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Snapshot
- Urban-focused EV: Compact SUV designed for city driving, launching in 2026
- Range Options: Expect 300-440km range with two battery choices (LFP and NMC)
- FWD Standard: Likely single-motor, front-wheel-drive configuration.
Kia's expanding EV range is about to grow further with another new addition: the EV2, a compact electric SUV built in and aimed primarily at the European market.
But, as Wheels reported way back in 2023, the EV2's Euro sourcing and diminutive proportions make it unlikely for Australia. "Highly unlikely", in fact. That's the word from Kia's Australian office.
"We would like to offer EV2, however, production out of Slovakia does present some hurdles when it comes to logistics and cost, so it is highly unlikely," a Kia Australia spokesperson told Wheels this week.
This won't be a revelation to keen watchers, of course.
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The smaller the car, the tighter the profit margins – and while Australian motorists haven't dismissed compact SUVs as quickly as they did light hatches, it seems only the Chinese brands with their various advantages have any appetite for offering their littlest models in Australia.
Hyundai, to its credit, will soon have a crack with its tiny Inster EV – but being built in Korea is likely the factor that got it over the line. Were it built in Europe, as the newer Kia EV2 will be, a business case would be harder to build.
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Click above for more exterior views
What's driving the EV2?
Kia has yet to reveal any technical details about the EV2 although reports suggest it will measure around 4000mm long – making it appropriately shorter than the brand-new EV3 (4300mm) and a touch shorter than the petrol-powered 4140mm Kia Stonic.
The Inster is even shorter at 3800mm, but the EV2 will ride on a newer, simplified version of Hyundai-Kia's E-GMP platform – so the similarities between these two will be few.
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Click above for more interior images
For battery and driving range, the EV2 is expected to feature a 42kWh lithium-iron phosphate (LFP) battery in base models and a 62kWh nickel-manganese-cobalt (NMC) battery in higher-spec variants.
With those power sources, expect a driving range of 300 to 440 kilometres.
A single-motor, front-wheel-drive configuration is expected across the range, with charging speeds limited somewhat by the platform's 400V electrical architecture.
Watch for more on the EV2 to come with its official, production-ready unveiling in the months ahead.
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