfy four-seater (the rear-centre seating position is decidedly last place) with enough knee space for adults in the rear.
The cabin is dotted with USB and charging points and there’s wireless charging in the double-layer centre console. There’s a also a bottle-holder in each door, map pockets in the front seat-backs, a luggage net and retractable cargo cover.
Kia’s insistence that the GT be capable of track-day work means the headrests on the front seats allow for a helmet to be worn, while the lack of power adjustment for the front seats mean they can be mounted closer to the floor.
Even so, the sunroof gobbles up precious headroom, and the cabin is a bit tight in that direction even without a helmet.
The digital dash and head-up display is clear and legible and the menu system contained within the touchscreen has a positive action and is logically laid out. Only the gear selector makes us wonder with its dim indicator lights that are hard to discern in some ambient light conditions.
The silver steering wheel buttons are also a bit hard to fathom when light reflects off them. The starter button is also not where you instinctively look for it.
The Ateca measures 4386mm in length, 1599mm in height and 1841mm in width, and there is some 485 litres of boot space with the rear seats in place, and a substantial 1579 litres with the back pews folded flat.
It's a strong back-seat story here, too, with ample leg and headroom, individual device charging ports, and a pull-down seat divider that houses two cupholders.
There are two more upfront, as well as storage in every door, along with the ISOFIX attachment points in each window seat in the back.
Now it must be said that our test was conducted on a racetrack, with limited laps, no on-road driving, and no chance to fill the vehicle with passengers or baggage, so for a full practicality play-by-play, you'll have to wait until we get the Ateca through the CarsGuide office for a more comprehensive test.
The elephant in the room, of course, is that price-tag which is just a posh meal for two shy of the magic $100K, at $99,590, before on-road costs. Of course, EVs aren’t cheap to purchase in the first place, but then neither are cars with supercar performance. And the Kia is arguably both those things.
And let’s not forget that it’s also possible to spend a lot more than $100,000 and not go anywhere near as fast as the Kia does. At which point, the whole car falls into place.
This is also a car that is very well equipped, making that price-tag a little easier to swallow. You get techy gear like LED matrix headlights, acoustic and solar glass (laminated in the front doors) no less than seven USB charge ports, digital radio, twin 12.3-inch screens, a head-up display (with augmented reality function) Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, heated front and rear seats, and Kia’s 'Sounds of Nature' ambient noise generator.
What’s missing? Cars with this much performance often have carbon-ceramic brakes. But to be honest, the savage regeneration potential of the GT means it doesn’t really need them.
Power front seats would seem to be AWOL as well, but as we’ll explain later, the manual seats are there to save weight and free up headroom. The lack of an electrically adjustable steering column is a bit harder to explain away.
Six figures is a bit of a sticker-shock when you first encounter it, but when you dig deeper, like all EVs, the picture changes the more you know.
Cupra describes itself as an "unconventional challenger brand", and it essentially sits below the mainstream VW line-up, with cheaper pricing and a focus on fun over finery.
So the Ateca – which is about the same size and offers similar outputs to the Tiguan R – lists at $60,990, or $65,990 drive-away, which is significantly cheaper than the VW product, which lists at $68,990 before on-road costs, or – according to Volkswagen's website – $77,279 drive-away for a NSW shopper.
Interestingly, Cupra has launched an agency model in Australia, which means you buy the vehicles from the brand itself, with the transition occurring online and for a fixed price with no negotiation, rather than from a dealer.
The Ateca might not deliver quite the same grunt as VW's R product, but that's a significant saving. Oh, and metallic paint is free, too – as is servicing for the first three years – which means more savings.
So what do you get? The Ateca arrives in a single VZx trim level, and outside you'll find 19-inch alloy wheels, LED lighting front and rear, roof rails, a powered boot, quad exhaust exits, auto headlights and keyless entry and start.
Inside, there's three-zone climate, blue leather-wrapped sports seats that are heated in the front, wireless charging for your devices and ambient interior lighting.
You're well served for tech, too, with the VW Group's 10.25-inch Digital Cockpit, a 9.2-inch centre screen with navigation, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto that works wirelessly as well as when you plug in, a nine-speaker (plus sub) Beats sound system, as well as Dynamic Chassis Control and custom driving modes - including full-attack Cupra mode.
A purely electric car, the EV6 GT is all-wheel-drive courtesy of having one electric motor across the front axle, and a second motor driving the rear wheels.
Add it all up and at maximum power, you have 430kW/740Nm at your disposal.
It’s worth remembering those numbers are precisely the same power and torque as that produced by the last of the locally made muscle-cars, HSV’s final, 6.2-litre, supercharged V8 F-Series line-up back in 2015.
Compared with the non-GT versions of the EV6, that output is almost double the 239kW of the EV6 AWD Dual Motor.
There’s no multi-ratio transmission (just a single-speed arrangement) but there is an electronically operated rear differential to make the most of the 270kW contributed by the rear electric motor.
