TRIED AND TESTED
Kia PV5 Passenger
The minor resurgence in the MPV sector has a new player, thanks to Kia. By Simon Harris.
TRIED AND TESTED
Kia PV5 Passenger
The minor resurgence in the MPV sector has a new player, thanks to Kia. By Simon Harris.
MPVs or ‘people carriers’, once dismissed as ‘vans with windows’, are undergoing something of a comeback.
Nowhere near the zenith of the late 1990s and early 2000s, but a combination of factors has brought a number of them back to market.
The first is that where they were based on vans, the underlying vehicle became much more comfortable, better equipped and easier to drive.
Second, EV platforms are a little more flexible than ICE platforms, and easier to adapt to different vehicle profiles.
The third is perhaps we’re gaining a more pragmatic attitude to specific vehicle roles, and are slowly accepting that not everything has to be an SUV.
Stellantis offers similar vehicles through a number of its brands, as well as supplying a version to Toyota. Initially, models such as the Vivaro Life Electric and Peugeot e-Traveller were available with a 52kWh battery, but it was later replaced with a more capable 75kWh battery.
Kia brings its PV5 Passenger to market covering both those bases, with a 51.5kWh standard-range battery or a 71.2kWh long-range battery. The former, using a 120hp motor, has a WLTP combined range of 183 miles on a full charge, with the latter, producing 160hp, reaching 256 miles.
The longer-range battery is optional on the entry-level Essential grade, and the only battery offered on the higher-specification Plus.
We could also mention the electric MPV that has caught everyone’s attention in the last few years: the Volkswagen ID. Buzz. The Kia undercuts that model by around £25,000.
The Kia PV5 Passenger model features specification highlights including a 12.9-inch touchscreen navigation display, a 7.5-inch driver screen and a 6-speaker audio system with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Additional features noted are full LED lighting, automatic air conditioning and a bio-artificial leather steering wheel.
While the PV5 might also fall short in terms of capability – rival vehicles on the Stellantis platform are available in longer versions – this is only the first in a series of three Kia models that offer LCV and passenger-carrying versions. The larger PV7 will arrive in 2027, and the largest of the range, the PV9, a couple of years later.
Which model is right for you?
The Essential comes with 16-inch steel wheels, while the Plus grade adds significant comfort and utility spec, including 16-inch alloy wheels, flush windows, heated seats (front and outer rear) and steering wheel, a powered tailgate, vehicle-to-load (V2L) capability, and a wireless mobile phone charger.
The market for these vehicles is essentially short-distance shuttles for private hire operators, although there could also be a case for them being someone’s main vehicle, doubling as a versatile family car for private mileage.
The temporary hitch is, for the moment, that the PV5 is available as a five-seater, with seven-seat variants arriving later in the year. These will, no doubt, be more desirable on the used market after defleeting.
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VERDICT
As an appetiser ahead of the rollout of more capable versions of the PV5 Passenger, as well as the future LCV-based models, Kia has produced an intriguing and modern-looking alternative to existing options.
