Kia EV4 Hatchback (2025 - ) Electric review

Considering the generous amount of standard kit and the impressive range, the EV4 is appealing package – although whether it’s worth the premium over the slightly cheaper EV3 is a matter of personal preference. The good news is all but the range-topping GT-Line S versions of the hatchback EV4 are priced below the £40,000 to avoid the ‘expensive car supplement’ which would otherwise increase your VED (or ‘road tax’) by several hundred pounds for the first few years. However, the saloon-like Fastback will incur this higher premium. If you can charge at home the EV4 should be very economical to run, particularly if you can charge on a dedicated EV tariff and company car drivers will get the added bonus of Benefit In Kind incentives for going electric.

While we’ll have to wait to find out how the EV4 will fare in the long run, Kia has a great reputation for reliability and the EV4 benefits from having fewer moving parts than a petrol equivalent. Kia’s industry leading seven-year/100,000-mile warranty across its whole range is very reassuring and the battery pack also gets its own eight years of cover for extra peace of mind.

Even the entry-level EV4 is packed with safety features including blind spot monitoring which is by far one of the most useful. You’ll also get front and rear parking sensors, a reversing camera, lane keeping assistance, adaptive cruise control, a speed limiter and traffic sign recognition as part of a whole suite of systems as standard. The combination of all these aids does result in a symphony of bings and bong, but these can be easily silenced by pressing and holding a couple of buttons on the steering wheel. Moving up to the highest grade of trim you’ll gain extras like side parking sensors, cameras down the sides of the car which display an image in the driver display when you indicate and a 360-degree camera. These are all very useful as although front visibility is very good, the car’s rearmost pillar creates a large blind spot at the back.

Comfort is an area where the EV4 excels. Just like the EV3 and EV9, the EV4 has three grades of trim – Air, GT-Line and GT-Line S – which each get their own distinctive combination of textiles and recycled materials. All models are spacious and well-equipped and even entry models get heated front seats. Air models come with grey cloth upholstery and headlining while sportier GT-Line and GT-Line S get a different steering wheel design, a black headlining and two-tone artificial leather upholstery. From the mid-range EV4 upwards you’ll gain ambient lighting and a powered driver seat with lumbar support. Meanwhile top of the range models get additional creature comforts like an opening sunroof, electrically adjustable heated and ventilated front seats with memory function for the driver and heated outer rear seats. There’s plenty of room wherever you are sitting and three adults should have just about enough space to fit in the back. The saloon has a larger boot on paper although the hatchback has the practicality advantage in reality as it is much easier to load items in and out.

The EV4 comes with all the features you would expect including keyless entry, climate control and ample USB-C ports. There are two 12.3 displays: one for the driver and one for the infotainment. These are joined by a central 5.3-inch touch-screen climate control panel. It’s all rather fiddly to use and we much prefer the Renault Scenic’s Google-powered system, but luckily you also get physical dials for the heating, a toggle for the volume and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto so you don’t have to interact with the built-in system very often. Mid-grade cars get a wireless phone charger and a digital key so you can unlock the car with your phone. Meanwhile, GT-Line S models gain a head-up display, powered tailgate, an interior three-pin plug and vehicle-to-load (V2L) capability enabling you to power other devices from the car’s battery. You can also opt for a heat pump to improve efficiency in colder weather for an additional £900 fee.

Out on the road the EV4 is super smooth and composed to drive. The lower driving position compared to high-riding SUVs creates a stronger feeling of connection with the car and it feels nicely planted in the corners. Whichever version of EV4 you choose you’ll get 204 horsepower driving the front wheels, though in time we expect Kia will offer an all-wheel drive version and a performance focused GT model too. This first pass is still ample for a family car, despite sounding modest by electric car standards. During our test drive the EV4 effortless got up to motorway speeds and never felt lacking in power. Air models have the option of a standard range version with a range of up to 273 miles from a 58.3kWh battery, or a long-range option with an 81.4kWh battery and 391-mile range. Meanwhile GT-Line and GT-Line S models both use the larger battery and have an official range of up to 362 miles which is probably closer to a maximum range of around 300 miles in the real world.