There’s also a Drift mode built into the car which, as well as courting controversy from the authorities, manages to shift 100 per cent of torque to the rear wheels at small steering inputs to allow the car to be driven sideways.
As the car exits the turn in question, some torque is shuffled forwards to the front wheels to pull the vehicle straight.
A set of paddle shifters control not the gearbox ratios (there are none) but instead the rate of regeneration on deceleration, and turned up to its maximum, can make the Kia a one-pedal car once you get the hang of it.
The GT also features drive models, which tailor the car’s behaviour in terms of steering feel and aggressiveness, suspension firmness, throttle sensitivity and even the stability control’s intervention threshold.
There’s also a steering-wheel mounted GT button which ramps all those settings up to DEFCON 3, placing them at their most dynamic calibrations in the interests of an exciting drive.
In fact, the GT button is the only way to get the full 430kW of power, too.
In the other drive modes, the spare Kilowatts are stored away for you, just waiting for that GT button to be pressed.
Right, so the Ateca's 2.0-litre TSI petrol engine produces 221kW and 400Nm, which is slightly less than the 235kW and 400Nm generated by the new Tiguan R.
But the Cupra is faster, knocking off the sprint to 100km/h in 4.9secs compared to the VW's 5.1secs – and it feels plenty quick from the driver's seat with your foot pinned to the floor.
That power is fed through a seven-speed DSG, with AWD standard fit on the Ateca.
Like the other electric Kias on sale now, the EV6 GT has a Lithium-ion battery with a capacity of 77.4 kWh. Located under the floor, the battery-pack accounts for no less than 479 of the GT’s 2185kg.
The on-board charger can handle 10.5kW and takes about seven-and-half hours to go from 10 per cent to 100 per cent charge.
Using a 50kW fast charger, you’re looking at 73 minutes to go from 10 to 80 per cent charge and if you can find a 350kW fast charger, that time drops to just 18 minutes.
On a full charge, Kia claims a combined range of 424km which is okay, but not exactly stellar. That range will also fall pretty quickly if you start to use the awesome stomp on offer.
And let’s not forget that, in running-cost terms, the GT is front-loaded. That is, the car itself costs more, but it’ll be cheaper to run over the years.
Meantime, as oil-based fuels cost more and renewable electricity becomes more prevalent, the financial and environmental running cost of an EV starts to fall.
Okay, so the jury is still out in terms of the environmental impacts of a 77-plus kWh battery, and if the power you’re using is not the green variety, things change again. It’s a moving target, to be sure.
Either way, Kia claims energy consumption of 20.6kWh per 100km which is higher than many EV rivals but reflects the dual motors and even elements like the 21-inch performance tyres (Pirelli Pilot Sports) rather than the lower-resistance EV-specific tyres of most others.
The GT is also a bit of a hero when it comes to regeneration during braking. The car is capable of producing 0.6G from regeneration alone, and as much as 320kWh of regenerated energy during full braking.
Cupra is yet to reveal official fuel figures for the Ateca in Australia, but international guides claim an 8.9-9.5L/100km figure on the WLTP cycle.
That's not a small number, and it's one that will no doubt be made worse if you drive it the way you're almost certainly going to drive it, but such is the price of performance.
The Ateca will also demand 98RON fuel, which will sting at the bowser, too.
Let’s cut to the – literal – chase: Acceleration. Any car with a nought to 100km/h time of 3.5 seconds is a serious performer, but even then, the first time you launch the GT, the sheer ferocity of the car’s response will surprise you.
It’s more like being shot out of a cannon than leaving the start-line, thanks to that instant torque, but the Kia also does it incredibly easily and fuss-free.
Where a lot of truly powerful cars struggle with grip, scrabbling and fighting against the traction control as they battle to get moving, the Kia simply takes off for the horizon.
There’s little squat, no loss of grip and just a seamless supply of Newton-metres. Your grandmother could launch this car as hard and fast as Lewis Hamilton could.
But where a lot of electric cars offer similar levels of traction and acceleration, the EV6 GT adds a whole new dimension.
Where much of the competition becomes a victim of its own kerb mass and the weight shift that comes with it, the Kia is an altogether more dynamic contraption, putting to the sword the theory that EVs are for straight-line stuff only.
The big, sticky Michelin tyres and the beautifully considered damper calibrations (the local experts’ work) combined with the quick steering rack and better-than-average steering feel and feedback, means the GT can not only be driven quickly around corners, it can also maintain its composure (and pace) even on a patchy, lumpy surface.
Where its velocity and steering angle suggests it should start sliding, it doesn’t. Where a corner-exit bump and lots of throttle would make other cars lift a front wheel, the Kia almost senses the road before it and tailors its damper responses.
In fact, that ability to predict the road surface is closer to reality than you might think. While the GT’s adjustable suspension remains passive (or reactive) rather than truly active (seeing into the future) the algorithms that control the dampers are smart enough to look at steering angle, speed, throttle position as well as examine the road surface in ultra-quick real time and adopt a posture that irons out the worst and keeps the wheels on the road.
