Kia
EV6
Model Profile
From $78,276
Driveaway estimate · NSW · priced May 2026. Varies by state. Details →
Kia's EV6 arrived in 2022 as the brand's first purpose-built electric car, then promptly won Wheels Car of the Year, beating the Hyundai Ioniq 5 it shares a floor with. The mid-life update took its time reaching Australia, landing in 2026 almost a year late, but it brings the two things the original lacked: a larger 84 kWh battery that stretches the entry Air to 582 km of WLTP range, and Kia's slicker ccNC software. The swooping shape still splits opinion, and the range still runs from a sensible rear-drive runabout to a 478 kW GT hot-rod. Into a segment the Tesla Model Y no longer owns outright, it lands as a real alternative.
What matters to you?
450–582km
Range168–478kW
Power480–490L
Boot space7years
Battery warrantyRange shown across the EV6 line-up. Pick a priority to see the numbers that matter to you.
Images are illustrative and digitally rendered. They may not reflect the exact variant, colour or trim. Details →
Living with the EV6.
The EV6 is a medium electric SUV built on Kia's dedicated E-GMP platform, so the fast-charging 800-volt electrics, flat floor and long 2,900 mm wheelbase are engineered in rather than adapted from a petrol car. One 84 kWh battery underpins the whole range; what changes as you climb is how many motors it feeds and how the cabin is dressed. The entry Air is rear-drive and frugal, the GT-Line adds the design and tech most buyers actually want, and the GT turns the same architecture into a 478 kW flagship. Few rivals stretch this far on a single platform.
For most buyers the GT-Line RWD is the pick. At A$85,627 driveaway on mid-2026 pricing it keeps the efficient single rear motor and most of the Air's range, quoted at 560 km WLTP, while adding the wheels, sunroof and cabin kit that make the EV6 feel its price. Stepping up to the GT-Line AWD at A$94,027 buys a second motor and 239 kW but trims range to 522 km, a fair trade only if you want all-paw traction. Ownership is simple: seven years of warranty with unlimited kilometres, seven years of roadside assist, and 12-month or 15,000 km service intervals, longer than most petrol SUVs manage.
The GT AWD is the halo, and a serious one. Two motors make 478 kW and 770 Nm, enough to embarrass most sports cars off the line, backed by bigger brakes and an electronically controlled limited-slip differential. The trade is range and money: 450 km WLTP is the shortest in the family, and at A$109,861 driveaway on mid-2026 pricing it plays in premium-performance territory rather than the mainstream. It proves the platform's ceiling more than it answers what most driveways need. One caveat worth knowing up front: unlike the rest of the range, the GT is not ANCAP-rated.
Living with the EV6 is where the 2026 update earns its keep. The 800-volt architecture means a 10 to 80 per cent DC top-up takes about 18 minutes on a 350 kW ultra-rapid charger, among the quickest in the class, yet the car stays frugal, with the Air's 15.9 kWh/100km efficient for a two-tonne SUV. Inside, the twin 12.3-inch and 12.2-inch curved screens now run Kia's newer ccNC software with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and over-the-air updates, a clear lift over the laggy original. The long wheelbase frees up real rear-seat room, though the swept roof trims the boot to 490 litres and leaves shallow rear glass. Australians still rate it good to drive without claiming the facelift reinvented it. Buy it for the charging speed and the range depth; the deciding factor is which of the four very different cars suits you.
2022
The EV6 was the first electric car to win Wheels Car of the Year, beating its Ioniq 5 cousin.
EV6 Range Walk
One 84 kWh battery, four grades, and about A$31,000 between the cheapest and the dearest. The ladder is less about range than about how much performance and polish you want: rear-drive Air and GT-Line for efficiency, dual-motor GT-Line for traction, and the GT for outright speed. Here is what each rung actually buys.
- 01
Air RWD
Longest range, lowest priceFrom $78,276
The efficiency king. One 168 kW rear motor, 582 km WLTP on smaller 19-inch wheels, and the longest range in the family. Cabin is honest but plain: manual driver's seat, cloth-feel trim, no sunroof.
- 02
GT-Line RWD
Best valueFrom $85,626
For A$7,350 more the same 168 kW rear drive gains 20-inch wheels, a sunroof, head-up display, heated front seats and steering wheel, a power driver's seat and tailgate, privacy glass and upgraded trim. Range eases to 560 km on the bigger rims.
- 03
GT-Line AWD
Traction and paceFrom $94,026
Adds a front motor for all-wheel drive and 239 kW / 605 Nm, keeping the GT-Line's full kit. Range dips to 522 km, and it is quicker in the wet, the payoff for A$8,400 over the rear-drive car.
