Kia Niro EV interior, dashboard & comfort
Prices for the Niro EV can quickly reach nearly £42,000, at which point it no longer represents best value for money
It’s not just the styling where Kia has moved the game on with the second-generation electric Niro. All models feature two screens housed under a single curved panel – a setup swiped from the flagship EV6 – along with some clever touches and a few flourishes that make the cabin feel more premium than its rivals like the MG4 EV or VW ID.3.
Kia Niro EV dashboard
While the Niro’s dashboard is dominated by the aforementioned pair of screens, the cabin also features ambient lighting buried in the dashboard, soft materials and some marble-effect panels. The touch points all feel high-quality, everything feels well screwed together. We’re just not huge fans of the gloss-black plastic used on the centre console, considering how prone to scratching and fingerprints it is. There are also some cheaper-feeling plastics lower down but, all-in-all, the cabin design up front is very nice.
Equipment, options & accessories
The Niro is available in three trim levels, simply called 2, 3 and 4, with the electric version currently starting at just over £36,000 – over £1,000 more than a top-of-the-range MG ZS EV Long Range. You do get plenty of standard kit at least, with even entry-level 2 cars featuring LED headlights, rear parking sensors, a rear-view camera, a 10.25-inch driver’s display, an eight-inch infotainment touchscreen with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay connectivity, plus 17-inch alloy wheels.
The next step, 3, takes the price close to £39,000 and adds a 10.25-inch central touchscreen, front parking sensors, rear privacy glass, heated front seats and a heated steering wheel, plus keyless entry and start, and vehicle-to-load capability. The range-topping 4 pushes through £42,000 barrier, adding a head-up display, sunroof, faux-leather upholstery, ventilated front seats, a powered tailgate, a Harman Kardon sound system and the option (for £150) to have contrastingly coloured C-pillar ‘blades’. For an extra £900, you can add a heat pump to the 3 and 4 models to more efficiently warm the cabin.
The top-of-the-range version may not represent the best value for money, considering how entry-level versions of the Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Skoda Enyaq iV are both cheaper than the top-spec Niro EV, while the more sophisticated Toyota bZ4X and Kia EV6 are just a few thousand pounds more.
Infotainment, apps & sat nav
The entry-level Niro EV has a 10.25-inch driver’s display paired with an eight-inch touchscreen for infotainment, while the 3 and 4 specs increase the second screen to 10.25 inches. They’re both housed under a single curved panel. It’s a big improvement over the previous e-Niro, with Kia’s familiar user interface one of the better systems on the market. It has relatively intuitive menus and crisp graphics, although it isn't the most responsive.
Our test car featured the larger central screen, which boasts crisp graphics, intuitive menus and was relatively quick to respond. Overall it’s a much better infotainment system than you get in its competitors from VW or MG. But wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto feature as standard, too, should you wish to by-pass Kia’s own system.