Talking to the engineers who achieved this feat reveals a lot about what goes into making a two-tonne, high-horsepower car behave itself. As in, hundreds of passes over the same piece of road with full instrumentation on board and the brain power to interpret that data.
But if a car with so much roll stiffness can also offer the ride composure that this one does on 21-inch tyres, then those hundreds of passes have been well worth the effort.
As per Kia’s claim of track-readiness, we also got the chance to drive the EV6 GT at the tight, twisting, narrow Haunted Hills hillclimb circuit in Victoria’s Gippsland.
Frankly, the Kia simply has too much power for this track and we reckon it’s better left in Sport rather than GT mode where the power is a little softer and the car is not as fervent in chasing torque from the front axle to the rear and back again to dial out sliding.
It would be a different matter on a faster, flowing circuit like Phillip Island, but at Haunted Hills, driving the GT was a bit like trying to land a four metre shark in a three metre tinny.
Either way, however, the car’s on-road encouragement and dynamic poise is enough to convince us that this is one of the first EVs to actually speaks the same language as the enthusiast driver. And you can pretty much thank the Aussie suspension engineers for that.
Choosing to launch your new SUV on one of Australia's fastest racetracks shows either supreme confidence or bewildering foolhardiness, but in this instance, it was also a necessity.
See, Cupra is mere months away from official launch now, with orders for launch editions to open in May, and the only vehicles the brand could secure for its media preview were brought in from New Zealand, and unable to be driven on public roads.
And so Sydney Motorsport Park would play host to our first experience behind the wheel of the Ateca, and after only a handful of flying laps it was beginning to feel like a masterstroke.
This is not your average family SUV, and any vehicle in which you can drop the kids at school before clipping 200km/h-plus down the main straight of your closest race track is something to be celebrated.
The downside is that it's next to impossible to tell you what the Ateca is going to be like on your local streets, or whether the sporty suspension is going to be firm enough to shake the hairs loose from your head should encounter some questionable road surfaces.
But I can safely report that the power is prodigious, the steering smooth and confidence inspiring, and the AWD grip impressive in both tight and high-speed bends.
But perhaps the most surprising thing about the Ateca is its ability to feel both planted and agile in dynamic driving situations, with the SUV feeling altogether more stable than the smaller Cupra Leon, and hanging onto the tarmac in corners with more tenacity than the 140kW Cupra Formentor.
On first blush, engagement and enthusiasm are standard fit here, and that's likely no bad thing no matter what your daily commute looks like.
As a high-tech product of a forward looking company, it’s no surprise to learn that the EV6 GT is loaded with the latest safety tech, including driver aids.
Those include autonomous emergency braking (with identification function), blind-spot dentification, lane-keeping assist, multi-collision braking, active speed-limit assist, on-board tyre pressure monitoring, and front and rear parking sensors.
Seven air-bags are fitted, including full-length side bags and a centre-side air-bag to prevent head clashes between passengers in a side-impact.
There’s also a 3D surround camera system, active cruise-control and an indicator-triggered monitor to provide a display of whatever is lurking in the traditional blind-spot over the driver’s shoulder.
Even the car’s headlights have been designed with safety in mind, with a bright LED light source for the driver, but also an intelligent high-beam system that is aimed at reducing the risk of dazzling oncoming vehicles.
Essentially, the front-mounted camera on the GT can spot approaching vehicles and modify the output of individual LEDs within the high-beam cluster to manipulate the shape and spread of the lights’ beam, avoiding blinding the oncoming driver while still providing maximum illumination everywhere else.
The electronically operated rear differential is also being touted by Kia as a safety measure by being able to improve high-speed stability as well as reduce wheelspin on super slippery surfaces.
While the rest of the EV6 range was ANCAP tested last year and scored the full five stars, that rating doesn’t apply to the GT variant thanks to the specific front seats.
The Cupra Ateca arrives with a swag bag of advanced safety kit – helped, no doubt, by only launching with one top-tier model – as well as the expected stuff like airbags (there are seven), and the traction and braking aids.
Expect active cruise control, AEB with pedestrian and cyclist detection, side and exit assist systems, front and rear parking sensors and a 360-degree parking camera.
On the road, functions like Lane Assist will help keep you between the lines, Travel Assist provides freeway autonomy, while a fatigue monitor will tell you if you're getting tired behind the wheel.
The Cupra Ateca is yet to be ANCAP crash tested.
Like all modern EVs, the Kia should be cheaper to maintain than conventional cars purely because there are fewer moving parts.
Energy costs will come down to where you charge from and whether you have access to home solar panels.
The warranty is typically Kia-good, though, with seven years and unlimited kilometres on the basic car and seven years and 150,000km on all high-voltage components.
Kia offers a three-year, five-year and seven-year servicing plan at $733, $1371 and $2013, respectively.
Service intervals are every 12 months or 15,000km, whichever comes first.
Cupra are trying to minimise the stress here, so the Ateca wears a five-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty, with three years of complementary servicing built into the purchase price, with five-year packs also available to purchase.