New Kia EV4 hatchback is £1,000 less than a VW ID.3
The clever Kia EV4 hatchback arrives in Europe with a very strong value-for-money proposition
UK prices for the new Kia EV4 hatchback have been released, undercutting key rivals while beating them on range and features. Preceding the quirky-looking Fastback by a few months, the European-built EV4 hatchback is available to order now, and comes with an attractive starting price and even more impressive range figures than those initially released a few months ago.
In the UK there will be three trim levels, starting at £34,695 for the entry-level ‘Air’ with the smaller of two battery sizes. Against its key rival – Volkswagen’s 58kWh ID.3 Pro Essential – the Kia has a few extra miles of range and undercuts it on price by just over £1,000. There is also Skoda’s excellent new Elroq to consider, and in this case it does undercut the entry-level EV4 on price by around £1,300, but it can’t quite match the Kia’s range.
An upgrade to the larger battery pack in the same ‘Air’ trim will cost £37,695, undercutting both the long-range versions of a VW ID.3 and Skoda Elroq by more than £1,500, and it’ll do around 30 miles more on a charge.
From here the larger battery pack is standard, but the spec goes up with ‘GT-Line’ and ‘GT-Line S’ models, costing from £39,395 and £43,895 respectively. Equipment highlights include larger 19-inch wheels, sportier styling, upgraded interior upholstery, customisable ambient lighting, with the top-spec S then throwing in adaptive headlights, heated and ventilated front seats, an upgraded stereo, a 360-degree parking camera and more.
The Kia EV4 Fastback will join the hatchback in the next few months, likely matching the trim and pricing structure of the hatch, giving Kia a direct rival for cars such as the Tesla Model 3 and Polestar 2.
Kia EV4 battery, range and charging
Kia has updated its range estimates for the hatchback models, adding more appeal for buyers across the line-up. There’s a choice of two batteries: ‘Base’ and ‘Long Range’. The 58.3kWh ‘Base’ battery will do up to 273 miles with the 81.4kWh ‘Long Range’ unit upping this to a maximum of 388 miles. The Fastback has yet to be updated with new figures, but expect slightly more range than the hatchback due to its more slippery bodystyle.
Kia hasn’t quoted a peak charging speed, but all versions take around half an hour to go from 10 to 80 per cent via a suitably fast DC rapid charger. The company has also confirmed the EV4 will be offered with Vehicle to Load (V2L) and Vehicle to Grid (V2G) capabilities.
Motors and performance
Whichever EV4 you go for, you’ll get a single front-mounted electric motor producing 201bhp. As it stands, there are no dual-motor all-wheel drive models, though a Kia EV4 GT is likely to follow in time, possibly with upwards of 300bhp.
The lighter car fitted with the smaller 58kWh battery is slightly quicker, and will do 0-62mph in 7.4 seconds. The 81kWh model completes the same sprint in 7.7 seconds; both the saloon and hatch are inseparable over the benchmark sprint, and every model has a top speed of 106mph.
The front suspension is an “EV-specialised” MacPherson strut design, with a multi-link layout at the rear. Kia says the car has enhanced geometry and advanced body strengthening, which “improve cornering stability and dynamic response”. It also gets the company’s i-Pedal 3.0 regenerative braking system with one-pedal driving.
Design and styling
Revealed at the 2025 Kia EV Day, we can now see how closely the designers have stayed to the EV4 concept revealed in 2023. The front is all but indistinguishable, in fact, with identical headlamp clusters and vertical DRLs, plus a similar clamshell-style bonnet. The dark strip that runs the width of the bonnet is thinner at the outer edges, but the lower air intake hasn’t changed all that much.
To the sides, the EV4’s darkened A, B and C-pillars are carried over from the concept, with the D-pillar treatment altered only slightly for the saloon-bodied production car. The rear is just as striking, with an almost coupé-like roofline and large rear screen sloping to the edge of the bootlid, where they meet a small spoiler and creased tailgate. The front DRLs are replicated at the back, with tall tail-lights with a distinctive signature.
Alongside the sleek Fastback, Kia presented a five-door EV4 hatchback – expected to be the more popular model in Europe and the UK. This version gets a similar front-end treatment, with the noticeable differences appearing rearward of the B-pillar – where the roofline stays tall for a more traditional look. Kia has opted for a clean rear-end design; it’s not clear from these early images whether the designers have hidden a wiper under the roof spoiler, or if the EV4 hatch will do without.
Karim Habib, Executive Vice President and Head of Kia Global Design, said: “The Kia EV4 is a clear reflection of our commitment to rethink mobility, and expand the boundaries of what design can achieve. By offering both saloon and hatchback variants, we are bringing to our customers the unique experience of modernity and practicality that defines the Kia EV family, in a way that suits their varied lifestyles and needs.”
On paper, the Fastback is the more practical of the two cars; its 490-litre boot is bigger than the hatchback’s 435-litre load bay. However, the four-door car’s opening is narrow, and while the boot is deep, it’ll likely lack the inherent versatility of a hatchback.
Having sat in the back of both variants, however, we can confirm that headroom is plentiful and there’s enough kneeroom for even long-legged adults to sit behind tall drivers.
Interior and technology
We were given our first look inside the new Kia EV4 at the firm’s 2025 EV Day in Barcelona. The cabin will feel familiar to those who’ve sat in or driven one of Kia’s new-age EVs, with the dashboard dominated by a huge 30-inch panoramic display comprising a 12.3-inch central screen, five-inch climate control panel and an additional 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster.
It runs Kia’s connected car Navigation Cockpit (ccNC), which the company claims “sets class-leading standards for in-car entertainment”. It’s compatible with over-the-air updates, and allows customers to run third-party apps such as Disney+ and Netflix while charging, for example.
It also features a new, so-called ‘Rest Mode’ which utilises the car’s front-row relaxation seats; it can recline the chairs and dim the lights at the press of a button to create a “comforting atmosphere”. The EV4’s ‘Theatre Mode’ optimises the screen for streaming, and can operate in conjunction with the optional eight-speaker Harmon/Kardon stereo.
As you might expect, the EV4 is fully-laden with the latest safety systems, with Kia targeting a full five-star Euro NCAP rating when fitted with the optional, top-level driver-assistance (ADAS F+) systems. This set-up adds to the standard driver-attention warning, intelligent speed-limit assist and blind-spot functions, with a system that can detect hazardous situations using the car’s cameras and radars.
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