- 04
GT AWD
Outright speedFrom $109,861
The performance flagship: 478 kW and 770 Nm, 21-inch wheels, bigger brakes and a limited-slip diff. Range falls to 450 km and it is not ANCAP-rated, the cost of A$15,834 over the GT-Line AWD.
Driveaway estimate · NSW · priced May 2026. Varies by state. Details →
Under the skin.
How much can the Kia EV6 tow?
The Kia EV6 is rated to tow up to 1,500 kg with a braked trailer and 750 kg without trailer brakes.
Heaviest braked trailer allowed, quoted as ATM: the loaded trailer including ball weight.
1,500 kg
Limit for trailers without their own brakes.
750 kg
Gross vehicle mass: the most the loaded vehicle may weigh, ball weight included.
2,495 kg
Gross combination mass: vehicle and trailer together. Kia does not publish one.
Not published
The vehicle as delivered, before people, cargo and accessories.
2,055 kg
Everything you may add, ball weight included. Calculated: 2,495 kg GVM minus 2,055 kg kerb weight.
440 kg
Calculated
Downward load on the tow ball; it counts toward GVM.
75 kg
What's left once the van is hooked up
Hook up 1,500 kg with 75 kg on the ball and the Air RWD has 365 kg of payload left for people, cargo and accessories.
Kia does not publish a GCM for the EV6, so the tow rating and the GVM are the governing limits shown here.
Assuming 10 per cent of the trailer weight.
Two adults plus luggage is roughly 400 kg.
Over a limit. This combination does not comply.
Tow rating
0 kg under the 1,500 kg braked rating
Vehicle GVM
Over GVM by 110 kg. Lighten the load or the ball.
Combined GCM
GCM not published for this vehicle
Tow ball limit
Over the 75 kg ball limit by 75 kg
The rules and the fine print
Figures are manufacturer maximums for the Air RWDand can change with model year; the compliance plate and handbook of your exact vehicle govern. In Australia, trailers over 750 kg GTM (the loaded weight on the trailer's own wheels) need their own brakes, and over 2,000 kg they need brakes on all wheels plus a breakaway system. Ball weight typically runs 8 to 12 per cent of ATM. Axle loads and tyre ratings are not modelled here. Checking a different car against your van? Use the towing calculator.
How it protects.
ANCAP · Tested 2022
This vehicle achieved the highest possible ANCAP safety rating, with strong results across occupant protection, pedestrian safety and safety-assist technology.
Buy the EV6 for its charging speed and the breadth of a range running from a frugal 582 km Air to a 478 kW GT, and land on the GT-Line RWD, where the design and cabin tech justify the step up. Cross-shop the Tesla Model Y if the charging network and a lower entry price matter more than interior feel, and the mechanically identical Hyundai Ioniq 5 if you want the softer, comfort-tuned take on the shared platform, since the EV6 is pitched as the sportier, more design-led of the E-GMP twins. Skip the GT unless outright speed is the point: it is quick and special, but it costs premium-performance money, surrenders range, and unlike the rest of the range it is not ANCAP-rated. For most buyers the mid-grade rear-drive car is the smart EV6.
- Among the fastest-charging EVs on sale
- Deep range spread, up to 582 km WLTP
- Quick even in base rear-drive form
- Seven-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty
- Sharper cabin tech after the 2026 update
- Swept roofline trims boot and rear vision
- GT is dear and carries no ANCAP rating
- Base Air feels lightly equipped for the money
- Dual-motor grades give up useful range
Where the EV6 has been.
Past generations. Context, not the car on sale today.
The EV6 is a young nameplate with an outsized reputation. Launched globally in 2021 and in Australia in early 2022, it was Kia's first car built from the ground up as an electric vehicle on the E-GMP platform, and it announced the brand's EV ambitions loudly.
2022 - Wheels Car of the Year
The EV6 arrived in Australia in February 2022 and went on to win Wheels Car of the Year, the first electric car to take the award, edging out its Hyundai Ioniq 5 platform-mate. Early demand outstripped supply, with wait times stretching well into the following year.
2022-2023 - The GT flagship
Kia added the twin-motor GT flagship, giving the range a genuine performance halo and supercar-baiting acceleration, though it sat outside ANCAP's tested variants from the outset.
2026 - Mid-life facelift
After a delayed launch, the updated EV6 reached Australia in 2026 with a larger 84 kWh battery, longer range, Kia's ccNC software, added second-row side airbags and a retuned ride, addressing the original's laggy tech and modest range without changing its character.
Asked about the EV6.
By Yuri Cartland, Editor